Expense Approval Process for Small Businesses (With Template)

Petty cash envelopes and photos of receipts in WhatsApp don't scale. Here's a lightweight process.

#1. Write a short expense policy

- **Claimable:** travel, fuel, client meals, supplies, courier. - **Not claimable:** personal items, fines, upgrades without approval. - **Deadlines:** submit within 30 days. - **Receipts:** required for anything above a small amount.

#2. Set thresholds

| Amount | Approvers | |---|---| | Small | Line manager | | Medium | Line manager → Accounts | | Large | Line manager → Accounts → Director |

#3. Build the workflow in Yapie Work

In **Work › Organisation › Workflows**, create *Expense claim* with steps **Line manager → Accounts**. Create a second *Large expense* workflow that adds **Director**.

#4. Submitting a claim

Employees go to **Work › Approvals › New request**, choose the workflow, enter the amount, date and purpose, and **attach receipts** (photos or PDFs).

#5. Approving

Approvers see everything in **To approve**: amount, purpose and attachments. They **approve**, **return** for missing receipts, or **reject** with a reason.

#6. Paying and recording

Accounts pays the claim (bank transfer or the **Yapie Wallet**). The approved request is **locked**, and the **audit log** records every administrative change.

#Red flags to watch

- Claims just under a threshold, repeatedly. - Missing or edited receipts. - Duplicate claims for the same date and amount.

#Frequently asked questions

What is an expense approval process?

The steps a spending claim follows — submission with receipts, approvals by managers and accounts — before it's paid.

Can approvers ask for a missing receipt?

Yes. They can return the request with a comment.

Can I see who approved an expense?

Yes. Status by person shows each approver's decision, and admins can review the audit log.