Gravity Forms Advanced Restrict Dates Selection Premium Add-on

1. Overview & Business Value Proposition

The Gravity Forms Advanced Restrict Dates Selection Add-on gives administrators comprehensive control over calendar datepickers within WordPress. By default, Gravity Forms Date fields permit site visitors to pick any day of the year, frequently resulting in off-hours bookings, weekend submissions, holiday scheduling errors, and wasted customer service hours.

This documentation walks you through configuring rule-based date restrictions directly inside your Gravity Forms editor. Whether you run a medical clinic requiring business-day bookings, an equipment rental firm operating only on weekends, or an event venue with specific holiday shutdowns, this add-on enforces calendar rules on both the browser front-end and the server back-end.

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2. Prerequisites & System Compatibility

Before installing the add-on, confirm that your WordPress hosting environment satisfies the standard requirements:

• WordPress: Version 5.8 or higher.
• PHP: Version 7.4, 8.0, 8.1, or 8.2+.
• Gravity Forms: Version 2.5 or higher (Basic, Pro, or Elite license).
• Active License Key: A valid GravityExtra license key for one-click automatic updates and security patches.

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3. Installation & License Activation

1. Log into your GravityExtra Account and download the latest plugin ZIP file: gravityforms-advanced-restrict-dates-addon.zip.
2. From your WordPress Admin Dashboard, navigate to Plugins → Add New → Upload Plugin.
3. Select the downloaded ZIP file, click Install Now, and then click Activate Plugin.
4. Navigate to Forms → Settings → Restrict Dates and enter your license key to enable background updates.

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4. Step-by-Step Configuration Guide

Step 4.1: Enable Restrict Date Selection on a Field

Open any form in the Gravity Forms Form Editor, or add a standard Date field from the Advanced Fields palette. Click on the Date field to open its settings sidebar on the right.

Under the field settings, locate the Restricted Date Settings section and check the checkbox labeled “Allow Restricted Dates”.

Step 4.2: Configure Minimum and Maximum Date Boundaries

Once the restriction toggle is activated, you can optionally restrict bookings to a defined chronological range. Enter your desired Minimum Date (earliest allowed date) and Maximum Date (latest allowed date).

Dates falling outside this window will be visually greyed out and made unselectable in the front-end calendar.

Step 4.3: Restrict Specific Days of the Week

Under the Days of The Week section, select which recurring days are open for booking. By default, you can select or unselect any day from Monday to Sunday.

• Business Days Only: Check Monday through Friday, leaving Saturday and Sunday unchecked to disable weekend selections.
• Weekend Specials: Check only Saturday and Sunday for weekend-specific retreats or rental turnarounds.
• Midweek Operations: Check specific days such as Tuesday and Thursday for targeted consultation slots.

Step 4.4: Add Holiday & Exception Blackout Dates

In addition to recurring weekly schedules, real-world businesses must account for specific holidays, staff training days, and facility shutdowns. The Exceptions section allows you to block individual calendar dates without modifying your general weekly rules.

Click the Add Exception Date button, select the date using the browser picker, and add as many specific blackout dates as needed. To remove an exception, simply click the X icon adjacent to that date.

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Step 4.5: Rolling Dates and Blocked Dates (version 1.1)

Version 1.1 adds dates that move with the calendar. Open the Date field, go to the Advanced tab and find Rolling dates inside Restricted Date Settings (“Allow Restricted Dates” must be ticked).

• Earliest date: keep the fixed Minimum Date, or choose Today plus days (for example 2 days of notice) or Days after another Date field (for example a check-out at least 1 day after the check-in).
• Latest date: keep the fixed Maximum Date, or choose Today plus days (for example bookings up to 90 days ahead) or Days after another Date field (for example a stay of at most 14 nights).
• Same-day cut-off: with Today plus days, from this time on (site time zone) today counts as tomorrow, so orders after 14:00 move one day later.
• Blocked dates and holidays: one per line. 2026-12-24 blocks one day, 2026-12-24 to 2027-01-02 blocks a range, 12-25 blocks that day every year and 12-24 to 12-26 blocks a range every year (a range may run over New Year, such as 12-30 to 01-02).

The rolling dates narrow the fixed Minimum and Maximum Date, and the week days and exception dates still apply. The calendar greys out every day that is not allowed, and the same rules are checked again when the form is submitted, so a typed or tampered date is refused with “This date is not available. Please choose another date.” Fields that do not use these options work exactly as before. The new options need an active licence.

5. Front-End User Experience & Calendar Behaviors

When visitors navigate to your form on desktop or mobile, clicking the Date field triggers the native jQuery UI datepicker. The add-on hooks into gform_datepicker_options_pre_init to apply your rules seamlessly:

• Visual Dimming: Blocked weekdays, dates outside your min/max range, and exception dates appear dimmed and non-clickable.
• Hover State Prevention: Restricted date cells do not highlight or respond to mouse cursor clicks.
• Accessible Screen Reader Compliance: Form fields retain standard keyboard accessibility while preventing unauthorized date values.

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6. Troubleshooting & Common Questions

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7. Next Steps & Resources

Explore live examples and get started with Gravity Forms Advanced Restrict Dates Selection today: