---
url: https://docs.oakmega.com/en/troubleshooting/booking-no-available-slots.md
description: >-
  If a booking question shows no dates or times, check whether the item is open,
  its Booking Period and Booking Cutoff Time, weekly slots, existing bookings,
  and staff availability. If a member selected a slot but could not submit the
  form, check whether that slot is still available.
---

First, confirm that the member can **open the form and see the booking question**. If login, form eligibility, or submission is the problem, start with [Why members cannot open or submit a form](https://docs.oakmega.com/en/troubleshooting/form-cannot-submit.md). If the booking question appears but has no available date or time, work through these checks.

## 1. Open the booking item settings

1. Go to **Web-based Tool › Booking Center** and find the item used in the form.
2. Click the edit icon at the end of its row. Check **Basic Settings**, **Time Settings**, and **Restriction Conditions**.
3. Note the date and start time the member wants, along with the **Booking Duration**, before comparing the settings below.

The screenshot shows where to find **Open for Booking**, **Booking Duration**, **Open Slot Interval**, **Booking Cutoff Time**, **Booking Period**, and **Weekly Effective Time Slots**. Check the actual item used by the form; this screenshot shows an unsaved example.

![An unsaved booking item settings page showing Open for Booking, Booking Duration, Open Slot Interval, Booking Cutoff Time, Booking Period, and Weekly Effective Time Slots](https://docs.oakmega.com/en/troubleshooting/images/booking-no-available-slots-01-settings.png)

These settings generate candidate times. The system then removes times that overlap existing bookings or the assigned staff member's busy periods.

## 2. Check why a time was removed

| Check | What to look for | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| **Open for Booking** | When off, forms using this item stop accepting bookings and the respondent sees that the booking is currently unavailable | Turn it on if the item should accept bookings |
| **Booking Period** | The **entire booking** must fit within the allowed dates and times. If the period ends at 12:00 and duration is 60 minutes, an 11:30 start will not appear | Extend the period or choose a time that ends within it. **Within N days** rolls forward daily and ends at 23:59 on the last day |
| **Booking Cutoff Time** | A slot disappears when its start is less than the required advance time away. With a 24 hour cutoff, tomorrow at 09:00 will not appear if it is already 10:00 today | Ask the member to choose a later slot, or adjust the cutoff if appropriate |
| **Weekly Effective Time Slots**, **Booking Duration**, and **Open Slot Interval** | The weekday has no configured period, the period cannot hold a full booking, or the desired start does not fall on the configured interval | Add a sufficiently long period for that day and review duration and interval. When weekly slots are off, candidate times span 00:00–24:00 each day |
| Existing bookings for the same item | Another active booking overlaps the desired time; cancelled bookings do not hold slots | Check **Bookings** for that day and offer another time |
| Other bookings for **Bind Staff** | The assigned staff member has a booking for another item at the same time | Check that person's booking records, then choose another time or available staff member |
| Staff calendar | Busy events in a connected Google or Outlook calendar remove overlapping slots. A calendar connection error can also leave no slots | Check the connection and events under **Staff Settings**; resolve the conflict or ask the staff member to check the calendar connection |

Times that have already passed do not appear. Use the date the member actually wants: if only one day is empty, start with that day's weekly schedule, period, and booking records.

## 3. A slot was visible, but submission failed

Another member may book a time between the moment it appears in the form and the moment this member submits. The system **checks availability again** during submission and will not create a booking for a slot that has become unavailable.

1. Ask the member to reopen the booking question and choose from the current available times.
2. Check **Bookings** for a new booking at the original time, plus the assigned staff member's other bookings and calendar.
3. If a new time still fails and the form shows another error, use the [form submission checks](https://docs.oakmega.com/en/troubleshooting/form-cannot-submit.md).

## Next steps

* [Take bookings with Booking Center](https://docs.oakmega.com/en/guide/marketing-tools/booking-center.md)
* [Why members cannot open or submit a form](https://docs.oakmega.com/en/troubleshooting/form-cannot-submit.md)
* [Glossary](https://docs.oakmega.com/en/glossary.md)