Skip to main content

​
Introduction

Reviewing expenses is a core part of the finance workflow. When employees upload receipts or forward expenses, those items appear in the Business Expenses for managers and accountants to verify. This guide walks you through the process of reviewing individual expenses to ensure accuracy, proper categorization, and policy compliance.

​
Review Workflow

1

Navigate to Expenses

Click Expenses in the sidebar to open the Business Expenses. You can also navigate directly to /{slug}/expenses. The inbox shows all company expenses with their current status.
2

Filter by Status

Use the status filter at the top of the inbox to focus on expenses that need attention. Common filters for reviewers:
  • Pending: Expenses awaiting initial review
  • Missing Info: Expenses that are incomplete and need employee input
  • Flagged: Expenses that have been flagged for policy violations or unusual amounts
3

Open the Expense Detail View

Click on any expense row to open the detail panel. The detail view displays the receipt image on one side and the extracted expense data on the other, so you can compare them side by side.
4

Verify Receipt Data

Compare the receipt image against the extracted data fields:
  • Merchant name: Does it match the vendor on the receipt?
  • Date: Is the transaction date correct?
  • Amount: Does the total match, including taxes?
  • Currency: Is the correct currency selected?
  • Line items: If applicable, do the individual items match?
If any field is incorrect, click the field to edit it directly.
5

Check Category and Department

Verify that the expense has been assigned the correct category and department:
  • Category: Is the expense classified correctly (e.g., Meals, Travel, Office Supplies)?
  • Department: Is it allocated to the right business unit or cost center?
Smartbills may auto-suggest a category based on the merchant. You can override the suggestion by selecting a different category from the dropdown.
6

Take Action

After reviewing the expense, choose one of the following actions:
  • Approve: Mark the expense as verified and correctly categorized. It will move to Approved status.
  • Flag: Flag the expense for a policy violation, unusual amount, or missing justification. Add a note explaining the reason.
  • Return for Revision: Send the expense back to the employee with a comment describing what needs to be fixed (e.g., missing receipt, incorrect amount, needs business purpose).

​
What to Look For

When reviewing an expense, check for the following:

​
Keyboard Shortcuts

Speed up your review workflow with keyboard shortcuts:

Manage Expenses

Perform bulk actions on multiple expenses at once

Inbox Settings

Set up auto-approval rules and duplicate detection

Categories & Departments

Understand how categorization works

Approval Workflows

Learn about single and multi-level approvals