Audience: Accounting Manager
Summary: Reviews the invoice approval process, including how to create an invoice approval rule and send an invoice to an Invoice Approver.
This article covers the following topics:
Overview of Invoice Approval
The invoice approval option allows the Accounting Manager to request approval of an invoice before submitting a payment.
When an Accounting Manager requests Invoice approval, they are prompted to enter the email address of the approver they want to send the invoice to. This is used primarily for the Accounting Manager to double-check the validity of any invoice with the particular department/manager that is responsible for it. These approvals are sent via email to a specific person and can be approved either by logging in or by using a link in their email.
For an in-depth understanding of the configuration options and tiers, review the Company-Wide Invoice Approval Options article.
Create an Invoice Approval Rule
Accounting Managers can create invoice approval rules by following these steps:
1. Navigate to Company Profile by clicking your initials on the top right of the navigation bar.
2. Click on the Invoice Approval Rules tab.
Invoice approval rules are based on accounting system fields. Since rules can only be made using one field or attribute, if an invoice is coded in such a way that two or more attributes could apply, the system will apply the rule based on the listed order. The order cannot be changed, except for the Vendor attribute, which can be prioritized.
3. The available attributes vary by accounting system and you may have more or less depending on your ERP. The table below defines the attributes available for invoice approval routing for each accounting system.
| Intacct | Microsoft Dynamics GP | NetSuite | QuickBooks Desktop | QuickBooks Online | Xero | |
| 1. | Location | Vendor | Location | Vendor | Vendor | Department |
| 2. | Vendor | Account | Department | Class | Class | Vendor |
| 3. | Department | Class | Account | Account | Account | |
| 4. | Class | Vendor | ||||
| 5. | Employee | Account | ||||
| 6. | Project | |||||
| 7. | Item | |||||
| 8. | Customer | |||||
| 9. | Account |
4. Click the Add New Approval Rule button.
5. Select the attribute you want to make the rule for.
6. Start typing the name of your attribute, select it, then click the magnifying glass icon.
Next, you’ll be prompted to enter your invoice approvers. If you have global tiers with dollar thresholds, those tiers will populate, allowing you to assign the appropriate approvers.
To prioritize the Vendor attribute, select ‘Prioritize Vendor Attribute Rule’, which will make this specific rule take precedence if an attribute conflict arises.
7. Fill in the information for the invoice approver. If the invoice approver is already in the system, their name will populate and you can press Save. If not, enter their email address and click Add a New Approver.
8. From there, you will be prompted to add the new Invoice Approver's first and last name. When doing this, be sure to click Add before clicking Save.