Tax Settings for Purchase

Purchase Approval Settings

Purchase approval settings in EquiBillBook help you manage purchase workflows, control authorization levels, and maintain proper oversight of procurement activities. This guide explains how to configure and use purchase approval settings effectively.

Understanding Purchase Approval

Purchase approval is a process that ensures purchase documents go through proper authorization before being finalized. This helps:

• Control spending and budget management
• Maintain compliance with company policies
• Track purchase authorizations
• Prevent unauthorized purchases
• Maintain proper audit trails
• Support multi-level approval workflows

Purchase Status Feature

EquiBillBook includes a Purchase Status feature that allows you to track and manage purchase document statuses:

• Enable Purchase Status: Allows tracking different statuses for purchase documents
• Status Workflow: Purchase documents can move through various status stages
• Status Tracking: Track the current status of purchase orders, quotations, and bills
• When Disabled: All purchases are automatically marked as "Item Received"

Accessing Purchase Approval Settings

To configure purchase approval settings:

1. Navigate to Settings → Purchase Settings
2. Look for "Enable Purchase Status" option
3. Enable or disable based on your business requirements
4. Configure additional approval-related settings if available
5. Click "Update" to save changes

Enabling Purchase Status

When you enable Purchase Status:

• Purchase documents can have different status values
• You can track purchase workflow from quotation to order to bill
• Status helps identify where each purchase document is in the process
• Enables better reporting and tracking of purchase lifecycle
• Supports approval workflows and authorization tracking

Purchase Document Statuses

When Purchase Status is enabled, purchase documents can have various statuses:

Purchase Quotation Statuses

• Draft: Initial quotation being prepared
• Sent: Quotation sent to supplier
• Received: Quotation received from supplier
• Accepted: Quotation accepted, ready to convert to order
• Rejected: Quotation rejected

Purchase Order Statuses

• Draft: Order being prepared
• Pending Approval: Order awaiting authorization
• Approved: Order approved and sent to supplier
• Sent: Order sent to supplier
• Partially Received: Partial goods received
• Item Received: All items received from supplier
• Cancelled: Order cancelled

Purchase Bill Statuses

• Draft: Bill being prepared
• Pending Approval: Bill awaiting authorization
• Approved: Bill approved
• Item Received: Goods received and bill finalized
• Paid: Payment made to supplier
• Partially Paid: Partial payment made

Disabling Purchase Status

When Purchase Status is disabled:

• All purchase documents are automatically marked as "Item Received"
• No status tracking or workflow management
• Simpler process for businesses that don't need status tracking
• Suitable for small businesses with direct purchase processes
• Faster document creation without status management overhead

Approval Workflow Best Practices

For effective purchase approval management:

• Define approval levels: Determine who can approve different purchase amounts
• Set approval limits: Establish purchase amount thresholds for different approvers
• Document approval process: Create clear guidelines for your team
• Use status tracking: Regularly review pending approvals
• Maintain audit trail: Keep records of approvals and status changes
• Train your team: Ensure everyone understands the approval process

User Permissions for Approvals

Configure user permissions to control who can:

• Create purchase documents
• Approve purchase documents
• Change purchase statuses
• View pending approvals
• Cancel or modify approved purchases

Navigate to Settings → User Settings → User Permissions to configure these permissions.

Status Change Workflow

Understanding how status changes work:

1. Document Creation: Purchase document is created with initial status (usually Draft)
2. Review: Document is reviewed and prepared for approval
3. Approval: If required, document goes through approval process
4. Status Update: Status is updated as document progresses
5. Finalization: Document reaches final status (Item Received, Paid, etc.)

Reporting on Purchase Status

Use purchase status for reporting and analysis:

• Pending Approvals Report: View all documents awaiting approval
• Status-wise Reports: Filter purchases by status
• Approval Time Analysis: Track how long approvals take
• Purchase Lifecycle: Track documents through their lifecycle
• Exception Reports: Identify documents stuck in approval process

Common Approval Scenarios

Small Business

• May disable Purchase Status for simplicity
• Direct purchase process without complex workflows
• Single approver (usually owner/manager)
• Simple approval process

Medium Business

• Enable Purchase Status for tracking
• Two-level approval (manager → owner)
• Amount-based approval limits
• Status tracking for better visibility

Large Business

• Enable Purchase Status with full workflow
• Multi-level approval process
• Department-based approvals
• Comprehensive status tracking
• Integration with budget management

Integration with Other Features

Purchase approval settings work with:

• User Permissions: Control who can approve purchases
• Purchase Settings: General purchase configuration
• Budget Management: If budget module is enabled
• Notifications: Alert approvers of pending approvals
• Reporting: Generate approval and status reports

Troubleshooting

Status not updating?

• Check if Purchase Status is enabled in settings
• Verify user permissions for status changes
• Ensure document is not locked or finalized
• Check if status transition is allowed

Cannot approve purchases?

• Verify user permissions for approvals
• Check approval limits and thresholds
• Ensure proper user roles are assigned
• Contact administrator if permissions are unclear

All purchases showing as "Item Received"?

• This is expected if Purchase Status is disabled
• Enable Purchase Status to track different statuses
• Status will only apply to new purchases after enabling

Best Practices

• Match your process: Configure approval settings that match your actual business process
• Keep it simple: Don't over-complicate the approval workflow
• Document the process: Create clear guidelines for your team
• Regular reviews: Periodically review pending approvals
• Training: Train team members on approval processes
• Monitor: Use reports to monitor approval efficiency

What's Next?

After configuring purchase approval settings, you should:

1. Configure user permissions for approvals
2. Set up notification settings for pending approvals
3. Train your team on the approval process
4. Create approval workflow documentation
5. Set up reports for tracking approvals
6. Test the approval process with sample purchases

Proper purchase approval configuration helps maintain control over procurement activities and ensures compliance with your business policies and procedures.