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Expense Report (ER) Approval Process

An approval process has been developed in NetSuite for ERs to promote accuracy and provide accountability. This process will ultimately simplify the process for expense reporting in that there will no longer be the need for Finance to question a claim not shown in your Support Budget. Also, receipts will no longer be maintained by global workers, so the responsibility for any audits will shift from individuals to Finance.

There are two main steps involved in the approval process:

Step 1: Approval by the ER Approver

A person designated as your ER Approver is the first step of approval, and is someone who understands what you do (e.g. your MAL, MA Treasurer or supervisor). This step is significant since such a person is better positioned to understand the relevance of what is being claimed for your location, something Finance can’t do effectively. This person’s responsibilities are to:

  • check the ministry purpose of each expense is valid and explained well
  • check the amount is appropriate for your location (to provide good stewardship of donor contributions)
  • confirm any requests for claims to MA or project funds mentioned in the Additional Information box

Check out THIS VIDEO to view some examples.

If the ER is to be corrected by the global worker, the ER Approver will click the Reject button and type an explanation. After clicking Save, the ER will return to the global worker who can read that explanation under the Rejection Reason sub-tab (above the area where the expenses were entered). Once the ER is corrected and submitted, it will return to the ER Approver to be reviewed again.

Step 2: Approval by Finance

There are various stages of approval within Finance, depending upon several circumstances. The responsibilities of Finance are to:

  • check the claim against T-org policies and relevant tax authorities
  • verify the attached receipts and documentation match the claim
  • validate the correct account information has been selected
  • confirm balances are adequate to fulfill the reimbursement request when processed
  • attend to any action required due to messages given in the Additional Information box

Questions

If you have any questions about this approval process, Finance stands ready to help at financehelp@team.org.