As an employer, you can add, edit, and approve reimbursements on behalf of your employees. You'll also need to approve reimbursements that employees submit themselves.

What are reimbursements?

Reimbursements are direct repayments to employees for the exact amount of work-related expenses they've paid for with their own money. Common examples include:

Travel expenses (fuel, parking, tolls)
Equipment or supplies purchased for work
Client entertainment or meals
Professional development or training costs
Mobile phone or internet expenses
Other out-of-pocket work expenses

Approved reimbursements are automatically included in the employee's next pay run and added after tax has been calculated, so they increase the employee's net pay without being taxed.

When to add reimbursements as an employer

You might need to add reimbursements directly when:

Employees don't have PaySauce accounts
You need to add reimbursements during payroll processing
An employee forgot to submit their reimbursement request before the deadline
You're entering reimbursements from expense reports or other systems
An employee is unable to submit their own reimbursement request

Accessing an employee's reimbursements

You can access an employee's reimbursements in two ways:

Method 1: Through the Employees section

Select Employees from the navigation menu
Select the employee from the list
Select Reimbursements

Method 2: During a pay run

Open the pay run
Select the employee from the list
In the Reimbursements section, select Edit reimbursements

Note: Both methods take you to the same place where you can view existing reimbursements and add new ones.

Adding a reimbursement for an employee

Once you're on the employee's reimbursement page, you'll see:

Their existing reimbursements (pending, approved, declined, or completed)
A Create Reimbursement section for adding new reimbursements

Step 1: Enter a name/description

Enter a clear description of what the reimbursement is for. This helps you and the employee identify the expense later.

Good examples:

"Team lunch - client meeting"
"Parking - site visit 15 Jan"
"Office supplies - stationery"
"Fuel - delivery run"

Poor examples:

"Expense"
"Stuff"
"Things"

Step 2: Enter the date

Enter or select the date for the reimbursement.

⚠️ This date should be within an open (uncompleted) pay period. It determines which pay run the reimbursement will be processed in.

This may not be the date the expense was originally incurred if it was far in the past
Choose a date within the current or upcoming pay period to ensure it can be processed

Step 3: Enter the amount

Enter the exact expense amount to be reimbursed as a number.

Enter the full amount the employee is owed, not a partial amount.

Note: Use decimals for cents:

$35.93 should be entered as 35.93
$100.00 should be entered as 100
$8.50 should be entered as 8.5

Step 4: Save and approve

Once you've entered all the reimbursement information, you have two options:

Save

Saves the reimbursement with a status of "Pending"
You'll need to approve it later before it's included in a pay run
Useful if you want to review reimbursements or verify receipts before approving

Approve and Save (recommended)

Saves and approves the reimbursement in a single step
The reimbursement is immediately available for inclusion in pay runs
Ensures you don't forget to approve it later

Note: When adding reimbursements on behalf of employees (especially when you've already verified the expense), use Approve and Save to avoid the extra step of approving them later.

Providing receipts or invoices

PaySauce doesn't currently support uploading receipts or invoices with reimbursement requests.

When adding reimbursements on behalf of employees:

Ensure you've received and verified the receipt or invoice separately (by email, in person, etc.)
Keep the receipt with your records for audit purposes
Note the reimbursement description clearly so you can match it to the receipt later

When employees submit reimbursements:

Require employees to provide receipts separately before you approve
Establish a process for how employees should submit supporting documentation
Keep receipts organised and matched to reimbursement requests

Approving employee-submitted reimbursements

When employees have PaySauce accounts, they can submit their own reimbursement requests. These requests appear with a status of "Pending" and require your approval before they're included in pay runs.

Note: This is the standard approach for businesses where employees submit their own reimbursements. As the employer, you review and approve (or decline) each submission.

Why approval is required

Reimbursement approval allows you to:

Verify the expense is work-related and legitimate
Check that the amount claimed is accurate
Ensure employees have provided supporting documentation (receipts)
Confirm the expense was authorised
Maintain control over business expenses
Ensure compliance with company expense policies

Where to find pending reimbursements

During pay run processing (recommended):

Create or open a pay run
Review the employee list
Select an employee to view their pay details
Pending reimbursements will be shown in the Reimbursements section
Review and approve pending reimbursements for each employee before processing the pay

From the employee's reimbursement page:

Go to Employees > Select the employee > Reimbursements
Pending reimbursements are marked with "Pending" status
Select a reimbursement to review and approve it

Reviewing a submitted reimbursement

When reviewing a reimbursement, check:

Description

Is it clear what the expense was for?
Is it a legitimate work expense?
Does it align with company policy?

Amount

Does the amount seem reasonable for the expense?
Have you received a receipt showing this amount?
Is the amount entered correctly (with decimal for cents)?

Date

Is the date within the correct pay period?
If it's an old expense, why is it being submitted now?

Supporting documentation

Has the employee provided a receipt or invoice?
Does the receipt match the description and amount?
Is the receipt legible and complete?

Authorisation

Was this expense pre-approved if required?
Does the employee have authority to incur this type of expense?
Is it within any spending limits?

Approving reimbursements

Once you've reviewed a reimbursement and confirmed it's valid:

To approve individual reimbursements:

Select the reimbursement from the employee's list
Review the details
Confirm you've verified the receipt
Select Approve

To approve all pending reimbursements for an employee:

During pay run processing, if the employee has multiple pending reimbursements you've verified:

Select the employee in the pay run
In the Reimbursements section, look for Approve all pending (if available)
Select the button to approve all pending reimbursements at once

Declining reimbursements

If a reimbursement is incorrect, inappropriate, or lacks proper documentation:

To decline a reimbursement:

Select the reimbursement
Select Decline

To decline all pending reimbursements for an employee:

In the Reimbursements section during pay run processing, look for Decline all pending and select it.

What happens when you decline:

The reimbursement status changes to "Declined"
It will not be included in any pay run
The employee can see it was declined (if they have PaySauce access)

Requesting additional information

If a reimbursement needs more information before you can approve it:

Option 1: Decline and request details

Decline the reimbursement
Contact the employee to explain what additional information you need
Employee resubmits with correct information or provides missing receipt

Option 2: Edit it yourself (if appropriate)

Select the pending reimbursement
Make necessary corrections (e.g., fixing the amount if you have the correct receipt)
Select Approve and Save

Viewing submitted reimbursements

Quick view

All submitted reimbursements for an employee appear on their Reimbursements page. Each entry shows:

Name: Description of the expense
Date: The date entered for the reimbursement
Amount: The reimbursement amount
Status: The approval status (pending, approved, declined, completed)

Use the pagination arrows or numbers to view older reimbursements, or adjust how many appear per page using the dropdown.

Detailed view

Select any reimbursement to view its full details. From the detailed view, you can:

See all information about the reimbursement
Edit the reimbursement (if status is pending)
Approve or decline the reimbursement
Delete the reimbursement (if it hasn't been processed in a pay run)

Editing reimbursements

You can only edit reimbursements with a status of "Pending."

To edit a reimbursement:

Select the reimbursement from the employee's list
Update the name, date, or amount as needed
Select Save or Approve and Save

⚠️ Changes are only saved when you select Save or Approve and Save. If you navigate away without saving, your changes will be lost.

Deleting reimbursements

You can only delete reimbursements that haven't been processed in a completed pay run.

To delete a reimbursement:

Select the reimbursement from the employee's list
Select Delete
Confirm the deletion

Note: Once a reimbursement has been included in a completed pay run (status shows "Completed"), it cannot be edited or deleted.

Understanding reimbursement statuses

Reimbursements show one of the following statuses:

Pending

The reimbursement has been submitted but not yet approved or declined
You can edit, approve, decline, or delete
Not included in pay runs until approved

Approved

The reimbursement has been approved by you
Cannot be edited without changing status back to pending
Will be included in the pay run for the relevant period

Declined

The reimbursement has been declined
Cannot be edited without changing status back to pending
Not included in any pay run

Completed

The reimbursement has been processed in a pay run
Cannot be edited or deleted
The employee has been reimbursed

Managing reimbursements during payroll processing

When processing a pay run, reviewing and approving reimbursements is an important step.

Create or open the pay run
Review the employee list—employees with pending reimbursements will be indicated
Select each employee to review their pay details
In the Reimbursements section, you'll see:
- Approved reimbursements already included in the pay calculation
- Pending reimbursements awaiting your approval
Review each pending reimbursement carefully
Verify you have receipts or supporting documentation
Approve reimbursements that are valid and properly documented
Decline reimbursements that lack documentation or are inappropriate
Add any missing reimbursements using Edit reimbursements
Continue to the next employee
Ensure all intended reimbursements are approved before processing the pay run

⚠️ Only approved reimbursements are included in the pay run. Unapproved reimbursements mean employees won't be repaid for those expenses.

How reimbursements appear in pay

Approved reimbursements are:

Added to the employee's pay after tax has been calculated
Not subject to tax (they're not income, just repayment of expenses)
Shown separately on the payslip
Increase the employee's net pay by the exact reimbursement amount

Best practices for managing employee reimbursements

Establish clear expense policies

Define what's reimbursable

Be clear about which expenses are work-related and reimbursable
Set spending limits for different types of expenses
Specify what requires pre-approval
Document your expense policy and share it with employees

Set submission requirements

Require receipts for all reimbursements (or set a minimum threshold)
Establish how receipts should be provided (email, in person, etc.)
Define what information must be on receipts (date, amount, description)
Set deadlines for submitting expense reimbursements

Communicate approval criteria

Explain what makes a reimbursement request approvable
Provide examples of acceptable and unacceptable expenses
Clarify the approval process and timeline
Make sure employees know who to contact with questions

Review before approving

Verify documentation

Confirm you have the receipt before approving
Check that the receipt shows the correct date, amount, and description
Ensure receipts are legible and complete
Keep receipts organised and accessible

Check accuracy

Verify the amount entered matches the receipt
Look for decimal errors (35 instead of 35.50)
Confirm the expense is in the correct pay period
Check for duplicate reimbursement requests

Assess appropriateness

Confirm the expense is work-related
Verify it aligns with company policy
Check that spending limits weren't exceeded
Ensure proper authorisation was obtained if required

Watch for common issues

Personal expenses claimed as work expenses
Excessive or luxury spending
Missing or unclear documentation
Expenses outside approval authority
Duplicate claims for the same expense

Communicate with employees

When declining reimbursements

Explain specifically why it was declined
Reference company policy if applicable
Provide guidance on how to correct the submission
Respond promptly so employees can resubmit or make other arrangements

For documentation issues

Teach employees what makes a good receipt
Show examples of acceptable documentation
Explain why certain receipts aren't sufficient
Help employees understand what you need to approve

Build good habits

Approve valid reimbursements promptly
Be consistent in your approval criteria
Recognise and thank employees for well-documented requests
Address recurring issues proactively

Keep organised records

Receipt management

Create a system for storing receipts (physical or digital)
Match receipts to reimbursement requests
Organise by employee, date, or pay period
Keep records for the required retention period (typically 7 years)

Track trends

Monitor which employees regularly claim reimbursements
Review types of expenses being claimed
Identify patterns that might indicate policy issues
Use data to refine expense policies

Maintain audit trails

Document approval decisions, especially for unusual expenses
Keep notes about declined reimbursements
Record policy exceptions and why they were granted
Ensure compliance with tax and accounting requirements

Common questions

What's the difference between adding reimbursements myself and having employees submit them?

When you add reimbursements, you can immediately approve them if you've already verified the receipt. When employees submit reimbursements, they start as "Pending" and require your approval. Both methods result in the same reimbursement, but employee submission reduces your data entry work and creates a clear audit trail of who requested what.

What happens if I forget to approve a reimbursement before processing the pay run?

Unapproved (pending) reimbursements are not included in the pay run. The employee won't be reimbursed for that expense in that pay. You can approve the reimbursement and include it in the next pay run, or create an adjustment pay to reimburse them immediately.

Should I approve reimbursements as they're submitted or wait until processing the pay run?

Both approaches work. Some employers prefer to approve reimbursements as soon as receipts are provided, while others review everything during pay run processing. Choose the approach that fits your workflow, but ensure you verify receipts before approving.

Can I set spending limits in PaySauce?

PaySauce doesn't have built-in spending limits. You'll need to enforce expense policy limits manually by declining reimbursements that exceed approved amounts.

What if a reimbursement was for an expense from several months ago?

You can process reimbursements for old expenses, but enter a date within the current pay period (not the original expense date) so it can be included in the upcoming pay run. Keep documentation showing when the expense actually occurred for your records.

Can employees see when I've approved or declined their reimbursements?

Yes. If employees have PaySauce accounts, they can see the status of all their reimbursements. They'll know immediately if a reimbursement is pending, approved, declined, or completed.

What's the maximum amount I can reimburse?

PaySauce doesn't have a technical limit, but you should set business policy limits based on what's appropriate for your organisation. Unusually large reimbursements should be reviewed carefully and may require additional approval.

What if I accidentally approve an incorrect reimbursement?

If you haven't processed the pay run yet, you can change the reimbursement back to "Pending," edit it, and reapprove it. If the pay run is already completed, you may need to handle the correction through deductions in the next pay or through other repayment arrangements.

I approved a reimbursement but it's not showing in the pay run

Check that:

The reimbursement date falls within the pay run period
The employee is included in the pay run (not deselected)
You saved the approval (the status shows "Approved")
You didn't accidentally decline it instead

I can't find the employee's pending reimbursements

Check:

The correct employee is selected
The reimbursements weren't accidentally approved or declined already
The employee actually submitted reimbursements
You're looking in the right section (Reimbursements, not Timesheets or Leave)

An employee says they submitted a reimbursement but I don't see it

Ask the employee to:

Check that they clicked "Save" after entering the reimbursement
Verify the reimbursement appears in their own reimbursement list
Confirm the amount and description they entered
Check they're logged in to the correct account

Need help?

If you have questions about managing reimbursements, establishing expense policies, or setting up efficient reimbursement workflows, contact PaySauce support. We can help you develop processes that ensure proper documentation, timely repayment, and compliance with expense management best practices.

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Submitting and managing reimbursements

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Adding and managing employee reimbursements