--- title: "What is an expense report?" description: "What is expense report processing? An expense report collects receipts, categories and totals for reimbursement or the books. Read the definition." url: https://assistbpo.com/glossary/expense-report/ updated: 2026-09-20 publisher: AssistBPO (SS Support Network LLC) language: en-US --- # What is an expense report? Glossary What is an expense report? An expense report is a submitted record of money an employee spent on business, listing each item with its date, amount, category, purpose and receipt, so it can be approved, coded to the right account and reimbursed. Company policy sets what is claimable, what needs a receipt and how quickly claims must be filed. Updated September 2026 · Reviewed by [Nimra Khalid](https://assistbpo.com/team/nimra-khalid/) ## How does an expense report work? 1. Each line carries a date, an amount, a merchant, a business purpose and the account or project it belongs to. 2. Receipts are attached per line, photographed at the time rather than hunted for at month end. 3. The claim goes to an approver who checks it against policy, not just against the total. 4. Approved lines are coded to the chart of accounts and posted so the books show costs in the right period. 5. Reimbursement runs on a fixed cycle, and anything queried goes back with a specific reason. ## A worked example A design studio in Oregon with eleven staff had expenses arriving as texted photos of receipts, sometimes six weeks late. Month-end close kept slipping. An assistant set a template with required fields, chased missing receipts every Friday, coded approved lines against projects, and posted them before the monthly cutoff. The owner could finally see travel cost per client project, and one retainer turned out to be losing money once travel was counted against it. ## Where does an expense report show up in your tools? Expenses are captured in Expensify, Dext or the mobile app of QuickBooks Online or Xero, with card feeds matching charges automatically. Whatever the tool, someone still chases the missing receipts and codes the ambiguous lines to the right project. ## Common mistakes - Accepting claims with no business purpose written on them, which fails the first question in an audit. - Letting claims arrive weeks late, so costs land in the wrong month and close is delayed. - Coding everything to one general expense account, which makes project profitability impossible to see. ## Why does an expense report matter? Expenses are small amounts that decide whether the books are accurate and whether a project was actually profitable. They also carry tax consequences when the purpose or the receipt is missing. A steady chase and consistent coding turns a monthly annoyance into useful management information. ## How does AssistBPO handle an expense report? Our bookkeeping assistants chase receipts on a fixed weekly rhythm, code each line to your chart of accounts and project list, and flag anything that falls outside your written policy rather than deciding it themselves. Approval stays with you. The monthly summary shows spend by category and by project, with unresolved items listed separately. [Receipts, entries and invoices handled](https://assistbpo.com/services/bookkeeping-assistant/)[Get a staffing plan](https://assistbpo.com/get-a-staffing-plan/) ## Related terms - [Travel itinerary](https://assistbpo.com/glossary/travel-itinerary/) - [Purchase order](https://assistbpo.com/glossary/purchase-order/) - [Data entry](https://assistbpo.com/glossary/data-entry/) - [Retainer](https://assistbpo.com/glossary/retainer/) ## Where it is used - [Receipts, entries and invoices handled](https://assistbpo.com/services/bookkeeping-assistant/) ## Next in the A to Z - [FBA](https://assistbpo.com/glossary/fba/) - [First contact resolution](https://assistbpo.com/glossary/first-contact-resolution/) - [First response time](https://assistbpo.com/glossary/first-response-time/) - [Flat-rate plan](https://assistbpo.com/glossary/flat-rate-plan/) [All 148 terms, A to Z](https://assistbpo.com/glossary/) Next step ## Your desk, staffed. Wherever you are. Tell us what is overloaded. A named person replies within 1 business day with a staffing plan, and we propose your assistant within 72 hours. [Get a staffing plan](https://assistbpo.com/get-a-staffing-plan/) [Book a 20-minute call](https://assistbpo.com/book-a-call/) Or call [+1-657-777-0006](tel:+16577770006) during US, UK or Australian business hours, or [hear our demo receptionist](https://assistbpo.com/demo-line/). - A named assistant proposed within 72 hours - Employed, screened and managed staff, never freelancers - Your hours, your tools, your data --- Source: https://assistbpo.com/glossary/expense-report/ · Contact: https://assistbpo.com/contact/ · Full site map for agents: https://assistbpo.com/llms.txt