The Approvals queue
One queue for every prepared bill, invoice, and journal entry awaiting a human decision — how it works and what a good approval actually checks.
How-toFor Business owners, Bookkeepers, Firm staff
What is in the queue
Approvals is one queue for every prepared bill, invoice, and journal entry awaiting review. Machine exceptions are handled separately, in Exceptions — the two are deliberately distinct because they call for different judgement.
When the queue is empty it says so plainly. That is the intended resting state, not an unusual one.
Human review
Approvals
| Type | Description | Prepared by | Amount | Action |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bill | Rothman Supply · INV-4471 | A. Chen | $2,410.00 | Review |
| Bill | Beacon Legal · Aug retainer | A. Chen | $3,750.00 | Review |
| Journal | July utilities accrual | M. Ortiz | $1,840.00 | Review |
| Invoice | Anderson Group · site survey | R. Patel | $18,400.00 | Review |
| Bill | Northgate Equipment · forklift | A. Chen | $26,900.00 | Review |
Each item shows what it is, who prepared it, the coding, and the attached document — enough to decide without opening another screen.
Illustration of the screen layout
What a real approval checks
- That the thing happened — goods received, service delivered, entry justified.
- That the amount agrees with the supporting document.
- That the coding is sensible, especially asset versus expense and the period the date puts it in.
- That the counterparty is one you recognise, particularly on a first transaction.
- That it is not a duplicate of something already approved this week.
Rejecting returns the item to its preparer with your reason attached. The reason is the valuable part; a rejection without one produces a resubmission of the same item.
Common questions
From approval policy. Anything crossing a threshold, matching a category rule, or explicitly submitted for review lands here. Everything below your thresholds posts without stopping.
Yes — My Tasks is your personal view, showing bill approvals assigned to you alongside blocked posting tasks and write-up engagements you own.
The item posts to the ledger. For a bill, approval authorizes the obligation; paying it is a separate step with its own controls.
See alsoPaying bills
Was this useful?