You signed in with another tab or window. Reload to refresh your session.You signed out in another tab or window. Reload to refresh your session.You switched accounts on another tab or window. Reload to refresh your session.Dismiss alert
internalScope: Audience is travel approvers and travel admins. Covers reviewing, approving, and denying travel requests. Does not cover configuring travel policies or adding policy members.
5
6
---
6
7
7
8
Approving travel is easy and flexible, giving approvers full control over how and when travel requests get reviewed. With customizable approval flows, mobile-friendly access, and even email-based actions, approving travel happens wherever you are.
@@ -17,12 +18,12 @@ Approving travel is easy and flexible, giving approvers full control over how an
17
18
18
19
---
19
20
20
-
#Review and approve travel requests
21
+
## How to review and approve travel requests
21
22
22
23
All trip requests that require approval can be found under:
23
24
24
25
-**Trips > Approvals** (on both mobile and desktop)
25
-
- All users responsible for approving trips will receive an email notification when a trip is awaiting their approval.
26
+
- All members responsible for approving trips will receive an email notification when a trip is awaiting their approval.
26
27
27
28
Here, approvers can filter by:
28
29
-_Out of policy_ approval requests
@@ -34,42 +35,69 @@ Each trip will display relevant details and action buttons to **Approve** or **D
34
35
35
36
---
36
37
37
-
#Approval actions
38
+
## How approval actions work
38
39
39
40
Approvers will see the following options for each trip:
40
41
41
-
-**Approve:** With hard approval, this confirms the travel booking can proceed. The booking is finalized, and the payment card is charged with the booking receipt automatically added to the traveler's Expensify account.
42
-
-**Deny:** With soft approval, this rejects the travel booking request. The booking is canceled, and the traveler will be notified.
42
+
-**Approve:** With hard approval, this confirms the travel booking can proceed. The booking is finalized, and the payment card is charged with the booking receipt automatically added to the traveler's Expensify account.
43
+
-**Deny:** With soft approval, this rejects the travel booking request. The booking is canceled, and the traveler will be notified.
43
44
44
45
Approvals can also be done via email. When a trip requires approval, approvers will receive a notification with **Approve** or **Deny** buttons directly embedded.
45
46
46
47
---
47
48
48
-
#Understanding soft vs. hard approval
49
+
## How to understand soft vs. hard approval
49
50
50
-
-**Soft approval:** Travel can be booked and processed before the approver reviews it. Approvers are still notified and have 24 hours to deny the booking and cancel it before the fare processes.
51
-
-**Hard approval:** The traveler creates the booking in a pending state. The travel approver has 24 hours to approve the booking request, if the booking is not approved, the travel plans are canceled and no transaction is processed.
51
+
-**Soft approval:** Travel can be booked and processed before the approver reviews it. Approvers are still notified and have 24 hours to deny the booking and cancel it before the fare processes.
52
+
-**Hard approval:** The traveler creates the booking in a pending state. The travel approver has 24 hours to approve the booking request. If the booking is not approved, the travel plans are canceled and no transaction is processed.
52
53
53
54
These settings are configured within each travel policy under **Program** > **Policies** > select a policy > **General** > **Policy group actions** tab.
54
55
55
56
---
56
57
57
-
## Secondary Approvers
58
+
## How to approve a Pre-Booking Approval request
58
59
59
-
A secondary approver acts as a fallback if the primary approver is unavailable. For example, if a manager is on vacation, a secondary approver ensures there’s no delay in getting trips approved. This is especially important when timely approvals are needed with a hard approval setup.
60
+
When a travel policy uses Pre-Booking Approval, the traveler must receive approval before the booking can proceed. Unlike hard approval, no booking or payment is made until the approver acts. Pre-Booking Approval is available for Air, Hotel, and Car bookings.
61
+
62
+
Here is how the approval process works:
63
+
64
+
1. The traveler submits a pre-booking approval request during checkout by clicking **Request approval**.
65
+
2. The approver receives an email notification with the trip details, including the origin, destination, and travel dates.
66
+
3. The approver reviews the request under **Trips** > **Approvals** or directly from the email notification.
67
+
4. The approver clicks **Approve** or **Deny**.
68
+
69
+
The approver has 24 hours to respond to the request. If the request is not approved within 24 hours, it expires and no booking is made.
70
+
71
+
## What to expect after approving a Pre-Booking Approval request
72
+
73
+
After the approver approves a pre-booking request:
74
+
75
+
1. Both the approver and the traveler receive an email notification confirming the approval.
76
+
2. The traveler has 24 hours to return to the trip in Expensify Travel and finalize the booking by completing the checkout process.
77
+
3. Once the traveler confirms the booking, the payment card is charged and the receipt is automatically added to the traveler's Expensify account.
78
+
79
+
If the traveler does not finalize the booking within 24 hours, the approval expires and no booking is made. The traveler would need to submit a new approval request.
80
+
81
+
Pre-Booking Approval includes a price buffer for approved bookings to account for minor fare changes between approval and final booking.
82
+
83
+
---
84
+
85
+
## How to set up secondary approvers
86
+
87
+
A secondary approver acts as a fallback if the primary approver is unavailable. For example, if a manager is on vacation, a secondary approver ensures there is no delay in getting trips approved. This is especially important when timely approvals are needed with hard approval or Pre-Booking Approval.
60
88
61
89
Set this up under:
62
90
63
91
- Approvers can set their own secondary approver under **User icon** > **My profile** > **Configuration** > **Approval Settings**. Click Add Approver to designate a secondary approver who can approve on your behalf. You may add multiple secondary approvers.
64
-
- Travel admins can set secondary approvers in a traveler's profile. Head to **Program** > **Users** > **Travelers** > select traveler > **Configuration** tab. Click Add approver to search for another travel member to approve on their behalf.
92
+
- Travel admins can set secondary approvers in a traveler's profile. Head to **Program** > **Users** > **Travelers** > select traveler > **Configuration** tab. Click **Add approver** to search for another travel member to approve on their behalf.
65
93
66
94
---
67
95
68
96
# FAQ
69
97
70
98
## Can I approve travel from my phone?
71
99
72
-
Yes! The approval dashboard is identical on web and mobile. You can also approve or deny directly from email notifications.
100
+
Yes. The approval dashboard is identical on web and mobile. You can also approve or deny directly from email notifications.
73
101
74
102
---
75
103
@@ -78,17 +106,18 @@ Yes! The approval dashboard is identical on web and mobile. You can also approve
78
106
If no action is taken:
79
107
- With **soft approval**, the trip is already booked and proceeds as normal.
80
108
- With **hard approval**, the booking is canceled, and if a refundable fare was booked, a refund will be issued to the payment card.
109
+
- With **Pre-Booking Approval**, the request expires after 24 hours and no booking is made.
81
110
82
111
---
83
112
84
113
## Can multiple people approve the same request?
85
114
86
-
Only the designated approver, the employee's manager, a default approver, or a secondary approver can approve a specific trip. This will depend on your approval method in the travel policy.
115
+
Only the designated approver, the member's manager, a default approver, or a secondary approver can approve a specific trip. This will depend on your approval method in the travel policy.
87
116
88
117
---
89
118
90
119
## How do I get notified when I need to approve?
91
120
92
-
Approvers receive email notifications and can view pending approvals under **Trips** > **Approvals** in the Travel dashboard. You can configure your notification settings in your profile under **User icon** > **My profile** > **Notifications**.
121
+
Approvers receive email notifications and can view pending approvals under **Trips** > **Approvals** in the Travel dashboard. You can configure your notification settings in your profile under **User icon** > **My profile** > **Notifications**.
93
122
94
-
Optionally, admins can manage approver notifications and create custom notifications for travel requests and approvals by heading to **Program** > **Company** > **Configuration** > **Email notifications**.
123
+
Optionally, admins can manage approver notifications and create custom notifications for travel requests and approvals by heading to **Program** > **Company** > **Configuration** > **Email notifications**.
internalScope: Audience is travel admins. Covers configuring approval types and adding members to a travel policy. Does not cover approving or denying individual travel requests.
5
6
---
6
7
7
8
@@ -20,15 +21,15 @@ Note: Only Travel Admins can create or manage travel policies in Expensify Trave
20
21
21
22
---
22
23
23
-
## Set approval types and add members
24
+
## How to set approval types and add members
24
25
25
26
1. Open **Expensify Travel**.
26
27
2. Go to **Program** > **Policies**.
27
28
3. Select an existing policy or click **Add New** to create a new one.
28
29
29
30
---
30
31
31
-
###General tab settings
32
+
##How to configure General tab settings
32
33
33
34
-**Parent Policy**: Select a parent policy to inherit approval and restriction settings.
34
35
-**Policy Name**: Choose a clear, easily identifiable name.
@@ -37,20 +38,37 @@ Note: Only Travel Admins can create or manage travel policies in Expensify Trave
37
38
-**Passive approval**: No approval required, but the approver receives an email.
-**Hard approval**: Booking is canceled unless explicitly approved.
40
-
-**Block booking**: Booking is blocked and employees have no way to request an exception.
41
+
-**Pre-Booking Approval**: Approval must be obtained before the booking can proceed. Available for Air, Hotel, and Car only.
42
+
-**Block booking**: Booking is blocked and members have no way to request an exception.
41
43
-**Approver Type**:
42
-
-**Manager Approval**: Uses the manager from the employee's Expensify workflow.
44
+
-**Manager Approval**: Uses the manager from the member's Expensify workflow.
43
45
-**Designated Approver**: Sends bookings to a pre-defined approver.
44
-
-**Default Approvers**: Add up to three backups to handle approval volume, especially when using Hard Approval.
46
+
-**Default Approvers**: Add up to three backups to handle approval volume, especially when using Hard Approval or Pre-Booking Approval.
45
47
46
-
### Edit Members tab
48
+
## How Pre-Booking Approval works
49
+
50
+
When Pre-Booking Approval is enabled for a booking type, the traveler must receive approval before the booking is finalized. No payment is charged and no receipt is generated until the booking is approved and confirmed.
51
+
52
+
Here is how the process works:
53
+
54
+
1. The traveler selects a flight, hotel, or car that requires pre-booking approval.
55
+
2. During checkout, a notice appears indicating that pre-booking approval is required. The traveler can click **your approvers** to see who is eligible to approve.
56
+
3. On the final checkout page, the traveler clicks **Request approval** instead of the usual **Book** button.
57
+
4. The confirmation page shows that the booking is awaiting approval.
58
+
5. Both the traveler and the approver receive an email notification.
59
+
6. The approver has 24 hours to approve or reject the request. If the request is not approved within 24 hours, it expires and no booking is made.
60
+
7. If approved, the traveler and the approver each receive another email notification. The traveler then has 24 hours to return to the trip in Expensify Travel and finalize the booking by completing the checkout process again.
61
+
62
+
Pre-Booking Approval includes a price buffer for approved bookings to account for minor fare changes between approval and final booking.
63
+
64
+
## How to add members using the Edit Members tab
47
65
48
66
Admins assign those who are subject to the policy's booking rules. Add members by group:
49
67
50
-
-**Individual users** - Enter a specific user by name or email to the policy.
51
-
-**Departments** - Add all users with the same department in their travel profile.
68
+
-**Individual users** - Enter a specific member by name or email to the policy.
69
+
-**Departments** - Add all members with the same department in their travel profile.
52
70
-**Legal Entities** - Select an Expensify workspace to add all members of the workspace to the travel policy.
53
-
-**Offices** - Adds all users with the same office location in their travel profile.
71
+
-**Offices** - Add all members with the same office location in their travel profile.
54
72
55
73
You can add multiple groups to a travel policy and apply conditions to each group as needed.
56
74
@@ -60,12 +78,26 @@ Click the green **Create Policy** button at the bottom to save and activate the
60
78
61
79
# FAQ
62
80
63
-
**Can I use the same travel policy across multiple teams?**
64
-
Yes. Use groups like Departments or Offices to apply the same policy to multiple employee sets.
81
+
## Can I use the same travel policy across multiple teams?
82
+
83
+
Yes. Use groups like Departments or Offices to apply the same policy to multiple member sets.
84
+
85
+
## What is the benefit of a parent policy?
65
86
66
-
**What’s the benefit of a parent policy?**
67
87
We recommend configuring the system-provided **Default** policy with your baseline settings. Use this as a parent policy when creating new ones to speed up setup.
68
88
69
-
**What happens if no approvers are added to a Hard Approval policy?**
70
-
Travel bookings will be automatically canceled if no approver is assigned.
89
+
## What happens if no approvers are added to a Hard Approval or Pre-Booking Approval policy?
90
+
91
+
For Hard Approval, travel bookings will be automatically canceled if no approver is assigned. For Pre-Booking Approval, the approval request cannot proceed without an assigned approver.
92
+
93
+
## Is Pre-Booking Approval available for all booking types?
94
+
95
+
Pre-Booking Approval is available for Air, Hotel, and Car bookings. It is not available for Rail bookings.
96
+
97
+
## What happens if the traveler does not finalize the booking after Pre-Booking Approval?
98
+
99
+
If the traveler does not complete the booking within 24 hours of receiving approval, the approval expires and no booking is made. The traveler would need to submit a new approval request.
100
+
101
+
## What happens if the fare changes between approval and final booking?
71
102
103
+
Pre-Booking Approval includes a price buffer to account for minor fare changes. If the fare increases beyond the buffer, the traveler may need to request a new approval.
0 commit comments