The expense form decides which details people fill in when they create an expense, and which ones they can't skip. Ask for what your finance team needs from the start, and you stop chasing people for a missing cost centre or VAT number after they've submitted.

Set up the expense form

Overview

• There's one form for each expense type: Regular expense, Mileage and Per diem expense. Each form is the same for the whole company, on the web and in the mobile app.
• For each field you decide whether it's shown, and whether it's Mandatory or Optional. Some fields can't be changed because Factorial needs them (see Troubleshooting).
• Changes only apply to new expenses.

You need the Can access expense settings permission. Full customisation of the form depends on your plan (see Troubleshooting).

How to use

1. Go to Settings > Expenses.
2. In the menu on the left, under Configuration, click Expense form.
3. Choose the form: Regular expense, Mileage or Per diem expense.
4. Use a field's switch to show it (on) or hide it (off).
5. To make a field mandatory, click its settings button (the gear).
6. Turn on Mandatory and click Accept. The field then shows Mandatory under its name instead of Optional.

Changes are saved straight away ("Field updated successfully") and apply to new expenses.

Fields that depend on the document

Invoices have legal requirements that receipts don't. So Vendor name, Vendor TIN, Document number and Tax type each have two rows in Expense form > Regular expense: Invoices (always mandatory, can't be changed) and Receipt and other documents (set it as you need).

Make the subcategory mandatory

If you use subcategories to send expenses to the right ledger account, make sure nobody leaves them empty:

1. In Expense form, turn on the Subcategory field.
2. Open its settings and turn on Mandatory.
3. To manage the subcategories themselves, click Go to Categories settings. See How do I set up expense categories and subcategories?

An expense in a category that has subcategories then can't be submitted or approved without one. Categories with no subcategories aren't affected.

Tips and Best Practices

Troubleshooting and FAQ

Troubleshooting

I can't hide or change a field.
Some fields are always shown and mandatory because Factorial needs them to calculate and record the expense: for example Category, Document date, Document currency and Document total amount on regular expenses, or Total mileage on mileage. Form customisation depends on your plan. If every switch is greyed out, your company keeps the default form; your Account Manager can confirm what your plan includes.

An employee sees "This field cannot be empty" or "Select an option".
The Subcategory field is mandatory and the expense has none. The message is "This field cannot be empty" on the web and "Select an option" in the mobile app. Ask them to choose a subcategory.

Employees don't see the change.
Form changes only apply to new expenses; expenses already created keep the details they have. Ask them to refresh the page or reopen the mobile app.

An expense can't be submitted because of the subcategory, but the category has none.
A mandatory subcategory only applies when the category has active subcategories. If the category has none and the expense is still blocked, contact our support team and send the link to the expense.

I changed the Mileage form but nothing changes.
If Mileage is turned off in Expense types, its form settings don't apply until you turn it back on.

FAQ

1. Do these settings apply to the mobile app too?

Yes. The form is the same on the web and in the mobile app.

2. Can different teams have different forms?

No. The form is the same for the whole company. To apply different rules to different people, use Expense checks. See How do I check expenses against my expense policy?

3. Can I hide per diems completely?

Yes. Turn off Per diems in Expense types. See How do I choose which types of expenses employees can create?.

4. Can I still edit the expense form by hand, or is everything done with One?

Yes, you edit the expense form by hand in Settings > Expenses > Expense form. Only the approval flow and Expense checks are set up by chatting with One.