# Expense settings: categories, routes, counterparties

> The category tree and its rules, approval routes on a diagram with amount and budget conditions, counterparties, recurring payments, and the policy for the AI controller.

Источник: https://jecheck.io/en/docs/expenses/settings

**Finance → Categories and routes** is where you define what kinds of expenses there are, who approves them and whom you pay. Requires the **Expenses: settings** permission (the **Counterparties** and **Recurring payments** tabs are visible without it too).

![Expense settings: categories, routes, counterparties](/docs-media/en/expenses/settings.jpg)

The first time the section is opened, jeCheck creates about 35 categories for food service and retail and three routes: **Standard** (default), **Location purchasing** and **Fast**. You can change them.

## Categories

A tree of categories: "Purchasing → Dairy", "Rent", "Repairs". Each category has:

- **Approval route** — its own or the same as the parent category; if none is set anywhere — the default route;
- **Invoice** — **Required**, **Not required** or **Same as parent**;
- **If the budget is exceeded** — **Warn**, **Forbid**, **Don't track** or **Same as parent**;
- an icon, a color and an **Accounting code**.

A category that already has expenses or subcategories can't be deleted — it is turned off instead, and its history is kept.

## Approval routes

A route is a diagram of steps. Open a route to get to the canvas editor:

- **approval step** — who decides: a specific employee, a position, the author's manager, the location manager, a department; **any** of them or **all**; deadline and reminders;
- **condition** — a "yes / no" branch on expense fields: amount, category, counterparty, payment method, urgency, whether there's an invoice, budget overspend, remaining budget, first payment to the counterparty, check warnings, as well as the author's location, position and department;
- at the end — **Approved → to pay** or **Rejected**.

Add blocks with the **+** button on a line or by dragging them from the palette; Ctrl + mouse wheel zooms. **Test the path** — enter an example (amount, category, location) and see the expense's path highlighted. Changes are saved as a route draft and take effect after **Publish** — new expenses follow the new version.

Route menu: **Make default route**, **Make a copy**, **Delete** (categories using it switch to the default route).

## Counterparties

A directory: name, **Organization** or **Individual**, BIN/TIN, bank, BIC, IBAN, contacts, default category. Counterparties are also added automatically — when employees submit expenses or AI reads invoices.

## Recurring payments

Rent, subscriptions, maintenance: an expense template, **Day of month** and **How often**. On the selected day, the expense is created automatically and sent for approval.

## General

- expense number (for example, EXP-125) and **Default currency**;
- **No submission without an invoice** — the default for all categories;
- **AI reads invoices** — recognition of uploaded invoices;
- **AI controller** and the policy: describe the company's rules in plain text ("We buy food only from suppliers on the list"), and AI will check every expense against them and give a recommendation.

## Frequently asked questions

### How do I set up "up to 100,000 — the manager, above that — also the CFO"?

In the route, after the manager's step, add the condition "Amount over 100,000", and in the "yes" branch — the CFO's step. Check it with the **Test the path** button using amounts of 50,000 and 150,000.

### Will route changes affect expenses already pending approval?

No. An expense follows the route version it was submitted with. The new version applies to new expenses.