Prepare and submit bills

Required user role Process Bills

 Review extracted invoice data, complete coding, assign approvers, and submit
 bills for approval. This article covers the full review and submission flow —
 from finding bills in your queue to following up on approvals after submission.

Applicable bill statuses:

• Pending review: The bill is ready for AP review
• Pending AP action: An approver returned the bill with required changes

Once an invoice is collected, Tipalti extracts key details so most fields are already populated. Review the extracted data, compare it with the invoice, complete coding, and submit the bill for approval.

Find the bill

To start reviewing a bill, go to the relevant bill list and open the record.

1. Click Bills in the left menu.
2. Select the Pending review tab. Or Pending AP action if the bill was returned.
   
3. Use search or filters (reference code, payee, company, invoice, or PO number) to find the bill.
4. Click the bill to open it.

On the Bill list, you can also:

• Adjust your table view using the settings icon.
• Preview invoices directly from the list using the preview icon.

Review bill details

Review all bill details to ensure accuracy before submitting.

Start with the Bill summary to:

• Check totals, notices, and required actions
• Pin the summary to keep totals visible during review

Verify payee details

To confirm the correct payee is selected:

1. Click Open payee profile under the Payee field.
2. Review payment method, details, settings, and previous bill statuses.

If needed, add a new payee from the Payee field and follow the onboarding steps. For more, see Managing your payees.

Use activity and comments

The Activity tab provides a full audit trail of changes and actions taken on the bill. Use Comments to communicate with other reviewers or approvers.

For more, see Track activity, share files, and comments.

Review and update fields

To review your bill:

• Use the form on the right to review extracted values.
• Compare them with the invoice preview.
  
• Update any incorrect or missing information before proceeding.

You can right-click to copy and paste values within the review screen or from external applications.

Work with the invoice attachment

Use the invoice preview while reviewing. You can resize the preview panel, and your preference is saved.

If no invoice is attached, upload one. You can also replace an existing invoice without affecting the bill's coding.

Select the bill type

Choose the appropriate bill type, as it determines how the bill is processed:

• PO-backed bills
  • PO matching is required
  • Select PO numbers or choose Provide PO later
• Non-PO-backed bills or Prepayment
  • Flow adjusts based on bill type
  • (Prepayments apply to NetSuite bills)

Review bill lines

Enable Bill lines to review coding at the line level. For recurring suppliers, Tipalti may pre-suggest values for GL accounts and custom coding fields based on how previous bills were coded. You can:

• Apply values across all lines
• Delete, duplicate, or merge lines
• Merge lines with matching details
  

AI suggestions appear in GL account and custom coding fields at both the line and header level. Review each suggestion and update it as needed before submitting.

To speed up coding, right-click a field and select Apply for all lines to copy that value across all bill lines.

If you've reviewed a similar bill before, you can reuse its coding. Use Copy ref code to copy the reference code for tracking or reconciliation. Note that this does not sync with your ERP.

Set approvers

If approval is required, assign approvers before submission.

To load approvers:

1. Complete the bill review.
2. In Approvers, click Load approvers.
   • Loads approvers based on account setup.
   • May include AI suggestions (if enabled).
     

To add an approver:

1. Open Add approver dropdown.
2. Search or click + Create approver.
   
3. Fill out the form.
4. Click Add.

Optional fields such as Manager (for escalation) and Threshold (approval limit) may be available.

To edit the approval chain:

• Drag and drop to reorder approvers.
• Remove approvers using the delete icon.

Submit the bill

When review is complete:

• Submit sends the bill to the next stage.
• Save keeps your changes without submitting.

Use the More actions (3-dot menu) menu to:

• Hold payment to pause payment
• Delete to permanently delete the bill
  

After submission, the bill typically moves to Pending approval, appears in the approver's queue, and triggers email notifications.

For self-billing workflows, see Self-billing.

To follow up on approvals:

1. Go to Bills → All bills.
2. Find the bill.
3. Click the 3-dot menu and select one of the options.
   • Remind approver
   • Cancel approval request
   • Approve on behalf
   • Replace approver
     

Retract an approval

If payment has not been made, you as an approver can retract your approval:

1. Go to All bills.
2. Click the 3-dot menu.
3. Select Retract approval.
   

Replace an existing invoice

To replace an invoice:

1. Click the 3-dot menu.
2. Select Delete invoice image.
3. Click Confirm.
4. Upload a new file.
   

Replacing the invoice does not change the bill's coding.

Common questions