Can't add child task in Jira

[Arun]

📄 Description:

We’re encountering a critical issue in one specific Jira project where child tasks (formerly subtasks) added under parent tasks are not behaving as expected. They cannot be reliably created, and when attempted, they never appear in any lists or views, nor do they contribute to parent task progress or dashboard metrics.

Details:

• Issue is isolated to one specific project.

• When attempting to add a child task, the fields reset or refresh during creation (especially via the context panel), preventing successful creation.

• In rare cases where the child task appears briefly (after a refresh), it disappears again and is not visible anywhere:

  • Not in the issue view under parent

  • Not in backlog or board views

  • Not in filters, searches, or dashboards

• No task creation notifications are shown.

• These missing child tasks do not contribute to parent progress or reporting metrics.

• Issue started around August 8.

• Other projects with identical configurations (issue types, workflows, dashboards) are working correctly.

Steps Tried:

• Verified the child tasks are being created (or attempted) and properly linked to parent issues.

• Checked the issue type scheme and confirmed child task types are enabled.

• Reviewed workflows, permissions, and screen schemes for anomalies — none found.

• Dashboard filters do include child task types.

• Confirmed that resolution is being set when child tasks are marked done (in other projects).

• Tested across multiple users and browsers — issue persists.

• Attempted to locate the created child tasks via JQL — no results returned.

Expected Behavior:

• Child tasks should be created successfully and remain visible under parent issues.

• They should appear in all relevant views (issue view, backlog, board, filters).

• Child tasks should contribute to parent progress and reflect in dashboard gadgets.

Actual Behavior:

• Child task creation fails silently — form resets without saving.

• If created, the child task is never visible or searchable in any view or report.

• Parent progress and dashboards do not reflect their existence.

Request:

Please investigate urgently. This appears to be a project-specific configuration or backend issue preventing child task creation and visibility. We need assistance identifying the root cause and restoring expected functionality for child task behavior in this project.

[John Funk]

Hi Arun - Welcome to the Atlassian Community!

How are you creating the child tasks? Through clicking on the + icon and selecting Create child work item? Using automation?

So, sub-tasks are still sub-tasks (not formerly sub-tasks). Child tasks can be sub-tasks or children under a higher level. Which are you trying to create? 

[Arun]

I tried clicking on the + icon and selecting "Create child work item", but neither of those worked for me. When I submit the task by pressing Enter, the usual task-added notification doesn't appear, and the task is not added to the list. In my case, only the "Total work complete %" changes, and nothing else happens. After refreshing, the percentage also reverts back.

[John Funk]

Have you tried using a different browser? Or using with Incognito mode? Might be a browser problem. 

[Arun]

Yes I tried, also tried in different devices with different users. I just felt like some internal issues with Jira for that specific project.

[John Funk]

You should open a support ticket with Atlassian then. Please report back here with their answer/solution.

https://support.atlassian.com/contact/#/