---
title: "Timesheet Management & Approval"
description: "Timesheet approval in OneSuite moves time through three steps: you track it, you submit it for review, and a reviewer approves it or sends it back with a reason. It gives someone the chance to check the hours before a…"
url: "https://help.onesuite.io/docs/timesheet-management-approval/"
updated: "2026-10-01"
category: "Time Tracking & Timesheets"
---

# Timesheet Management & Approval

Timesheet approval in OneSuite moves time through three steps: you track it, you submit it for review, and a reviewer approves it or sends it back with a reason. It gives someone the chance to check the hours before a client is billed for them, and locking the period afterwards stops them changing.

**In this guide you'll learn how to:**

- Submit your own time for approval
- Fix and resubmit entries that were sent back
- Review, approve or send back your team's time on the **Approvals** page
- Read each entry status
- Lock a period so its time stops changing

## Before you start

- Timesheet approvals must be switched on. An admin does this in **Settings**, **Time Tracking**, **Approval Policy**, with the **Timesheet approvals** switch. To open **Settings**, click your name at the bottom of the sidebar, then **Settings**. With approvals off, nothing can be submitted and time is tracked with no review step.
- To review other people's time, your profile needs permission to approve timesheets and the **Approvals** module must be on. Then **Approvals** appears in the sidebar under **Track**.

## How to submit your own time

You submit a complete week from your timesheet.

1. Click **Timesheet** in the sidebar.
2. Stop any running timer. An entry with a running or paused timer can't be submitted.
3. Click **Submit week for approval**.
4. To send a single day or another span, click the arrow beside the button (**More ways to submit**) and choose **Submit day for approval** or **Submit custom range for approval**.

The week's status changes to **Pending approval**. For the full tracking steps, see [Time Tracking in OneSuite](https://help.onesuite.io/docs/time-tracking-in-onesuite/).

**Note:** you can't withdraw your own submission. While an entry is **Submitted** you can still edit it, but you can't delete it. If you need the whole week back, ask a reviewer to send it back.

## How to fix time that was sent back

Sent-back entries show **Sent back**, and you reopen them before you resubmit.

1. Open the week on your **Timesheet**.
2. Click **Reopen 1 entry** (or **Reopen N entries**), or choose **Reopen entry** from one row's menu.
3. Correct the entries.
4. Click **Resubmit week for approval**.

OneSuite won't resubmit a week that still holds sent-back entries, so reopen them first.

## How to review your team's time

Reviewers work from the **Approvals** page, which has its own row in the sidebar.

1. Click **Approvals** in the sidebar, under **Track**.
2. Pick the period, for example **Week** or **Month**, and move to the dates you are reviewing.
3. Set **Status** to **Pending Approval** to see submitted time.
4. Use **Group by** (**Person**, **Project** or **Client**) and the filters to narrow the list.
5. Click **Approve** on a row, or **Approve visible timesheets and expenses** to approve everything the filters show.

To return work instead, click **Send back** on the row, type a **Reason**, and click **Send back**. The reason is required and is sent to the person with the entries.

If self-approval is off, your own submitted row shows **Needs another reviewer** and someone else approves it. To undo an approval, click **Withdraw approval** on an approved row. For every control on the page, see [How to Approve Timesheets and Expenses](https://help.onesuite.io/docs/how-to-approve-timesheets-and-expenses/).

![Approvals page with Status set to Pending Approval, grouped by Person, showing Approve and Send back on a row](https://help.onesuite.io/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/timesheet-management-approval-1.webp)

## What does each timesheet status mean?

Each entry on your timesheet carries one status, and the week shows a summary chip.

| Status | Meaning |
| --- | --- |
| **Draft** | Tracked, not yet submitted. You can edit and delete it. The **Day** view leaves this status blank. |
| **Submitted** | Waiting for a reviewer. You can edit it but not delete it. |
| **Approved** | Signed off. It can't be edited unless a reviewer reopens it or withdraws the approval. |
| **Sent back** | Returned with a reason. Reopen it, fix it and resubmit. |

The week chip reads **Pending approval**, **Approved** or **Sent back**. A locked entry shows **This entry is locked.** when you try to change it.

## How is locking different from approving?

Approving says the hours are right. Locking closes the period so time and expenses in it can't be edited or deleted.

- **Approving** is a reviewer signing off an entry. An approved entry can't be edited, but a reviewer can reopen it or withdraw the approval.
- **Locking** freezes a date range, whatever the status of the entries in it.

To lock automatically, turn on **Automatically lock timesheets** in [How to Set Up Timesheet Approval Policy](https://help.onesuite.io/docs/how-to-set-up-timesheet-approval-policy/). To lock once, click **Apply one-time manual lock** in the lock banner on the **Approvals** page.

## How does approval affect invoicing?

Approval decides which hours an invoice can pull, depending on where you start the invoice.

- In the invoice wizard, **Which hours** offers **All hours**, **Approved only** and **Approved + pending approval**. A project with unapproved time is tagged **Has unapproved work**.
- From a project's **Timesheet** tab, only approved time is pulled onto the invoice while approvals are on.

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## FAQs

### Do timesheets have to be approved before I can invoice them in OneSuite?

No, not from the invoice wizard. **Which hours** lets you bill **All hours**, **Approved only** or **Approved + pending approval**, and OneSuite flags projects with unapproved work so you see them first.

### Can I withdraw a timesheet I already submitted?

No, you can't withdraw your own submission. You can still edit a submitted entry, and a reviewer can send it back if it needs to return to you.

### Where did the approval controls go?

Approvals has its own page. Click **Approvals** in the sidebar, under **Track**. Old links to the Team page's approvals tab redirect there automatically.

### Why can't I approve my own timesheet?

Your business has manager self-approval switched off, so your own row shows **Needs another reviewer**. An admin controls this with **Manager self-approval** in **Settings**, **Time Tracking**, **Approval Policy**.

### Who can approve my timesheet?

Anyone whose profile includes permission to approve timesheets. An admin sets that up in **Settings**, **Workspace**, **Profiles & Permissions**.

### Can I just approve everything at the end of the month instead?

You can. Set the period to **Month** and click **Approve visible timesheets and expenses**. Weekly review catches mistakes while people still remember the work, which makes the hours easier to check.

## What to do next

**Learn every reviewer control:** Filters, bulk actions and reminders are covered in [How to Approve Timesheets and Expenses](https://help.onesuite.io/docs/how-to-approve-timesheets-and-expenses/).

**Set the rules:** Turn on approvals, self-approval and automatic locking in [How to Set Up Timesheet Approval Policy](https://help.onesuite.io/docs/how-to-set-up-timesheet-approval-policy/).

**Bill the approved hours:** Build an invoice from tracked time with [Invoice Generation from Billable Hours](https://help.onesuite.io/docs/invoice-generation-from-billable-hours/).