Time & Expense Tracking
Guide to tracking time and expenses against projects in NetSuite.
Time Entry Overview
TIME ENTRY FLOW
═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
ENTRY SUBMIT APPROVE PROCESS
───── ────── ─────── ───────
┌──────────┐ ┌──────────┐ ┌──────────┐ ┌──────────┐
│ Employee │ │ Employee │ │ Manager │ │ System │
│ enters │──────►│ submits │──────►│ approves │──────►│ creates │
│ time │ │ timesheet│ │ │ │ charges │
└──────────┘ └──────────┘ └──────────┘ └──────────┘
│
▼
Costs Posted
Billing Ready
Weekly Timesheet
Entering Time
WEEKLY TIMESHEET ENTRY
───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
Navigation: Activities > Scheduling > Track Time (Weekly)
Employee: John Smith
Week: January 15-21, 2026
┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Customer/Project Task Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Total│
│ ──────────────── ──── ─── ─── ─── ─── ─── ─────│
│ ABC Company Frontend Dev 4 4 4 4 4 20 │
│ PRJ-00125 │
│ │
│ ABC Company Backend Dev 4 4 4 4 4 20 │
│ PRJ-00125 │
│ │
│ XYZ Corp Requirements 4 4 8 │
│ PRJ-00130 │
│ ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────│
│ Daily Total 8 12 8 12 8 48 │
└────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
[Submit for Approval]
Time Entry Fields
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Customer | Associated customer |
| Project | Project for time |
| Task | Specific project task |
| Hours | Number of hours |
| Memo | Work description |
| Billable | Is this billable time? |
| Service Item | Service type |
Single Time Entry
Quick Entry
SINGLE TIME ENTRY
───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
Navigation: Activities > Scheduling > Track Time
┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Date: 01/15/2026 │
│ Customer: ABC Company │
│ Project: PRJ-00125: Website Redesign │
│ Task: Frontend Development │
│ │
│ Hours: 4.5 │
│ Service Item: Consulting Services │
│ │
│ Billable: ☑ Yes │
│ Memo: Completed header component │
│ │
│ [Save] [Save & New] │
└────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
Time Approval Workflow
Approval Process
TIME APPROVAL FLOW
───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
Employee Submits
│
▼
┌─────────────┐ Rejected ┌─────────────┐
│ Pending │─────────────────►│ Returned │
│ Approval │ │ to Employee│
└─────────────┘ └─────────────┘
│
│ Approved
▼
┌─────────────┐
│ Approved │──────► Costs Posted
└─────────────┘ Charges Created
Approver View
TIME APPROVAL DASHBOARD
───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
Navigation: Transactions > Time > Approve Time
Pending Approvals for Manager: Jane Doe
┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Employee Week Hours Project Actions │
│ ──────── ──── ───── ─────── ─────── │
│ John Smith Jan 15-21 48 PRJ-00125 [Approve] │
│ Bob Wilson Jan 15-21 40 PRJ-00130 [Approve] │
│ Mary Jones Jan 15-21 44 PRJ-00131 [Approve] │
└────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
Bulk Actions: [Approve Selected] [Reject Selected]
Expense Reports
Creating Expense Report
EXPENSE REPORT ENTRY
───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
Navigation: Transactions > Employees > Expense Reports > New
┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Expense Report: ER-00125 │
│ Employee: John Smith │
│ Date: 01/22/2026 │
│ │
│ Report for Project: PRJ-00125: Website Redesign │
│ │
│ Expenses Subtab: │
│ ┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐ │
│ │ Date Category Vendor Amount Billable │ │
│ │ ──── ──────── ────── ────── ──────── │ │
│ │ 01/15 Airfare Delta $450.00 Yes │ │
│ │ 01/15-17 Hotel Marriott $375.00 Yes │ │
│ │ 01/15-17 Meals Various $125.00 Yes │ │
│ │ 01/17 Taxi Yellow Cab $45.00 Yes │ │
│ │ ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────── │ │
│ │ Total $995.00 │ │
│ └──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘ │
│ │
│ [Attach Receipts] [Submit for Approval] │
└────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
Expense Fields
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Category | Expense type (travel, meals, etc.) |
| Date | Date of expense |
| Vendor | Vendor/supplier |
| Amount | Expense amount |
| Currency | If multi-currency |
| Customer | Associated customer |
| Project | Project to charge |
| Billable | Bill to customer? |
| Receipt | Attached receipt |
Billable vs Non-Billable
Classification
| Type | Description | Impact |
|---|---|---|
| Billable | Charged to customer | Creates billing charge |
| Non-Billable | Internal cost only | Cost captured, no charge |
| Pass-Through | Billed at cost | No markup on expense |
| With Markup | Billed with markup | Applies configured % |
Setting Billability
BILLABILITY RULES
───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
Default: Based on project billing type
Override at entry:
☐ Billable (uncheck to make non-billable)
Common Non-Billable Scenarios:
• Internal meetings
• Training time
• Administrative tasks
• Warranty/rework
Mobile Entry
Mobile Time Entry
MOBILE TIME ENTRY
───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
NetSuite Mobile App:
Features:
✓ Quick time entry
✓ Timer function
✓ Project/task selection
✓ Submit for approval
Benefits:
• Entry on-the-go
• Real-time capture
• Reduced data entry errors
Mobile Expense Entry
MOBILE EXPENSE ENTRY
───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
Features:
✓ Camera receipt capture
✓ Expense category selection
✓ Project assignment
✓ GPS mileage tracking
Process:
1. Take photo of receipt
2. Select category
3. Enter amount
4. Assign to project
5. Submit
Time and Percent Complete
Automatic Calculation
PERCENT COMPLETE FROM TIME
───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
Task: Frontend Development
Estimated Hours: 80
Time Logged:
Week 1: 20 hours
Week 2: 25 hours
Week 3: 15 hours
Total: 60 hours
Percent Complete: 60/80 = 75%
Impact:
• Project progress updates automatically
• Revenue recognition (if % complete method)
• Budget vs actual reporting
Integration with Billing
Time to Charge Flow
TIME TO CHARGE
───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
Time Entry
│
▼
Approved ───────► Charge Created
│
▼
Invoice Line
│
▼
Customer Billed
Expense to Charge Flow
EXPENSE TO CHARGE
───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
Expense Report
│
▼
Approved ───────► Charge Created
│ │
│ ▼
│ Invoice Line
│ │
▼ ▼
Reimbursement Customer Billed
(if applicable)
Best Practices
Time Tracking
| Practice | Recommendation |
|---|---|
| Daily entry | Enter time same day |
| Detailed memos | Document what was done |
| Correct project | Double-check project/task |
| Submit weekly | Don't accumulate |
| Review before submit | Check accuracy |
Expense Tracking
| Practice | Recommendation |
|---|---|
| Immediate capture | Enter expenses daily |
| Attach receipts | Required for audit |
| Correct category | Use standard categories |
| Mark billability | Verify before submit |
| Business purpose | Document reason |
Common Issues
| Issue | Cause | Resolution |
|---|---|---|
| Can't select project | Not assigned | Add as project resource |
| Can't select task | Task not assigned | Assign to task |
| Charges not created | Not approved | Approve time/expense |
| Wrong rate applied | Rate card issue | Check billing rate card |
Related Topics
- Project Tasks - Task assignment
- Charge Rules - Billing rates
- Project Billing - Invoice generation