# gt: General Translation CLI tool: gt queue
URL: https://generaltranslation.com/en-GB/docs/cli/reference/commands/enqueue.mdx
---

title: gt queue
description: Queue uploaded files for General Translation without downloading results. API reference for the gt queue command.

---

Queues previously uploaded files for translation and returns immediately, without waiting for or downloading the results. Pair it with [`gt upload`](/docs/cli/reference/commands/upload) and [`gt download`](/docs/cli/reference/commands/download) to split translation across CI stages. See [Manage translations](/docs/cli/guides/managing-translations#split).

*Note: For production use only. Requires a production `GT_API_KEY` and `GT_PROJECT_ID`.*

```bash
npx gt queue
```

## How it works [#how-it-works]

1. Reads `gt.config.json` to determine which files to translate.
2. Identifies the previously uploaded files by their content hashes.
3. Sends them to the General Translation API for translation.
4. Exits immediately without waiting for translations to complete.

To download the results once they are ready, run [`gt download`](/docs/cli/reference/commands/download).

## Flags [#flags]

`queue` accepts the same flags as [`gt translate`](/docs/cli/reference/commands/translate#flags). The most commonly used flags are listed below; the linked reference above contains the complete set.

| Parameter                   | Description                                            | Type       | Optional | Default          |
| --------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------ | ---------- | -------- | ---------------- |
| `--api-key <key>`           | Production API key.                                    | `string`   | Yes      | `GT_API_KEY`     |
| `--project-id <id>`         | Project ID.                                            | `string`   | Yes      | `GT_PROJECT_ID`  |
| `-c, --config <path>`       | Path to the config file.                               | `string`   | Yes      | `gt.config.json` |
| `--locales <locales...>`    | Additional target locales, appended to config locales. | `string[]` | Yes      | —                |
| `--default-locale <locale>` | Source locale for the project.                         | `string`   | Yes      | `en`             |
| `--timeout <seconds>`       | Request timeout in seconds.                            | `number`   | Yes      | `900`            |
| `--dry-run`                 | Parse and validate without calling the API.            | `boolean`  | Yes      | `false`          |

## Example [#example]

```bash
# Stage 1: upload source files
npx gt upload

# Stage 2: queue the uploaded files for translation
npx gt enqueue

# Stage 3: download the results once they are ready
npx gt download
```

## Other notes [#notes]

Splitting `upload`, `queue`, and `download` is useful in CI/CD pipelines where each step runs in a separate stage or job. Because `queue` returns immediately, the download step can run in a later job once translations are complete.