Workday Custom Objects API

openapi: 3.1.0
info:
  title: Workday Extend Workday Custom Objects API
  description: >-
    APIs for defining and managing custom objects that extend Workday's data model
    to meet specific business needs. When new custom objects and business processes
    are built, a public REST API is automatically created for other developers and
    processes to use. Supports both single-instance and multi-instance custom
    objects attached to standard Workday business objects such as workers and
    organizations.
  version: v1
  contact:
    name: Workday Developer Support
    url: https://support.developer.workday.com/s/
  termsOfService: https://www.workday.com/en-us/legal.html
externalDocs:
  description: Workday Custom Objects Documentation
  url: https://doc.workday.com/extend/custom-objects/
servers:
  - url: https://{baseUrl}/api/customObjects/v1/{tenant}
    description: Workday Custom Objects API Server
    variables:
      baseUrl:
        default: api.workday.com
      tenant:
        default: tenant
security:
  - OAuth2:
      - customObjects:manage
tags:
  - name: Custom Object Definitions
    description: >-
      Operations for defining and managing custom object types including their
      schemas, attributes, and relationships to standard Workday objects.
  - name: Custom Object Fields
    description: >-
      Operations for managing the fields and attributes defined within custom
      object schemas.
  - name: Custom Object Instances
    description: >-
      Operations for creating, reading, updating, and deleting custom object
      data instances attached to Workday business objects.
paths:
  /customObjectDefinitions:
    get:
      operationId: listCustomObjectDefinitions
      summary: Workday Extend List custom object definitions
      description: >-
        Returns a collection of custom object type definitions configured in the
        tenant, including their schemas, field definitions, and parent object
        associations.
      tags:
        - Custom Object Definitions
      parameters:
        - $ref: '#/components/parameters/limit'
        - $ref: '#/components/parameters/offset'
        - $ref: '#/components/parameters/search'
      responses:
        '200':
          description: Successful response with custom object definitions
          content:
            application/json:
              schema:
                type: object
                properties:
                  total:
                    type: integer
                    description: Total number of custom object definitions
                  data:
                    type: array
                    items:
                      $ref: '#/components/schemas/CustomObjectDefinition'
        '401':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/Unauthorized'
        '403':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/Forbidden'
    post:
      operationId: createCustomObjectDefinition
      summary: Workday Extend Create a custom object definition
      description: >-
        Creates a new custom object type definition with specified fields and
        attributes. The definition determines the schema for all instances of
        this custom object type.
      tags:
        - Custom Object Definitions
      requestBody:
        required: true
        content:
          application/json:
            schema:
              $ref: '#/components/schemas/CustomObjectDefinitionCreate'
      responses:
        '201':
          description: Custom object definition successfully created
          content:
            application/json:
              schema:
                $ref: '#/components/schemas/CustomObjectDefinition'
        '400':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/BadRequest'
        '401':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/Unauthorized'
        '403':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/Forbidden'
  /customObjectDefinitions/{definitionId}:
    get:
      operationId: getCustomObjectDefinition
      summary: Workday Extend Retrieve a custom object definition
      description: >-
        Returns the details of a specific custom object type definition including
        its full field schema, validation rules, and parent object associations.
      tags:
        - Custom Object Definitions
      parameters:
        - $ref: '#/components/parameters/definitionId'
      responses:
        '200':
          description: Successful response with definition details
          content:
            application/json:
              schema:
                $ref: '#/components/schemas/CustomObjectDefinition'
        '401':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/Unauthorized'
        '403':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/Forbidden'
        '404':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/NotFound'
    patch:
      operationId: updateCustomObjectDefinition
      summary: Workday Extend Update a custom object definition
      description: >-
        Updates an existing custom object type definition. Changes to the schema
        may affect existing custom object instances.
      tags:
        - Custom Object Definitions
      parameters:
        - $ref: '#/components/parameters/definitionId'
      requestBody:
        required: true
        content:
          application/json:
            schema:
              $ref: '#/components/schemas/CustomObjectDefinitionUpdate'
      responses:
        '200':
          description: Definition successfully updated
          content:
            application/json:
              schema:
                $ref: '#/components/schemas/CustomObjectDefinition'
        '400':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/BadRequest'
        '401':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/Unauthorized'
        '403':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/Forbidden'
        '404':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/NotFound'
    delete:
      operationId: deleteCustomObjectDefinition
      summary: Workday Extend Delete a custom object definition
      description: >-
        Deletes a custom object type definition. All instances of this custom
        object type must be deleted before the definition can be removed.
      tags:
        - Custom Object Definitions
      parameters:
        - $ref: '#/components/parameters/definitionId'
      responses:
        '204':
          description: Definition successfully deleted
        '401':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/Unauthorized'
        '403':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/Forbidden'
        '404':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/NotFound'
  /customObjectDefinitions/{definitionId}/fields:
    get:
      operationId: listCustomObjectFields
      summary: Workday Extend List custom object fields
      description: >-
        Returns the collection of fields defined in the specified custom object
        definition, including field types, validation rules, and constraints.
      tags:
        - Custom Object Fields
      parameters:
        - $ref: '#/components/parameters/definitionId'
      responses:
        '200':
          description: Successful response with field definitions
          content:
            application/json:
              schema:
                type: object
                properties:
                  total:
                    type: integer
                  data:
                    type: array
                    items:
                      $ref: '#/components/schemas/CustomObjectField'
        '401':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/Unauthorized'
        '403':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/Forbidden'
        '404':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/NotFound'
    post:
      operationId: addCustomObjectField
      summary: Workday Extend Add a field to a custom object definition
      description: >-
        Adds a new field to the custom object definition. The field will be
        available on all new and existing instances of this custom object type.
      tags:
        - Custom Object Fields
      parameters:
        - $ref: '#/components/parameters/definitionId'
      requestBody:
        required: true
        content:
          application/json:
            schema:
              $ref: '#/components/schemas/CustomObjectFieldCreate'
      responses:
        '201':
          description: Field successfully added
          content:
            application/json:
              schema:
                $ref: '#/components/schemas/CustomObjectField'
        '400':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/BadRequest'
        '401':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/Unauthorized'
        '403':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/Forbidden'
        '404':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/NotFound'
  /workers/{workerId}/customObjects/{customObjectName}:
    get:
      operationId: getWorkerCustomObject
      summary: Workday Extend Retrieve custom object data for a worker
      description: >-
        Returns the custom object instance data attached to the specified worker.
        Supports both single-instance and multi-instance custom objects. For
        multi-instance objects, returns a collection of instances.
      tags:
        - Custom Object Instances
      parameters:
        - $ref: '#/components/parameters/workerId'
        - $ref: '#/components/parameters/customObjectName'
      responses:
        '200':
          description: Successful response with custom object data
          content:
            application/json:
              schema:
                $ref: '#/components/schemas/CustomObjectInstance'
        '401':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/Unauthorized'
        '403':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/Forbidden'
        '404':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/NotFound'
    put:
      operationId: updateWorkerCustomObject
      summary: Workday Extend Create or update custom object data for a worker
      description: >-
        Creates or updates the custom object instance data attached to the
        specified worker. If the custom object does not exist for the worker,
        it is created. Otherwise, the existing data is updated with the
        provided values.
      tags:
        - Custom Object Instances
      parameters:
        - $ref: '#/components/parameters/workerId'
        - $ref: '#/components/parameters/customObjectName'
      requestBody:
        required: true
        content:
          application/json:
            schema:
              $ref: '#/components/schemas/CustomObjectData'
      responses:
        '200':
          description: Custom object data successfully updated
          content:
            application/json:
              schema:
                $ref: '#/components/schemas/CustomObjectInstance'
        '201':
          description: Custom object data successfully created
          content:
            application/json:
              schema:
                $ref: '#/components/schemas/CustomObjectInstance'
        '400':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/BadRequest'
        '401':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/Unauthorized'
        '403':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/Forbidden'
        '404':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/NotFound'
    delete:
      operationId: deleteWorkerCustomObject
      summary: Workday Extend Delete custom object data for a worker
      description: >-
        Deletes the custom object instance data attached to the specified worker.
      tags:
        - Custom Object Instances
      parameters:
        - $ref: '#/components/parameters/workerId'
        - $ref: '#/components/parameters/customObjectName'
      responses:
        '204':
          description: Custom object data successfully deleted
        '401':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/Unauthorized'
        '403':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/Forbidden'
        '404':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/NotFound'
  /organizations/{organizationId}/customObjects/{customObjectName}:
    get:
      operationId: getOrganizationCustomObject
      summary: Workday Extend Retrieve custom object data for an organization
      description: >-
        Returns the custom object instance data attached to the specified
        organization. Supports both single-instance and multi-instance custom
        objects.
      tags:
        - Custom Object Instances
      parameters:
        - $ref: '#/components/parameters/organizationId'
        - $ref: '#/components/parameters/customObjectName'
      responses:
        '200':
          description: Successful response with custom object data
          content:
            application/json:
              schema:
                $ref: '#/components/schemas/CustomObjectInstance'
        '401':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/Unauthorized'
        '403':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/Forbidden'
        '404':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/NotFound'
    put:
      operationId: updateOrganizationCustomObject
      summary: Workday Extend Create or update custom object data for an organization
      description: >-
        Creates or updates the custom object instance data attached to the
        specified organization.
      tags:
        - Custom Object Instances
      parameters:
        - $ref: '#/components/parameters/organizationId'
        - $ref: '#/components/parameters/customObjectName'
      requestBody:
        required: true
        content:
          application/json:
            schema:
              $ref: '#/components/schemas/CustomObjectData'
      responses:
        '200':
          description: Custom object data successfully updated
          content:
            application/json:
              schema:
                $ref: '#/components/schemas/CustomObjectInstance'
        '201':
          description: Custom object data successfully created
          content:
            application/json:
              schema:
                $ref: '#/components/schemas/CustomObjectInstance'
        '400':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/BadRequest'
        '401':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/Unauthorized'
        '403':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/Forbidden'
        '404':
          $ref: '#/components/responses/NotFound'
components:
  securitySchemes:
    OAuth2:
      type: oauth2
      flows:
        authorizationCode:
          authorizationUrl: https://{baseUrl}/authorize
          tokenUrl: https://{baseUrl}/oauth2/{tenant}/token
          scopes:
            customObjects:manage: Manage custom object definitions and instances
            customObjects:read: Read custom object data
  parameters:
    definitionId:
      name: definitionId
      in: path
      required: true
      description: The unique identifier of the custom object definition
      schema:
        type: string
    workerId:
      name: workerId
      in: path
      required: true
      description: The unique Workday identifier of the worker
      schema:
        type: string
    organizationId:
      name: organizationId
      in: path
      required: true
      description: The unique Workday identifier of the organization
      schema:
        type: string
    customObjectName:
      name: customObjectName
      in: path
      required: true
      description: The name of the custom object type
      schema:
        type: string
    limit:
      name: limit
      in: query
      description: Maximum number of results to return
      schema:
        type: integer
        default: 20
        maximum: 100
    offset:
      name: offset
      in: query
      description: Number of results to skip for pagination
      schema:
        type: integer
        default: 0
    search:
      name: search
      in: query
      description: Search term to filter results
      schema:
        type: string
  responses:
    BadRequest:
      description: Invalid request parameters
      content:
        application/json:
          schema:
            $ref: '#/components/schemas/ErrorResponse'
    Unauthorized:
      description: Authentication required
      content:
        application/json:
          schema:
            $ref: '#/components/schemas/ErrorResponse'
    Forbidden:
      description: Insufficient permissions
      content:
        application/json:
          schema:
            $ref: '#/components/schemas/ErrorResponse'
    NotFound:
      description: Resource not found
      content:
        application/json:
          schema:
            $ref: '#/components/schemas/ErrorResponse'
  schemas:
    ErrorResponse:
      type: object
      properties:
        error:
          type: string
          description: Error code identifying the type of error
        message:
          type: string
          description: Human-readable error message
    ResourceReference:
      type: object
      properties:
        id:
          type: string
          description: The Workday ID of the referenced resource
        descriptor:
          type: string
          description: The display name of the referenced resource
        href:
          type: string
          format: uri
          description: The API resource URL
    CustomObjectDefinition:
      type: object
      properties:
        id:
          type: string
          description: Unique identifier for the custom object definition
        descriptor:
          type: string
          description: Display name of the custom object type
        name:
          type: string
          description: The API name of the custom object type
        description:
          type: string
          description: Description of the custom object type
        instanceType:
          type: string
          enum:
            - single
            - multi
          description: Whether this is a single-instance or multi-instance custom object
        parentObjectType:
          type: string
          enum:
            - worker
            - organization
            - position
            - jobProfile
          description: The standard Workday object type this custom object extends
        fields:
          type: array
          items:
            $ref: '#/components/schemas/CustomObjectField'
          description: The fields defined in this custom object
        isActive:
          type: boolean
          description: Whether the custom object definition is active
        createdOn:
          type: string
          format: date-time
          description: Timestamp when the definition was created
        lastModified:
          type: string
          format: date-time
          description: Timestamp when the definition was last modified
        href:
          type: string
          format: uri
    CustomObjectDefinitionCreate:
      type: object
      required:
        - name
        - instanceType
        - parentObjectType
      properties:
        name:
          type: string
          description: The API name for the custom object type
          maxLength: 128
          pattern: '^[a-zA-Z][a-zA-Z0-9_]*$'
        description:
          type: string
          description: Description of the custom object type
        instanceType:
          type: string
          enum:
            - single
            - multi
          description: Whether instances are single or multi per parent object
        parentObjectType:
          type: string
          enum:
            - worker
            - organization
            - position
            - jobProfile
          description: The standard Workday object type to extend
        fields:
          type: array
          items:
            $ref: '#/components/schemas/CustomObjectFieldCreate'
          description: Initial fields for the custom object
    CustomObjectDefinitionUpdate:
      type: object
      properties:
        description:
          type: string
          description: Updated description
        isActive:
          type: boolean
          description: Whether the definition is active
    CustomObjectField:
      type: object
      properties:
        id:
          type: string
          description: Unique identifier for the field
        name:
          type: string
          description: The API name of the field
        displayName:
          type: string
          description: The display label for the field
        dataType:
          type: string
          enum:
            - text
            - number
            - decimal
            - boolean
            - date
            - dateTime
            - currency
            - reference
            - richText
          description: The data type of the field
        isRequired:
          type: boolean
          description: Whether the field is required
        isReadOnly:
          type: boolean
          description: Whether the field is read-only
        maxLength:
          type: integer
          description: Maximum length for text fields
        precision:
          type: integer
          description: Decimal precision for numeric fields
        referenceObjectType:
          type: string
          description: The Workday object type for reference fields
        defaultValue:
          type: string
          description: Default value for the field
    CustomObjectFieldCreate:
      type: object
      required:
        - name
        - dataType
      properties:
        name:
          type: string
          description: The API name of the field
          maxLength: 128
          pattern: '^[a-zA-Z][a-zA-Z0-9_]*$'
        displayName:
          type: string
          description: The display label for the field
        dataType:
          type: string
          enum:
            - text
            - number
            - decimal
            - boolean
            - date
            - dateTime
            - currency
            - reference
            - richText
        isRequired:
          type: boolean
          default: false
        maxLength:
          type: integer
          description: Maximum length for text fields
        referenceObjectType:
          type: string
          description: Required for reference type fields
        defaultValue:
          type: string
    CustomObjectInstance:
      type: object
      properties:
        id:
          type: string
          description: Unique identifier for the custom object instance
        definition:
          $ref: '#/components/schemas/ResourceReference'
        parentObject:
          $ref: '#/components/schemas/ResourceReference'
        data:
          type: object
          additionalProperties: true
          description: >-
            The custom object field values as key-value pairs where keys are
            field API names and values match the field data types
        createdOn:
          type: string
          format: date-time
          description: Timestamp when the instance was created
        lastModified:
          type: string
          format: date-time
          description: Timestamp when the instance was last modified
        href:
          type: string
          format: uri
    CustomObjectData:
      type: object
      additionalProperties: true
      description: >-
        Custom object field values as key-value pairs. Keys must match the
        field API names defined in the custom object definition. Values must
        conform to the field data types.