> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.keloa.ai/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Assignment rules

> Auto-route new conversations to the right teammate based on channel, tag, language, or intent.

Assignment rules run automatically on every new conversation (and on messages that reopen one). The first matching rule wins — so order matters.

## Open assignment rules

Sidebar → **Settings** → **Assignment rules**.

You'll see rules in evaluation order. Drag to reorder.

## Anatomy of a rule

Each rule has:

* **When** — a set of conditions (same fields and operators as flow [Conditions](/flows/conditions))
* **Then** — who to assign

### When fields

* `channel` — webchat, email, whatsapp, …
* `contact.tags`
* `contact.company`
* `contact.language`
* `intent` — AI-inferred intent
* `conversation.tags`

### Then targets

* **User** — a specific teammate
* **Specialty** — any teammate with that specialty, round-robin
* **Nobody** — explicitly leave unassigned (useful to short-circuit later rules)

## Examples

**Route VIPs to senior support:**

```
When:  contact.tags contains "vip"
Then:  Specialty "senior-support"
```

**Route Dutch-language email to the NL team:**

```
When:  channel equals "email"
   AND contact.language equals "nl"
Then:  Specialty "dutch"
```

**Auto-route refunds by intent:**

```
When:  intent equals "refund"
Then:  Specialty "returns"
```

## Order matters

Rules are top-down. Once one matches, the rest are skipped. So put **specific** rules first, **catch-all** rules last.

## No rule matched

If no rule matches, the conversation is left unassigned. The AI agent still handles it; human teammates can claim it from the inbox filter **AI**.

## Round-robin within specialty

When the target is a **specialty**, conversations distribute evenly across everyone with that specialty. Out-of-office and paused teammates are skipped automatically.

## Editing a rule

Click the row → edit → save. Changes apply from the next incoming conversation (existing ones don't re-assign).

## Pausing and deleting

* Toggle the switch to pause/unpause.
* **⋯ → Delete** removes the rule entirely.

## Troubleshooting

| Issue                                     | Fix                                                                                                     |
| ----------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Rule never matches                        | Inspect a recent conversation: does `contact.tags` actually contain the value? Tags are case-sensitive. |
| Wrong teammate assigned                   | Reorder rules — a more specific rule above may be winning.                                              |
| Everyone gets assigned out-of-hours stuff | Add a rule at the top: *`business_hours equals false` → Nobody* to short-circuit.                       |