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Issue hierarchy

Exportelier follows Jira's configurable parent/child hierarchy instead of stopping after one sub-task level. The feature is available on every plan and works in single-issue, JQL, board, sprint, release, backlog, preview, and Jira Automation exports.

Configure the limits​

Open the template's Page settings and set:

  • Maximum depth: default 3, effective ceiling 5.
  • Maximum child issues: default 200, effective ceiling 1,000. Roots do not count toward this budget; multi-issue exports share one budget.

Values over the ceilings are clamped on the server. Depth 4 or more, or more than 200 child issues, can take longer. Large synchronous exports automatically use the background job path. Setting depth to 1 preserves the original single-level sub-task output.

Worked three-level example​

For an Initiative PLAN-1, Jira may return this hierarchy:

  • PLAN-10 — Authentication epic
    • PLAN-21 — Implement OIDC login
      • PLAN-34 — Add refresh-token tests

The root Initiative is depth 0. The Epic, Story, and Sub-task render at depths 1, 2, and 3. PDF and DOCX indent the rows; Markdown emits the same structure as a nested list so compaction remains effective.

Add a Sub-task table to the template to render the hierarchy. Its level-style controls let you set indentation, font size, weight, and color for each depth. Markdown supports nesting and bold weight; font size and color apply only to PDF and DOCX.

Truncation and permissions​

Traversal is breadth-first and deterministic, so shallower levels remain complete before deeper nodes are included. If a depth limit, node limit, or Jira parent cycle truncates the tree, the export contains a visible note. Issues the exporting user cannot browse are omitted by Jira without failing the export.