How to check user status while login in Laravel 5?
Stefan Bogdanescu
Founder & Senior Architect · 2026-06-29
# How to Check User Status While Logging In in Laravel 5: Handling Pending Approvals
As a senior developer working with Laravel, you frequently encounter scenarios where standard authentication is not enough. You need finer control over user access—for instance, allowing users to exist in a "pending" state before they gain full access. When building systems that require multi-stage approval processes (like user onboarding or admin approvals), simply relying on the default Laravel authentication flow isn't sufficient.
This guide will walk you through the most robust, developer-centric way to check a user's status during the login process in an older Laravel environment like 5.3. We will focus on preventing access if a user is not yet approved.
## The Problem: Gating Access Based on User Status
The core challenge here is that by default, once a user successfully authenticates via Laravel's built-in scaffolding, they are granted access to the application. To implement approval logic, we must intercept this process and introduce a conditional check against the `User` model before session data is fully established.
We assume you have added a `status` column to your `users` table (e.g., values like `'pending'`, `'approved'`, or `'rejected'`).
## Step 1: Model Preparation
First, ensure your Eloquent `User` model is ready to handle this status. This is where the logic of your application resides. While Laravel provides excellent tools for Eloquent relationships and querying; understanding how data integrity flows through the model is crucial, much like adhering to the principles discussed on [laravelcompany.com](https://laravelcompany.com).
In your `app/Models/User.php` (or wherever your model resides), ensure you have access to the status field:
```php
// Example User Model snippet
class User extends Model
{
protected $fillable = ['name', 'email', 'password', 'status']; // Make sure 'status' is fillable
// Optional: Define scopes if you plan on using global scope checks later
}
```
## Step 2: Intercepting the Login and Checking Status (The Controller Approach)
Since you are working within a standard Laravel setup, the best place to enforce this gate is within your custom login controller. We need to retrieve the user based on the credentials *and* check their status before proceeding with the session creation.
Let's assume you have a `LoginController` handling the POST request.
```php
// app/Http/Controllers/Auth/LoginController.php (Example structure)
use Illuminate\Http\Request;
use Illuminate\Support\Facades\Auth;
use App\Models\User; // Import your User model
class LoginController extends Controller
{
public function login(Request $request)
{
// 1. Attempt to authenticate the user by email/password
$credentials = $request->only('email', 'password');
if (!Auth::attempt($credentials)) {
// Authentication failed (bad credentials)
return redirect()->back()->withErrors(['email' => 'Invalid credentials.']);
}
// 2. Retrieve the authenticated user instance
$user = Auth::user();
// 3. CRITICAL STATUS CHECK
if ($user->status !== 'approved') {
// User exists but is pending approval. Block access.
return redirect()->route('login')->withErrors([
'status_error' => 'Your account is currently pending approval. Please wait for an update.'
]);
}
// 4. If status is approved, proceed with login
return redirect()->intended('/dashboard');
}
}
```
### Explanation of Changes:
1. **`Auth::attempt($credentials)`:** This standard method handles the password verification. If it fails, we stop immediately.
2. **Retrieving User:** After a successful attempt, we retrieve the user object using `Auth::user()`.
3. **Conditional Check:** We explicitly check `$user->status`. If this field does not match the required state (`'approved'`), we halt the process.
4. **Error Handling:** Instead of letting Laravel proceed to set up the session, we redirect back to the login page while flashing a specific error message (`status_error`). This ensures the user sees a clear reason for being blocked, rather than just a generic login failure.
## Conclusion: Best Practices
Checking user status during login is an essential security and workflow feature. While you *could* try to implement this logic within Laravel's built-in authentication guards, placing the validation directly in your custom controller provides the most explicit and controllable error messaging.
Remember that robust system design—whether it’s handling authentication or managing application workflows—requires careful consideration of state transitions. Always strive for clarity, especially when dealing with user-facing errors. For deeper insights into building scalable applications on Laravel, exploring official documentation and community best practices is highly recommended, as seen in the resources available at [laravelcompany.com](https://laravelcompany.com). By implementing this check, you ensure that only authorized users gain access to your application features.