Authorizing Funds Release is an additional control that ensures approved bills receive proper authorization to move funds. After bills are approved and scheduled for payment, funds need to be authorized for release.
For more details, see: How to Authorize Accounts Payable Payments
Guide Overview
How to Authorize Funds Release
Who can Authorize Funds Release?
When is Authorization Required?
Where can I view a history of authorization activity for a payment?
What happens if Authorization is not given before the scheduled payment date?
How to Authorize Funds Release
- Navigate to the Payments page
- Go to the Needs Authorization tab
- For batch authorization:
- To authorize all bills in this tab, select the "Authorize All Payments" button below the CSV download button
- To authorize a select number of bills in this tab, use the checkboxes to select multiple bills > Select the "Authorize All Payments" button at the bottom of the page
- For single bill authorization:
- Select the "Authorize" button to the right of the bill
If you authorize multiple bills with the same payment date, Float will group them into a daily payment batch per currency.
Who can Authorize Funds Release?
Only the Primary Administrator and Administrators can authorize funds to be released for bill payments.
A Funds Release Approval Policy can be configured to add approval workflows for funds release authorization. This allows you to control who can authorize fund releases, set the minimum number of required admins, and add amount-based rules if needed.
When is Authorization Required?
Authorization is required:
- After a bill has been approved
- After a payment date has been set
Bills in the Needs Authorization tab of the Payments page will remain pending until they are authorized.
Where can I view a history of authorization activity for a payment?
You can view a full history of payment-related events, including when authorization was given and by which user, in the Payments Activity Log. The Activity Log is accessible from the Payment Details panel on the Payments page by clicking on a Payment > Select "Activity Log".
For more details, see: Activity Logs for Accounts Payable Payments
What happens if Authorization is not given before the scheduled payment date?
If no one authorizes the bill before the scheduled payment date, the payment will not be processed and the bill's status will update to "Authorization Overdue". The bill's payment date will need to be rescheduled by selecting the "Reschedule" button in the Needs Authorization tab of the Payments page.
Once rescheduled, an Administrator will need to authorize the funds to be released before the newly scheduled payment date.
What happens if I change a vendor's payment details after a bill payment has already been authorized?
Changes to a vendor's payment details will apply to existing unpaid bills for that vendor automatically.
However, if changes are made to a vendor's payment details and there's an existing bill to that vendor, which has already been scheduled and authorized for payment, the payment will automatically be moved back to the Needs Authorization tab of the Payments page and will need to be re-authorized before the new payment date.