Permission Required: Users with the Admin Profile can access this feature
Regional Availability: Australia, India, Indonesia, Singapore, United States
Overview
Setting up an effective reimbursement process within an organization involves several key steps to ensure efficiency, accuracy, and compliance with financial controls. The process begins with automating payment schedules, allowing for consistent and timely reimbursements. By setting specific dates for automatic payments, organizations can streamline the process and reduce manual intervention.
Set an auto-payment date
The auto-payment feature within the reimbursements module automates the payment of approved employee claims, allowing admins to set a specific date for all reimbursements. This streamlines the payment process, saves time, and maintains consistent payment schedules, significantly enhancing efficiency.
How to set an auto payment date
Navigate to the Reimbursement module.
Click on Reimbursement Settings.
Turn on Automated Payments.
Select the desired date for the payments and then click on Save.
After this date is selected, all approved payments will automatically be processed on this date.
Add payment initiators
Payment initiators are authorized to manually initiate payments for all approved reimbursement claims. If an auto payment date is set for reimbursement claims, manual payment by initiators is not necessary. However, payment initiators or admins can choose to process payments early, before the set auto payment date, if needed.
How to add or remove a payment initiator
Navigate to the Reimbursement module.
Click on Settings.
Select Add payment initiator and then click on Edit.
Here, you can add users as payment initiators or remove existing ones.
Click on Save to confirm the changes.
Once a payment initiator is added, they have the capability to process all approved claims.
Note: In addition to payment initiators, admins also have the authority to initiate payments.
Set mileage rates
Mileage claims reimburse individuals traveling for business, compensating based on the distance traveled. This approach accounts for expenses such as fuel costs and vehicle wear and tear, ensuring fair compensation. The total amount to be reimbursed is calculated by the total distance traveled by a user in a specific country (in kms) multiplied by the default mileage rate set by the admin for that specific country.
How to set different mileage rates for different countries
Go to the reimbursement module and then to the Settings within this module.
Click on Set mileage rate.
From here, Edit existing mileage rates for specific countries or add new rates for different countries.
Setup approval policies
We have 2 types of approval policies in Volopay:
1. Company approval policy: This universal policy applies to the entire company. It ensures that every user, regardless of their department or project affiliation, is subject to the same approval process when submitting a claim.
How to set company approval policy
Navigate to Reimbursement.
Under Reimbursement, choose Settings.
Move to the Spend controls section.
Locate the Company approval policy within this section.
Click on Company approval policy to view existing policies or to create a new one.
Select Edit policy to either create a new policy or modify an existing one.
Define the approvers and notification recipients for the selected range by selecting the approvers and individuals to notify for each specified range.
If necessary, select multiple ranges to accommodate different levels or types of approvals.
Click on Save to finalize the approval policy.
2. Custom Approval Policies: Custom policies are tailored to specific departments or projects and allow for customized approval processes. The approval workflow for a claim is determined by the department or project to which a user has linked the claim at the time of submission. A user can only link claims to the department or projects of which they are a part.
Enabling custom approval policies
If you're setting the custom approval policy for the first time, you must enable it:
Go to Manage then Settings.
Turn on Custom approval policy.
Setting a custom approval policy
After enabling custom approval policies:
Navigate to Manage, choose the desired department or project, and click on Edit details.
Find Approval policy under Reimbursement policy.
Initially, the company policy will be visible.
Click on Edit policy.
Tailor the policy to fit your specific department or project needs.
Click Save to apply your customized approval policy.
Note: To revert any custom policy to the default company policy, select Revert to company policy.
Maker checker
The Maker-Checker enhances control within the approval process by ensuring that the individuals initiating requests cannot approve their own claim requests.
Navigate to Reimbursement and click on Settings within the Reimbursement section.
Proceed to Spend Controls and locate the Maker-Checker setting.
Toggle Maker-Checker to On or Off as desired.
Setup submission policy
A submission policy defines the guidelines for submitting receipts, memos and documents for reimbursements, ensuring employees provide all necessary information. This facilitates efficient review and integration with accounting systems for finance admins, streamlining the reimbursement process.
We have 2 types of submission policies in Volopay:
1. Company submission policy: This universal policy applies to the entire company. It ensures that every user, regardless of their department or project affiliation, adheres to the same submission process when submitting a claim.
Enabling Submission Policies
If you're setting the submission policy for the first time, you must enable it:
Go to Manage then Settings.
Turn on Submission Policies.
Setting a Company Submission Policy
After enabling submission policies:
Click on Settings under the Reimbursement tab.
Navigate to Spend Controls and scroll to Submission Policies.
Select Company Submission Policy.
Choose either Out of Pocket or Mileage, based on your needs.
Click on Edit Policy to make changes.
Adjust the requirements to fit your organization's needs.
Save your changes by clicking on Save.
2. Custom submission policies: Custom policies are tailored to specific departments or projects and allow for customized submission processes. The submission criteria for a claim are determined by the department or project to which a user has linked the claim at the time of submission. A user can only link claims to the department or projects of which they are a part.
Enable custom submission policy:
If you're setting the custom submission policy for the first time, you must enable it:
Go to Manage then Settings.
Turn on Custom submission policy.
Setting custom submission policy
Navigate to Manage, choose the desired department or project, and click on Edit Details.
Find Submission Policy under Reimbursement Policy.
Initially, the company policy will be visible.
Click on Edit Policy.
Choose either Out of Pocket or Mileage as your category.
Tailor the policy to fit your specific department or project needs.
Click Save to apply your customized submission policy.
Note:To revert any custom policy to the default company policy, select Revert to Company Policy.
Understand claim policy
A claim policy consists of guidelines established by an organization to regulate employee expense reimbursements. These policies are essential for controlling spending and maintaining compliance with budgetary standards. By implementing claim policies, companies can set limits on reimbursable expenses across various categories, helping to prevent overspending and ensure that all reimbursements are justified and aligned with organizational goals.
Claim policies can be customized to suit different needs within the company. For example, you can set different limits for various categories of spending, such as travel, meals, or office supplies. When submitting claims, users must specify the Volopay category to which the reimbursement belongs, helping to ensure that expenses stay within predetermined bounds.
Types of category limits in claim policies
1. Flexible Limit: A flexible limit allows employees to submit claims that exceed the set category limits, subject to approval by the approvers. This type of limit offers flexibility and can accommodate exceptional circumstances where higher expenses may be justified.
2. Non-flexible Limit: A non-flexible limit strictly prohibits the submission of claims that exceed the specified limits for any category. Once the set threshold is reached, no further claims can be processed until the next cycle or adjustment. This limit is strict and helps maintain a very tight control on spending, ensuring that budget allocations are not exceeded under any circumstances.
Note: By default, none of the Volopay categories have a defined limit. You have the option to add limits to any of the categories as needed.
Types of claim policies in Volopay
1. Company claim policy: This universal policy applies to the entire company. It ensures that every user, regardless of their department or project affiliation, is subject to the same claim process when submitting a claim.
How to set up a company claim policy
Open Settings in the reimbursement module.
Click on Spend Controls.
Scroll down to Claim Policy and enable it if not already active.
Access Company Claim Policy.
Choose Edit Policy.
Select the categories to apply limits to and confirm by clicking Done.
Decide on the limit type: either Flexible Limit or Non-Flexible Limit.
Set the limits for each chosen category and select Save Changes.
2. Custom claim policies: Custom policies are tailored to specific departments or projects and allow for customized claim processes. The category limits for a claim submitted by a user are determined by the claim policies set for the department or project they are part of. Users can only link claims to the department or projects of which they are a part.
How to set up a custom claim policy
Enable custom policy:
Navigate to Settings under reimbursement.
Activate Custom Claim Policy if it's not already enabled.
After enabling:
Go to Manage and choose the relevant department or project.
Click on Edit Details.
Select Claim Policy.
The default company policy will be visible initially.
Customize this policy by selecting Edit Policy.
Specify the categories to apply limits to and confirm by clicking Done.
Choose the limit type: either Flexible Limit or Non-Flexible Limit.
Input the limits for each chosen category.
Confirm changes by selecting Save Changes.
Note: You can revert to the company policy at any time by choosing Revert to Company Policy.