This guide covers the end-to-end process of creating, submitting, allocating, and approving an expense claim in Drum. Before proceeding, ensure your administrator has completed the initial setup as outlined in our "Setting Up Expense Claims" guide.
Creating a New Expense Claim
You can start a new claim in two ways from the Expenses section (accessible from the dropdown menu next to your timer):
Manual Creation: Click the New Expense Claim button.
Drag and Drop (Recommended): Drag one or more receipt files (e.g., PDF, JPG, PNG) directly onto the "Expense Claims" area.
Drum will automatically create a new claim dated for today and begin processing the receipt in the background to extract key information.
Building Your Claim: Adding Expenses and Allowances
A single expense claim can contain multiple items.
Expenses (from Receipts): If you dragged in a receipt, Drum will create a claim item for it.
Staff Allowances: To add an allowance (e.g., for travel):
Click Add Staff Allowance.
Give it a description (e.g.,
Travel to and from site).Choose the pre-defined allowance type from the dropdown (e.g.,
Travel per kilometer).Enter the quantity (e.g.,
540kilometers). The total will be calculated automatically based on the rate you set up in the settings.
Allocating Claim Items to Projects
Every item on a claim, whether an expense or an allowance, must be 100% allocated to one or more projects before it can be approved.
For each line item, click Add Project Allocation.
Search for and select the relevant Project by name or number.
Choose a Cost Type and a specific Stage/Task to allocate the cost against.
Enter the percentage to allocate.
To split a cost: If an item needs to be split between multiple projects, simply click Add Project Allocation again and allocate the remaining percentage to a different project until the total allocation reaches 100%.
Reviewing and Finalising Details
Before submitting for approval, it's crucial to review the details.
Click the green expense link to drill down into an item processed from a receipt.
Verify that Drum has extracted the information correctly.
Crucially, set the correct finance
AccountandTax Typefor each line item. For example, ensure all items are marked as "inclusive of tax" if applicable.Return to the main expense claim.
Approval and Xero Integration
Set an Approver: Choose a manager from the "Approver" dropdown. (Note: Admin users may have the ability to approve their own claims).
Approve the Claim: The approver can now review and click Approve. This locks the claim and pushes the allocated costs to the relevant projects. The cost will appear in the project's 'Costs' tab, with a link back to the source expense claim.
Syncing with Xero
To raise a bill in Xero for reimbursement:
Set an Issue Date and a Due Date.
Ensure the employee is set up as a contact/supplier in your Xero account.
Change the Xero Status from
Not SyncedtoDraft. Drum will push the bill to Xero.
Important Distinction: Staff Allowances are considered payroll items and are not included in the bill sent to Xero. They can be viewed in Drum's payroll reports. The Xero bill will only contain items from receipts.
CRITICAL WARNING: Always Edit in Drum
Once an expense claim is synced with Xero, all edits must be made in Drum. Do not edit the bill's line items directly in Xero.
To make a change, you must:
Go to the expense claim in Drum.
Change the Xero Status back to Draft.
Make your edits within Drum.
Re-sync with Xero.
This process is essential to ensure tax calculations and project allocations remain perfectly synchronized between both systems.
Converting an "approved" in Xero bill back to draft in Drum will void the bill in Xero and recreate a new bill upon next integration.