Expense Reimbursement in Odoo#
The Odoo Expenses module handles the full cycle: employees log expenses on their phones, managers approve, finance posts to accounting, and HR/payroll processes the reimbursement. No paper forms or spreadsheets required.
Step 1 - Employee Logs the Expense#
Expenses App → New Expense:
- Expense Name: Team Lunch with Client ABC
- Category: Business Meals
- Total Amount: $87.50
- Expense Date: 2027-09-05
- Receipt: photo upload (from phone camera)
- Analytic Account: Sales Department / Project X
Or log a mileage expense:
- Category: Mileage (configured with $0.655/mile rate)
- Quantity: 45 miles → Odoo calculates: $29.48
Step 2 - Create an Expense Report#
Group multiple expenses into a single report for approval:
Expenses → My Expenses → Create Expense Report:
- Select all expenses from the business trip or period
- Report Name: September Business Trip - Jay Smith
- Submit for approval
Step 3 - Manager Approval#
Manager receives a notification:
Expenses → Expenses to Approve → [Report]:
- Reviews each line and attached receipts
- Approves or rejects with a comment
- If rejected: report returns to the employee with the rejection reason
Step 4 - Finance Posts to Accounting#
After manager approval:
Expenses → [Approved Report] → Post Journal Entries:
- Odoo creates accounting entries:
- Debit: Business Meals Expense (per category account)
- Credit: Employee Payable (or a dedicated reimbursable account)
The expense is now on the books as a liability to the employee.
Step 5 - Reimbursement Payment#
Expenses → [Posted Report] → Register Payment:
- Payment Method: Bank Transfer (most common) or Cash
- Date: payment date
- Amount: total approved expense amount
Odoo posts:
- Debit: Employee Payable (clears the liability)
- Credit: Bank Account (the cash going to the employee)
Or route through payroll:
- The expense is added as an "Other Input" on the next payslip
- Reimbursed with salary - one bank transfer instead of separate expense payments
Automated Expense from Credit Cards#
For corporate credit card holders:
- Bank feed imports card transactions daily
- Employees are prompted to categorize and submit each transaction
- Reduces the burden of manual expense logging
Expense Analytics#
Expenses → Reporting → Expense Analysis:
- Spending by category, department, employee, and period
- Receipts pending submission (uncategorized card transactions)
- Approval turnaround time (submitted → approved → paid)