---
title: "Approving and declining requests"
slug: "approving-and-declining-requests"
description: "Approve, return, or delete purchase orders, trip requests, and other requests from your Payhawk Inbox, and find out when you can return a request for review."
updated: 2026-10-21T15:19:45Z
published: 2026-10-21T15:19:45Z
canonical: "payhawk.com/approving-and-declining-requests"
---

> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://payhawk.com/help/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Approving and declining requests

Based on the [defined approval workflows at your company](/help/workflow-conditions-and-custom-workflows), you may be designated as an approver for request types and will need to approve requests submitted by your teammates.

As an approver, you will automatically receive a notification in your Payhawk **Inbox** when a request is reviewed or submitted if the review step has not been set as required. Any documents that have already been uploaded, such as draft contracts, quotes, or supplier emails, will also be visible within the request.

> [!TIP]
> If you have requests awaiting your approval, the system will automatically send you a daily email reminder indicating the number of pending requests.

## Specifics

- You can delete and return requests to the submitter only if they haven't been approved yet.
- You can return a request for review only if the review step has been included in your company's approval workflows for requests.
- If you return or delete an expense, the submitter will receive a push notification on their phone and an email.
  - They can also view the reason for the action in the notification.
  - The reason for your action is logged in the **Activity** section of the request. It shows as a comment when **Comments** is selected in the **Show** filter, and as a workflow entry when **Workflow** is selected.

![Request Activity section filtered by Comments and by Workflow, each showing a Returned to employee entry with the reason.](https://cdn.payhawk.com/Emp%3ARequests/Approving_and_declining_requests_activity_20261008.jpg)

## Accessing requests and purchase orders for approval

- You can access a request in your Payhawk **Inbox** by clicking on the link provided in the email notification you received.
- Alternatively, you can access a request from your **Inbox** > **Requests** > **Pending**.
- You can also approve, return, and delete requests directly from the **Requests** app in the Payhawk Web Portal.

> [!WARNING]
> - Payhawk notification emails come from `no-reply@payhawk.com`. Before you click on a link in an email, check the full email address of the sender, not only the sender name.
> - If you don't see the request from the email under **Inbox** > **Requests to me** > **Pending**, don't click on any links in the email and don’t reply to it. [Contact Payhawk Support](/help/contacting-payhawk-support) through the chat.

## Approving requests associated with budgets

If you are a Budget owner, you can view budget details in the request and, from there, navigate to both the budget and the request for more information.

![A purchase request linked to a budget in the web portal and the mobile app, with the budget overview and a Risk of going over budget warning.](https://cdn.payhawk.com/Emp%3ARequests/Approving_and_declining_requests_budget_20261008_ai.png)

If you risk going over the budget or have already done so, the system will display a warning for you to note.

## Viewing budgeted amounts from requests

If a request is linked to a budget, Budget owners and authorized users can view a budget overview and navigate to the budget for more details from the **Budget** tab of the request.

![Payhawk request side panel for "Equipment for new starters" with details, amount table and a collapsed Budget section, next to the purchase order preview.](https://cdn.payhawk.com/virtual-qa/2026-10-08-37758313450-1/approving-and-declining-requests-03.png)

## Approving requests

To approve a request from your Payhawk **Inbox** in the Payhawk Mobile App:

1. Go to **Inbox** > **Requests** > **Pending**.
2. Select the desired purchase request.
3. Tap **Approve*.***

![Mobile app Inbox with the pending requests list, and an open expense request with the Approve and Decline buttons.](https://cdn.payhawk.com/Mobile%20app%3ARefresh-Dec25/requests_4_2_20261008_ai.png)

To approve a request from your Payhawk **Inbox** in the Payhawk Web Portal:

1. Go to **Inbox** > **Requests to me** > **Pending**.
2. Select the desired expense.
3. Click on **Approve**.

![Payhawk Inbox with the Pending requests list and an expense request for office chairs open in a side panel with Approve and Decline buttons.](https://cdn.payhawk.com/virtual-qa/2026-10-08-37758313450-1/approving-and-declining-requests-05.png)

## Returning requests to the employee

To return a request to the requester from your Payhawk Inbox in the Payhawk Mobile App:

1. Go to **Inbox** > **Requests** > **Pending**.
2. Select the desired purchase request and tap **Decline***.*
3. On the screen that opens:
  1. Select **Return to employee**.

If the **Review** step is not included in your company's workflows, only the **Return to employee** option will be available, allowing you to send the request back to the requester.
  2. Under **Note**, enter the reason for your action and any details you expect the employee to provide before resubmitting the request.
  3. Tap **Return**.

![Mobile app Inbox with pending requests, an open expense request, and the Decline request screen with Return to employee selected, a note and the Return button.](https://cdn.payhawk.com/Mobile%20app%3ARefresh-Dec25/requests_6_2_20261008_ai.png)

To return a request to the requester from your Payhawk Inbox in the Payhawk Web Portal:

1. Go to **Inbox** > **Requests to me** > **Pending**.
2. Select the desired request and click on **Decline**.
3. On the screen that opens:
  1. Select **Return to employee**.

If the **Review** step is not included in your company's workflows, only the **Return to employee** option will be available, allowing you to send the request back to the requester.
  2. Under **Note**, enter the reason for your action and any details you expect the employee to provide before resubmitting the purchase.
  3. Click on **Return**.

![Payhawk Inbox with an expense request open and the Return to employee panel selected, showing a comment field and Return and Cancel buttons.](https://cdn.payhawk.com/virtual-qa/2026-10-08-37758313450-1/approving-and-declining-requests-07.png)

## Rejecting requests

> [!WARNING]
> The **Reject** option will reject and remove the request if it hasn't been approved yet.

To reject a request from your Payhawk **Inbox** in the Payhawk Mobile App:

1. Go to **Inbox** > **Requests** > **Pending**.
2. Select the desired request and tap **Decline**.
3. In the dialog that opens:
  1. Tap **Reject**.
  2. Under **Note**, enter the reason for your action.
  3. Select the checkbox to confirm that you understand the request will be deleted and that this action cannot be undone.
  4. Tap **Reject**.

![Mobile app Inbox with pending requests, an open expense request, and the Decline request screen with Reject selected, a note, the confirmation checkbox and the Reject button.](https://cdn.payhawk.com/Mobile%20app%3ARefresh-Dec25/requests_8_2_20261008_ai.png)

To reject a request from your Payhawk **Inbox** in the Payhawk Web Portal:

1. Go to **Inbox** > **Requests to me** > **Pending**.
2. Select the desired request and click on **Decline**.
3. In the dialog that opens:
  1. Tap **Reject**.
  2. Under **Note**, enter the reason for your action.
  3. Select the checkbox to confirm that you understand the request will be deleted and that this action cannot be undone.
  4. Click on **Reject**.

![Payhawk Inbox with a pending expense request open and the decline panel showing the Reject option selected, a comment field and a confirmation box.](https://cdn.payhawk.com/virtual-qa/2026-10-08-37758313450-1/approving-and-declining-requests-09.png)

## Returning requests for review

To return a request for review from the Payhawk Web Portal:

1. Go to **Requests** and select the desired request.
2. Click on its three-dot menu and select **Return for review**.

![A request in the web portal with its three-dot menu open and Return for review highlighted.](https://cdn.payhawk.com/Emp%3ARequests/Approving_and_declining_requests_return_for_review_20261008.jpg)

## Useful resources

- [Lifecycle of requests](https://help.payhawk.com/en/articles/10163215-overview-of-purchases#h_07ee4badc1)