Approval Rules

The Approval Rules module defines and automates approval workflows for transactions such as invoices, bills, and credit memos — ensuring financial control and compliance, routing transactions to the right approvers, defining when approvals are required, and reducing manual follow-ups. Especially useful for organizations with structured approval hierarchies or audit requirements.

Key features

• Multi-level approval workflows
• Rules based on amount, category, or transaction type
• Specific approvers or role-based approvers
• Conditions for automatic approval
• Enable/disable rules anytime
• Full approval audit trail

Rule lifecycle

• Draft — being created, not active; editable freely.
• Active — enabled and applied; approvals trigger automatically.
• Inactive — disabled; no longer applied to new transactions.

How approval rules work

1. A transaction is created (e.g., invoice, bill).
2. The system checks whether any rule applies.
3. If conditions match, the transaction routes for approval.
4. The approver reviews: Approve moves it forward; Reject sends it back to the creator for correction and resubmission.

If no rule applies, the transaction processes without approval.

Creating an approval rule

1. Navigate to Settings → Approval Rules and click Create.
2. Enter basic details — Rule Name and Module / Transaction Type (e.g., Invoice, Bill).
3. Define conditions for when the rule applies — amount thresholds, category or account, or specific transaction filters.
4. Assign the approver — an individual user or role-based approver.
5. Configure the flow — single-level or multi-level; sequential or parallel (if supported).
6. Save as Draft for later editing, or Save & Activate to apply immediately.

Managing rules

• Edit — open the rule, update conditions/approvers, save. Changes apply only to new transactions.
• Enable / Disable — via the toggle or status option; disabled rules don't apply to new transactions.
• Delete — open the rule, click Delete, confirm. Doesn't affect already approved transactions.

FAQs

What if multiple rules match a transaction? Rules apply based on priority or configuration — typically the most relevant or strict rule.

Can I auto-approve small transactions? Yes — define rules that bypass approval below a threshold.

Multiple approvers? Yes — multi-level approvals or multiple approvers per workflow.

Is there an audit trail? Yes — all approval actions are logged.

Best practices

Use amount-based thresholds, avoid overlapping rules, keep hierarchy simple, test before activating, and prefer role-based approvals for scalability.