Who has to approve? (Approval structure)

The approval structure shows you, for a document, who has to approve it and why. This way you can see, for example, why a document is with a particular person, or whether anyone still has to approve after the current approval.

Opening the approval structure

1. Open the document from the task list.
2. Click Approval Structure below the tabs.
3. Confirm the question. invoiceR saves the document so that the display is correct.

The Approval Structure window opens. Close takes you back to the document.

Button missing or greyed out?

You only see the button if you have the corresponding permission. It is greyed out as long as an item line has invalid entries, for example a mandatory field such as the account is missing. Fill in the line completely. If the button is missing, contact your internal administrators.

What you see in the window

invoiceR combines the item lines into groups: all lines for which the same rule from the approval rules applies form one group. Each group is a separate section that you expand and collapse with a click. If you hover over the i next to Group, you see the total of the group and the rule that applies.

In an expanded group you see:

• Hierarchy: the levels that have to approve one after the other, as boxes with arrows. Each box shows the name of the level, its limit and the status:
  • empty red box: no approval yet,
  • orange tick: some of the lines are approved,
  • green tick: all lines of the group are approved.
• A level marked Requested is the one where the document currently is.
• A faded level does not have to approve. A higher level only joins if the total of the group exceeds the limit of the level before it.
• Item lines: the lines of this group with posting text and amount.
• Issued Approvals: who approved when, including whether as a deputy or as a member of a role.

Approval Structure window with an expanded group, the hierarchy as boxes with arrows, the list of item lines and the issued approvals

Details of a level

Click a box in the hierarchy. A panel shows you:

• Current Request: the person or role from whom the approval is currently requested.
• Intended Approval: the person or role who is responsible for this level according to the approval rules.
• The approvals already given on this level.

The current request can differ from the intended person, for example because a deputy steps in while someone is absent.

Different in your organisation?

With an additional permission, accounts payable can also record approvals here (new Approval, Create Approval) or withdraw them. If the approval structure is fundamentally wrong, your administrators have to adjust the approval rules.

How you approve yourself is described under Approval.