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Expense Claims to the Ledger

An approved expense claim is a project cost straight away, but it only reaches the general ledger when finance posts it. Posting books the cost and any recoverable tax against employee expenses payable in the claimant's name; paying people back then clears that payable from a bank account. Both steps are on the Projects & Time console.

Where to find it

Architect Panel → ERP - Projects & Time:

  • Projects & Time — the console: Post expense claims on the Portfolio tab, the accounts and expense categories on Rates & settings
  • Expenses — every claim, with the journal that posted it and the journal that paid it back

Architect Panel → ERP - Reference Data:

  • Expense Categories — what a claim can be for

Admin Panel → Projects & Time:

  • Projects & Time — the same console for finance staff

Setting up

  1. On Rates & settings, in Project accounting: recognition, WIP and expense claims, choose Employee expenses payable (the liability claims are owed on until people are paid back) and Default expense account (where a claim is charged when its category names no account). Click Save accounts.
  2. In the Expense categories card on the same tab, give each category its own expense account and click Save on that row. A category left on Company default uses the default expense account.
  3. Make sure the company has a bank account in the ledger to pay from.

Posting and paying need ERP: Projects or ERP: Finance, and post access to the company.

Posting approved claims

  1. On the Portfolio tab, click Post expense claims….
  2. Set Claims up to (it defaults to the end of last month) and click Preview.
  3. Check the figures: Claims to post, Owed to people and the tax recovered. The table lists each approved claim not yet posted with its date, person, category, account, tax code, tax, gross, receipt and status. A claim that cannot be posted says why.
  4. Click Post N claims and confirm with Post claims.

One journal per company is posted, dated at the date you chose:

  • Dr the expense account (the category's own, else the company default) with the net amount and its tax code.
  • Dr the tax code's input tax account with the tax shown on the receipt, where it matches a recoverable tax code.
  • Cr employee expenses payable with the gross, in the name of each claimant.

Each claim is stamped with the journal, so it is never posted twice.

Paying people back

  1. In the Pay people back card below, set Payment date, choose Pay from (the bank account) and click Show what is owed.
  2. The table lists each person with the number of claims, the oldest claim and the amount owed.
  3. Click Pay on a person, or Pay everyone, and confirm with Pay.

One journal debits employee expenses payable and credits the bank account, and the claims it covers are marked paid. Each claim is paid once only. Claims not yet posted counts approved claims still waiting; post them first.

What goes wrong

  • "Set the … account on Rates & settings before posting claims": the payable or default expense account is missing.
  • "No expense account - set the company's default expense account.": a claim's category has no account and there is no default.
  • "Choose the bank account the claims are paid from.": pick one under Pay from.
  • "Nobody is owed for posted claims up to …": everything posted is already paid, or the claims are not posted yet.
  • A receipt shows Missing: the claimant did not attach one. Decide before approving, not at posting.

Worked example

On 3 October the finance controller posts claims up to 30 September. Fifteen approved claims are listed, 1,240.60 gross with 96.40 of VAT on rail and hotel receipts. They post them as one journal. They then open Pay people back, choose the main bank account, see four consultants owed and click Pay everyone. Each consultant's payable is cleared by one journal, and the claims show as paid.

Recommendations

  • Give every expense category its own account so travel, subsistence and mileage land where your accountant expects.
  • Post claims at each month end so the VAT return includes the input tax.
  • Pay from the console, not by a hand journal, so each payment is matched to the claims it settles.
  • Insist on receipts at approval; posting does not ask again.