How Stage Automations Work with Move Deal Actions
Why stage automations do not fire when a Move Deal action moves an opportunity, when they do fire (board drags, connected workflows, the opportunity page, the API and Claude), and how to wire the logic you need into your automation chain.
When you move an opportunity into a new pipeline stage, TrustPager runs the automations configured for that stage. But when a Move Deal action inside an automation moves an opportunity, those stage automations do not fire a second time. This is by design, and understanding why makes it easier to build automation chains that behave exactly as you expect.
Why stage automations do not re-fire on a Move Deal action
Imagine an automation on the "Application Received" stage that sends a welcome email and then moves the opportunity to "Processing". If moving to "Processing" also triggered that stage's automations, you could end up with a chain reaction, stage automations firing automations that fire more stage automations, with no natural stopping point.
To prevent this, TrustPager does not dispatch stage automations when an opportunity is moved programmatically by a Move Deal action inside another automation. Stage automations fire when a person moves a card in the app, or when the API or a connected Claude moves it, as described below.
The amber notice on the Move Deal action
When you configure a Move Deal action in the automation builder at https://app.trustpager.com/auto/automations, you will see an amber notice on the action card, between the Stage dropdown and the Save button. It reads something like: "Stage automations will not be dispatched for this move."
This is not a warning that something is wrong, it is a reminder that the destination stage's automations will stay quiet. The notice appears at configuration time so you know to wire any additional logic you want directly into this automation, rather than relying on the destination stage to pick it up.
How to build the chain yourself
If you want actions to run after the move, add them to the same automation, after the Move Deal action. The automation builder lets you sequence as many actions as you need, send an email, create a task, update a field, enrol into an Auto Queue, all in one chain.
Example: an automation fires when a form is submitted. You want it to move the opportunity to "Pending Review" and send a confirmation email. Add both actions to the same automation:
- Move Deal, set stage to "Pending Review"
- Send Email, confirmation message to the contact
Both actions run in sequence. The "Pending Review" stage automations stay quiet, so there is no risk of double-sending or looping.
Won and lost opportunities keep their status when moved to another board
A won or lost opportunity stays won or lost when a Move Opportunity action (or the API) moves it onto an ordinary stage of a different pipeline. It keeps its original won date and close date, and it stays won as it moves along that other board.
Typical example: your "Paid - Handover" stage is a won stage. Its automation moves the card to your delivery or onboarding board. The opportunity still counts as won in your reporting, with the date it was originally won.
- Moved to a different pipeline: stays won or lost, dates unchanged.
- Moved back onto an ordinary stage of the pipeline it was won or lost on: the opportunity reopens.
- Moved between two won stages: the won date is no longer reset.
The Move Opportunity action's "mark won/lost" option now also applies when you choose a specific stage, not only when you leave the stage blank.
Two ways to use the Move Opportunity step
When you edit a Move Opportunity step at https://app.trustpager.com/auto/automations, the "What should happen" setting gives you two choices:
- Move the card (the default): moves the card the opportunity already has to the pipeline and stage you choose.
- Add a card: puts a card on the chosen pipeline and stage and leaves every existing card exactly where it is.
When to add a card instead of moving one
Say a client buys two services. When onboarding ends, you want them on both delivery boards, for example Bookkeeping and Accounting Work. Use one Move Opportunity step set to Add a card for each board, and the opportunity ends up with a card on each.
- If the opportunity already has a card on that pipeline, the step is skipped, so you will not get duplicates.
- It never changes won or lost status.
- Like a move, it does not fire the destination stage's automations. Put any arrival actions in the same automation.
Reading the step cards
On the automation page, each step card now describes what that step will do, so you can check a whole automation at a glance without opening every step. For example you will see "Moves to Bookkeeping › New Client", "Adds a card on ...", or "Tags: ...". Save Email Attachments shows how many pipelines it covers, and "Unmatched: unassigned filing task" when no assignee is set. The "Click Edit to configure" prompt now only appears for a step that genuinely has no settings yet.
When stage automations do fire
Stage automations run whenever a card lands on a new stage, including when it arrives from another workflow:
- A user drags a card into the stage on the workflow board at https://app.trustpager.com/crm/workflows
- A user drops a card onto a connected workflow on the right of the board. The card lands in that workflow's first stage.
- A user changes the stage, or switches the card to another workflow, in the Workflows card on the opportunity page
- The API or a connected Claude moves the opportunity with move_opportunity or move_opportunity_card
In the app, TrustPager shows a confirmation window listing the automations that will run, and lets users skip individual actions if needed. See https://trustpager.com/help-center/selective-automation-actions for details on that flow. Through the API or Claude there is no window: the automations run, unless the move asks to skip them.
Combining Move Deal actions with Auto Queues
A common pattern is to move an opportunity and simultaneously enrol the contact into a nurture queue, all from one automation. Add a Move Deal action followed by an Add to Auto Queue action. The queue enrolment fires as part of this automation, independently of the destination stage's configuration. For more on setting up Auto Queues and the Add to Auto Queue action, see https://trustpager.com/help-center/how-to-set-up-auto-queues.
For developers, API field reference
When TrustPager moves an opportunity via a Move Deal action, the internal automation run record includes stage_automations_dispatched: false. This field confirms that the move was processed without triggering the destination stage's automation set. If you are building integrations or inspecting automation run logs via the API, this field is the reliable signal for distinguishing a programmatic move (automation-driven) from a manual stage change (user-driven, where stage automations do fire).
To add a card from the API or MCP instead of moving one, set mode: "add_card" in the move_deal step's config (the default is "move").
move_opportunity and move_opportunity_card run the destination stage's automations whenever the card lands on a new stage, including when it arrives from another pipeline. Send skip_automations: true to move it quietly, or skip_action_ids to skip particular steps.
Tip: If you expect stage automations to run after a programmatic move and they are not, this is why. The fix is to add those actions directly to the automation that contains the Move Deal action, not to the destination stage's automation set.