Invoice approval workflows on Business route new vendor bills to managers before they are fully filed. Owners and managers approve pending rows from Pending approvals on Business HQ.
What this guide covers
How invoices enter the approval queue, approving from Business HQ, and how roles interact with uploads and Ledger.
Before you begin
- Business plan with approval workflows enabled.
- Owner or Manager role to approve (Uploaders submit PDFs; Viewers read only).
- Team members invited from /account/team.
Step-by-step: upload invoices that need approval
- An uploader adds PDFs on Dashboard Upload tab (/dashboard).
- Jobs complete on Processing as usual.
- New rows with pending approval status appear in the approval queue.
- Uploaders cannot bypass approval; managers sign off on Business HQ.
Step-by-step: approve pending invoices
- Log in at /login as Owner or Manager.
- Open Business HQ (/account/business).
- Scroll to Pending approvals in the payables section.
- Review vendor, amount, and due date on each row.
- Click Approve beside the invoice you accept.
- The row leaves the queue; the invoice stays in Ledger and Browse.
Step-by-step: team workflow tips
- Assign Uploader role to staff who collect PDFs.
- Assign Manager to someone who reviews spend before payment.
- Use Team roles and invitations for access boundaries.
- Pair approvals with Payment due reminders for due-date visibility.
What you should see
- No invoices awaiting approval when the queue is clear.
- Action rows with vendor name, amount, and due date plus Approve button.
- Approved invoices visible in Ledger without extra steps.
Tips and common issues
- Approvals do not pay vendors; they add a sign-off step before filing.
- Uploaders should not use Mark paid for recurring subscriptions; upload the monthly PDF instead.
- Accountants invited read-only can see Ledger but cannot approve.
- If the panel is missing, confirm you are on Business at /account/subscription.
Related guides
- Team roles and invitations
- Vendor Payment Command Center
- Billing verification and expense justification
Tip: Review Pending approvals weekly so uploaders are not blocked waiting for sign-off.
Frequently asked questions
Who can approve?
Owners and Managers on Business. Uploaders and Viewers cannot.
Does approval delete the PDF?
No. Approved invoices remain in Browse and Ledger.
What plan includes approvals?
Business only. Pro and Free do not include approval workflows.
Scenario walkthrough
Imagine it is the 28th of the month. You log in at /login, land on Dashboard (/dashboard), and scan the stat tiles: Tracked spend, Estimated tax (if on Business), Account credit, and Open invoices for your FilePile subscription. You open the Upload tab, add any PDFs that arrived today, then switch to Processing until each row shows completed. You check Ledger for amounts and Browse for folder paths. If Business HQ (/account/business) applies to your plan, you open the relevant panel next. Finally you visit /docs if you need a deeper guide.
Glossary (FilePile terms)
- Dashboard: main workspace at /dashboard with Upload, Processing, Ledger, Tasks, Browse tabs.
- Business HQ: owner tools at /account/business including Payment Command Center, Email Invoice Inbox, Spend Budgets, Approval Workflows, Bank Reconciliation, Tax estimates, Executive P&L, and Accounting export/import.
- Profile: separate business archive under one login; see /account/profiles.
- Ledger: searchable table of processed vendor invoices.
- Tasks: review queue for missing fields or billing mismatches.
Keyboard and navigation habits
Use the left sidebar consistently: Dashboard for daily PDF work, Business HQ for payables and reporting, Reminders at /account/reminders for email preferences, Help center at /docs for articles like this one. The Invoice workspace never uses a tab named Process; uploads always start on Upload.
When to contact support
Contact support if a valid PDF fails after three retries on Processing, if team invites never arrive, if billing charges look incorrect on /account/invoices, or if Business HQ panels stay locked after a confirmed upgrade. Include your account email, active profile name, and screenshot of the error row.
Record-keeping reminder
FilePile sorts and extracts PDFs you provide. It does not replace professional tax, legal, or accounting advice. Keep original vendor emails and bank records alongside your FilePile Browse archive for audit readiness.
Approval vs verification
Pending approvals sign off on new spend. Billing verification tasks on Dashboard Tasks document bill-to mismatches; both can run on the same Business account.
Quick reference card
| Item | Value |
|------|-------|
| Login | /login |
| Register | /register |
| Dashboard | /dashboard |
| Business HQ | /account/business |
| Company | /account/company |
| Reminders | /account/reminders |
| Help | /docs |
| Plans | Free (25/mo), Pro, Business |
| Upload types | PDF only on Dashboard |
| Workspace tabs | Upload, Processing, Ledger, Tasks, Browse |
Keep this table handy when onboarding teammates so nobody searches for a Upload tab that does not exist.