Missing receipts are one of the most common issues in expense management. They slow down approvals, create extra work for finance, and can bring compliance or tax risks. This article explains how to handle them in Factorial.

Best practices

1. Make receipts mandatory
   • Configure the expense form, so the receipt field is required for regular expenses.
   • This ensures employees cannot submit an expense without attaching a document.
   • For mileage and per diems, receipts are not always required, but we recommend attaching supporting documents (e.g. travel confirmations, logs, or declarations).
2. Review documents carefully
   • If the uploaded receipt is unclear or invalid, use Request changes with a short explanation for the employee.
   • If the claim looks fraudulent, you can also Reject the expense.
3. Document exceptions
   • Sometimes receipts are lost. In that case, approve only if there is valid substitute evidence (e.g. bank statement, booking confirmation).
   • Add a clear note in the Description field explaining why the expense was approved without a standard receipt.
   • This helps finance and auditors later understand the reason for the exception.

How to manage expenses without receipts in Factorial

1. In your sidebar, go to Spending → Employee Expenses
2. Use filters to find expenses without attachments (if the field was not set mandatory) or review those flagged by approvers
3. For each case:
   • Valid receipt attached → approve normally
   • Invalid or unclear receipt → request changes
   • No receipt, but substitute evidence → approve with justification in the description
   • No receipt and no evidence → reject

Tips for employees

• Always upload the receipt when submitting an expense.
• If you lose it, provide substitute evidence (confirmation email, bank statement, or other valid proof).
• Add a short note in the description to explain the situation.

Tips for managers and finance

• Approve only when a receipt or valid substitute is present.
• Use Request changes to remind employees when the document is missing or unclear.
• If approving without a receipt, always leave a note in the Description field for audit traceability.
• Run a monthly review to ensure no exceptions are left undocumented.

Key takeaway

The best way to prevent problems with missing receipts is to make the receipt field mandatory in your expense forms. For the few exceptions that slip through, handle them consistently: either request changes, reject, or approve with clear justification in the description.