You can request approval on a Costs or Sales document at any time, whether or not it matches an existing approval workflow. This article covers both request approval paths and what happens once you've submitted a document.
Note: Approvals aren’t available in Dext Solo.
Which process applies to your document
Which approval path a document follows depends on whether it matches an active approval workflow.
If a document matches an active workflow, requesting approval routes it automatically to that workflow's approver.
If a document doesn't match any workflow — or your account has no workflows set up — requesting approval lets you choose an approver yourself.
Existing workflows always take priority: if a document matches a workflow's criteria, it can only be routed through that workflow, not sent ad hoc.
For instructions on creating workflows, go to How to set up Costs and Sales approval workflows in Dext.
Request approval for a document that matches a workflow
When a document matches an active approval workflow, requesting approval sends it straight to the workflow's approver/s.
From the Costs or Sales inbox:
Select Request approval on the document row.
Or select the checkboxes next to 1 or more documents, open the Actions menu, select Request approval, then confirm.
From the Item details page:
Open the document from the Costs or Sales inbox.
Select Request approval at the top of the page. A tooltip on the button shows which workflow applies to the document.
You can also open the Actions menu and select Request approval.
The document moves to the Approvals tab and the assigned approver is notified by email.
Request approval for a document without a matching workflow
If a document doesn't match any active workflow, requesting approval lets you choose an approver manually.
From the Costs or Sales inbox:
Select the checkbox next to the document.
Open the Actions menu, then select Request approval.
In the Choose an approver window, select an approver from the dropdown.
Select Request approval to confirm. The approver is notified by email.
From the Item details page:
Open the document from the Costs or Sales inbox.
Open the Actions menu, then select Request approval.
In the Choose an approver window, select an approver from the dropdown.
Select Request approval to confirm. The approver is notified by email.
Tip: You can request approval for a mix of documents in one go. In the Request approval window, choose 1 approver for the documents that don’t match a workflow. Documents that match a workflow go to their workflow’s approver automatically.
What happens after you request approval
Once you request approval, the document appears in the Approvals tab and shows a pending status, regardless of which path it took.
For step-by-step instructions on reviewing, approving, and rejecting documents, go to How to review and approve Costs and Sales items in Dext.
Can I turn off Request approval?
You can’t turn off Request approval for Costs and Sales documents at the moment. It’s available whether or not your account has approval workflows, so deleting or switching off a workflow doesn’t fully remove it.
To make accidental requests less likely, Request approval is in the Actions menu rather than on the Inbox toolbar. It only shows as a button on a document row or the Item details page when the document matches an approval workflow.