# Invoice approvals in Business Central for manufacturers

Business Central has invoice approvals built in. Month end piles up because most invoices land in the last week. If approvals run through one person, the books close late.

## Why it matters for manufacturers

- Different spend needs different approvers. A maintenance bill goes to the plant manager and a raw material bill goes to purchasing.
- Auditors want to see who approved what and when, with limits that match the role.

## For manufacturers in Business Central

- On Approval User Setup give each buyer or production manager a Purchase Amount Approval Limit. Tick Unlimited Purchase Approval for the final approver. The two settings cannot both be filled in.
- Name a Substitute on each approver so POs for urgent production are not stuck during leave. Business Central falls back to the substitute, then the direct approver, then the approval administrator.
- The approval administrator can delegate requests. The Send Overdue Approval Notifications action reminds each approver of requests that are late.

## What Business Central does on its own

Workflows with amount limits, approver chains and templates for purchase documents and vendor bank accounts.

- Payables Agent does not run approval flows

With an approver chain the document stays Pending Approval until every requested approver has approved.

What you need and the setup steps: https://www.pulsify.tech/invoice-approvals-for-business-central/

## Example

Example Hydraulics Pty Ltd sends a repair bill of $6,400 ex GST for a press on the Plant 2 line. The plant manager's limit is $5,000.

- Press seal kit and labour: $4,700.00 (Under the $5,000 limit on its own)
- Call out and travel: $1,700.00 (Brings the bill to $6,400, past the $5,000 limit)
- GST: $640.00 (10% of $6,400)

The bill is routed to the operations manager because it is over the plant manager's limit. The approval record shows who signed, when and under which limit.

## Common mistakes

- One approver for every bill, so approvals pile up in the last week of the month.
- Limits that never change, so every raw material order goes to the director.

## Step-by-step guides for Business Central

- How to set up purchase invoice approval in Business Central: https://www.pulsify.tech/how-to/set-up-bill-approval-in-business-central/
- How to approve purchase invoice records in bulk in Business Central: https://www.pulsify.tech/how-to/approve-bills-in-bulk-in-business-central/
- How to route purchase invoice records by amount, vendor or project in Business Central: https://www.pulsify.tech/how-to/route-bills-by-amount-supplier-or-job-in-business-central/

## What Pulsify adds

Pulsify adds approval steps by vendor, amount, account or project, with approve, reject or send back from a phone. Pulsify connects to Business Central. We set up the connection for you. More: https://www.pulsify.tech/approval-workflows/

## Common questions

### Can a plant set purchase approval limits by person in Business Central?

Yes. Approval User Setup holds a purchase amount limit for each user. It also has an Unlimited Purchase Approval option. Add a substitute for each approver. An approval workflow then sends purchase documents up the chain until someone with a high enough limit approves.

### How should a manufacturer set approval limits?

Set limits by cost centre and by dollar value. A plant manager approves repairs up to a limit, purchasing approves materials and the finance lead approves above that. Name a backup for each.

### Can an approver delegate while away?

Yes. Delegate sends the request to a substitute. The order is the approver's designated substitute, then the direct approver, then the approval administrator.

## Sources

- https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/dynamics365/business-central/across-how-to-set-up-approval-users
- https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/dynamics365/business-central/across-how-use-approval-workflows
- https://www.ato.gov.au/businesses-and-organisations/gst-excise-and-indirect-taxes/gst/tax-invoices

### Also confirmed by

- Microsoft Certified Trainer guide, 2026: https://d365training.com/blog/how-approval-workflows-work-in-business-central/

Source: https://www.pulsify.tech/invoice-approvals-in-business-central-for-manufacturers/ (last checked 2026-10-19)