> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://help.tahua.io/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://help.tahua.io/product-news/2026/application-collaborator-improvements.md).

# Application Collaborator Improvements

We've made a set of improvements to Application Collaborators — how they're invited, what they can see, and how you control whether they're used at all.

## Problem

Application Collaborators could only be chosen from people who already had an account on the Portal. If an Applicant wanted to bring in a colleague, a research partner, or an administrator from another organisation who had never used Tahua, there was no way to do it from the Application. The Applicant had to ask that person to register first, wait for them to finish, and then go back into Manage Collaborators to add them — or ask an Administrator to step in.

Collaborators were also limited to the Application form itself. Once an Application progressed, a Collaborator couldn't see the outcome, the conditions attached to it, or the reporting they were often the person responsible for completing.

And there was no way to turn Collaborators off, or to allow them on some Funding Rounds but not others.

## What's changed

### 1. Invite someone who doesn't have an account

The Manage Collaborators window now includes a **Can't find them? Invite a new applicant** option beneath the search box, available to both the Applicant who owns the Application and to Administrators.

Selecting it opens a short form — **Type of applicant** (Company or Individual), **Company name**, **First name**, **Last name** and **Email address**. Clicking **Send invite** emails the person an invitation telling them which Application they've been invited to collaborate on, and asking them to set a password and register.

They then complete the registration form configured for that Funding Round — the Individual or Organisation registration template, matching the type of applicant selected. Once registration is complete, they're added to the Application as a Collaborator automatically, with no further action needed from the Applicant or an Administrator.

### 2. Collaborators can see more of the Application

Collaborators now have access to:

* The Application, including completing and submitting it
* The status of the Application as it progresses
* Decision letters issued on the Application
* Decision Conditions attached to the Application
* Application Milestones

Contracts, Contract Milestones and Payments remain restricted — Collaborators have no visibility of these. Contract access stays with the Applicant organisation and its signatories.

### 3. New controls over who can add Collaborators

You can now control whether Collaborators are available at two levels:

* **Organisation-wide** — under **Settings > Organisation**, in the new **Collaboration** section
* **Per Funding Round** — under **Advanced Settings** on the Details step of the Funding Round

A Funding Round that leaves the setting untouched inherits your organisation-wide default. Collaborators remain enabled unless you turn them off.

{% hint style="warning" %}
The two settings behave differently when switched off. Turning Collaborators off at **organisation** level withdraws access from existing Collaborators immediately. Turning it off on a **Funding Round** only prevents new Collaborators being added — anyone already working on an Application in that round keeps their access.
{% endhint %}

## Learn more

Full detail is in the Knowledge Base:

* [Inviting a New Collaborator to an Application](https://help.tahua.io/knowledge-base/administrator-help-guides/applications/inviting-a-new-collaborator-to-an-application) — how the invitation works, and exactly what a Collaborator can and cannot access
* [Enabling Application Collaborators](https://help.tahua.io/knowledge-base/administrator-help-guides/applications/enabling-application-collaborators) — the new settings, and how the organisation and Funding Round options interact
* [How to Collaborate on an Application](https://help.tahua.io/knowledge-base/applicant-help-guides/grant-applications/how-to-collaborate-on-an-application) — the applicant-facing guide, which you're welcome to share with your Applicants
* [Contract vs Application Milestones](https://help.tahua.io/knowledge-base/administrator-help-guides/milestones/contract-vs-application-milestones) — the difference between the two Milestone types, and why Collaborators can only see one of them