Split: updated translation is still not reflected on the frontend

This thread is resolved. Here is a description of the problem and solution.

Problem:
The client reported an issue where translations were not being saved when an Advanced Custom Fields (ACF) field contained the live website's primary domain URL. Although the translated text was visible in the Advanced Translation Editor (ATE), it was not reflected on the front end after saving. This issue was specific to ACF link fields containing the primary domain URL, and did not occur with other external domain URLs.

Solution:
We investigated the issue by replicating the environment and testing various configurations. The problem was identified as a bug in the WPML plugin related to how URL translations were handled. We provided a workaround by modifying a specific line of code in the WPML plugin files:

if ( ! ICL_TM_COMPLETE === $job->status || ! isset( $job->elements ) ) {

was changed to:

if ( ICL_TM_COMPLETE !== $job->status || ! isset( $job->elements ) ) {

This change corrected the issue, allowing the translations to be saved correctly. We also recommended adding a custom XML configuration to ensure proper handling of link translations.

Please note that this solution might be outdated or not applicable to your specific case. We highly recommend checking related known issues at https://wpml.org/known-issues/, verifying the version of the permanent fix, and confirming that you have installed the latest versions of themes and plugins. If the issue persists, please open a new support ticket at WPML support forum.

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This topic is split from https://wpml.org/forums/topic/wpml-translated-urls-not-reflecting-on-front-end-for-secondary-language-pages/

Tagged: Compatibility

This topic contains 32 replies, has 2 voices.

Last updated by Dražen 2 weeks, 6 days ago.

Assisted by: Dražen.

Author	Posts
July 3, 2026 at 10:16 am #18139589
Dražen Supporter Languages: English (English ) Timezone: Europe/Zagreb (GMT+02:00)	Hello, Thank you for the detailed testing and the video. It was very helpful. I was able to reproduce the same behavior on test site you provided, so I can confirm the issue. It appears to occur specifically when using your primary domain URL in the Greenshift Link element. Would it be possible for me to take a copy of your website and investigate the issue locally? I'd like to determine whether this is related to your server environment or if it's a general compatibility issue. Let me know please. Regards, Drazen
July 7, 2026 at 6:08 am #18144334
justinb-4	Hi, Thank you for your response. We’re okay with copying the site and setting it up on your local system to investigate and test the issue. Please let us know what you need from us, and we’ll provide it. Thank
July 7, 2026 at 8:59 am #18144700
Dražen Supporter	Hi, Thank you for your response. I'm trying to create and download a Duplicator package, but unfortunately I'm unable to complete the download. It seems there is some server limit or protection in place, as the connection is interrupted after 1–2 minutes. I've tried from different devices and internet connections, but the result is always the same. Could you please try downloading the package from your side (both files)? If it works, you can upload it to Google Drive or WeTransfer and share the link with me. That will allow me to download it locally and continue investigating the issue. hidden link Thank you! Drazen
July 9, 2026 at 7:52 am #18148612
justinb-4	Hi, Thank you for your response. We’ve exported the site’s files and database and uploaded them to Google Drive, so they’re ready to share. As part of our company’s current security policy, we’ve taken a few security measures before sharing a copy of the site with you for local installation. We’ve also created a new administrator account specifically for you to use on the site Could you please enable the private message option in the ticket? That way, we can securely share both the Google Drive download link and the administrator credentials with you. Thanks
July 9, 2026 at 8:31 am #18148711
Dražen Supporter	Hello, thank you for the effort. Sure, I have enabled private reply now. Regards, Drazen
July 10, 2026 at 6:07 am #18150860
Dražen Supporter	Hello, thanks, I have now requested access for the files. Regards, Drazen
July 10, 2026 at 7:15 am #18150951
justinb-4	Hi, We have provided access. Please check it and let us know. Thanks
July 10, 2026 at 8:25 am #18151085
Dražen Supporter	Hello, Thank you for your patience. I took a copy of the website and tested the same scenario locally, including the Greenshift Link block with the original domain URL. However, I was not able to reproduce the issue, and the translation saved correctly. Since the issue occurs only on the hosted website, it appears to be related to the server or Pantheon environment rather than the page content itself. I will escalate this to our second-tier team so they can review the case and advise on the next debugging steps. I will update you as soon as I receive their feedback. Regards, Dražen
July 10, 2026 at 11:34 am #18151498
Dražen Supporter	Hello, While discussing your case with our second-tier team, we noticed a couple of things that I wanted to check with you. Previously, the behavior was slightly different. The Advanced Translation Editor opened normally each time, but now after usign sumo logic URL and saving and trying again there is "ATE job creation error". I also noticed that I'm currently unable to update plugins on the site. The update fails with the following error: > Unpacking the package… > Could not create directory. /code/wp-content/upgrade/greenshift-animation-and-page-builder-blocks.13.1.2 Could you please let me know if there have been any recent changes to your Pantheon environment, permissions, or other hosting configuration? This error makes us wonder whether there may be a server or filesystem restriction in place that could also be affecting the translation process. Can you please also with server support and make sure website /plugins can update to latest versions and write to DB. Regards, Dražen
July 10, 2026 at 12:27 pm #18151540
justinb-4	Hi, On our Pantheon development environment, we temporarily switched the connection mode from SFTP to Git so we could commit the latest changes and export the code for you. When a Pantheon environment is in Git mode, plugins can't be installed or updated through the WordPress dashboard. To do that, the environment needs to be in SFTP mode. We've now switched the environment back to SFTP mode, so you should be able to install and update plugins without any issues. Please give it a try and let us know if it works. Regarding the ATE job creation error you mentioned, I believe I've seen a similar issue before. In my case, I was able to resolve it by making a small update to the page, saving it again, and then reopening the ATE. That may be worth trying as well. Thanks
July 10, 2026 at 12:45 pm #18151587
Dražen Supporter	Hello, Thank you for the update. That explains why I wasn't able to update the plugins. Thanks for switching the environment back to SFTP mode. I'll pass this information on to our second-tier team and update you once I receive their feedback. Regards, Dražen
July 16, 2026 at 6:07 am #18160917
Dražen Supporter	Hi, Thank you for your patience. I discussed your case with our developers to better understand your workflow and expectations. From our understanding, WPML is working as intended. When a translation job is updated, WPML automatically replaces URLs that belong to the old site with the current site's domain. This is expected behavior because WPML only knows which site it is currently running on and cannot determine which domain should be considered the "correct" one. Before we consider whether any changes or improvements are needed, we'd like to better understand your use case. Could you please confirm if your goal is to keep links pointing to the live site while you are working on the staging site, so that after deploying staging back to production you don't need to update those URLs again? If so, there are a couple of possible approaches for you: If you use the staging URLs while translating on staging, WPML will automatically update them when you later update the translations on the live site. Alternatively, after deploying to production, you can use a search-and-replace tool to update the URLs if needed. Please let us know if our understanding of your workflow is correct or if your goal is different. Kind regards, Dražen
July 16, 2026 at 4:31 pm #18162600
justinb-4	Hi, Thank you for your support. The main goal of this ticket is to resolve an issue in which translations are not saved when an ACF field contains the live website’s primary domain URL. Initially, we noticed that although the translated text was visible in the Advanced Translation Editor (ATE), the changes were not reflected on the front end after saving. This was the reason we opened the ticket. Based on your recommendations, we created a separate staging environment and tested the theme, plugins, and other possible causes. After further investigation, we narrowed the issue down to ACF fields that contain links using our primary domain. The same issue occurs directly on the production website. Whenever an ACF link field contains the primary domain URL, the translated content does not appear on the front end after the translation is completed in ATE. When we reopen the translation in ATE, the translated text is still visible there. However, it appears that the translation is not being saved correctly in the database or applied to the translated page on the front end. Our main objective is to understand the root cause of this issue and determine how we can debug and resolve it. In the staging or production environment, if we use any other external domain in the ACF field, the translation is saved successfully and is reflected correctly on the front end. The issue only occurs when the ACF field contains the live website's primary domain URL. Could you please help us investigate why this specific scenario prevents the translation from being saved correctly? Thanks
July 17, 2026 at 6:26 am #18163100
Dražen Supporter	Hi, Thank you for the detailed explanation and for taking the time to narrow down the issue. The additional findings are very helpful. I will discuss this with our second-tier team again. I'll get back to you as soon as I have an update or if we need any additional information for further investigation. Kind regards, Dražen
July 27, 2026 at 5:51 am #18178116
justinb-4	Hi, Any updates on it? Thanks