Add an out-of-pocket expense on mobile

This article explains how to use the FreeAgent mobile app to add an out-of-pocket expense.

You should record a business cost as an out-of-pocket expense if the cost was paid for using personal funds on behalf of the business. If the business then reimburses you for the cost, you will need to explain the expense repayment.

However, if the cost was paid for using business funds, you should explain the bank transaction instead once it’s been imported into FreeAgent. Alternatively, you can add a bill if the cost has been incurred but hasn’t yet been paid for. Find out more about the difference between an expense, a bill and a bank payment.

How to add an out-of-pocket expense on mobile

You can use Smart Capture to create an expense from a file or paper receipt. Smart Capture will read the receipt and try to capture key details such as the date and amount. Convert the Smart Capture to an expense, and these details will be filled in for you and a cost category suggested.

Alternatively, you can create an expense manually.

Add an expense using Smart Capture

Tap the ‘☰’ (mobile app navigation menu) button and select ‘Files & Smart Capture’.

Select the ‘Smart Capture’ tab and tap the ‘+’ at the top-right of the screen (iOS) or the green '+' at the bottom of the screen (Android). You can choose an existing photo or file, or select 'Camera' from the menu to take a new photo.

Once you’ve captured the receipt using Smart Capture, select the file and tap ‘Convert to a new expense’ to convert the file into an out-of-pocket expense.

Smart Capture will automatically extract the date and amount and suggest a cost category.

Please note that if some of the data was unable to be extracted, the relevant fields will not be automatically populated and you’ll need to manually enter the details.

Next, complete any additional relevant fields for the out-of-pocket expense and select ‘Save’ in the top-right corner to complete the process.

Add an out-of-pocket expense manually

 Tap the ‘☰’ (mobile app navigation menu) button and select 'Expenses'.

Navigate to the ‘+’ in the top-right (iOS) or the green '+' at the bottom (Android) and select ‘New expense.

If you have any paperwork that relates to the expense (e.g. a receipt), you can attach a scanned copy by tapping ‘Choose attachment’ and selecting the file.

If there is more than one user on your FreeAgent account and you have level 7 access or above, you’ll see the option to select the relevant user from the ‘Claimant’ field. If you are the only user or have a lower access level, you won't see the options and your name will be selected automatically.

Category

FreeAgent remembers the category used for the last expense created. If this is not the category that is required for this new expense, select the relevant expense category from the ‘Category’ field. You can add a new category if you need to, for example, clothing or petrol.

If your business is registered for VAT, make sure the expense is being added to the right category for VAT. For example, for the purchase of stamps at the post office using personal funds, make sure that you categorise this as ‘Postage’ so that no VAT is claimed on it. If you’re unsure which category to select, please ask your accountant.

Date, currency and amount

Select the date of the expense, select the currency that you used to pay for the expense from the ‘Currency’ drop-down menu and enter the expense amount from the receipt, inclusive of any VAT, in the ‘Amount’ field.

VAT

Select the relevant rate of VAT from the ‘VAT’ field and select the appropriate VAT option. Alternatively, you can enter a specific amount manually by choosing ‘Custom VAT amount’ and enter the amount of VAT and select 'Done' in the top-right corner.

Please note that you’ll need to enable non-standard UK VAT rates in your VAT Registration settings if you need these.

Description

Enter a description for the expense and a receipt reference if you have one.

Project and recurring options

To link this expense to a project, select the relevant project from the ‘Link to project’ field and if this expense is going to happen again in the future, for the same user and the same amount, for example a mobile phone voucher, select the relevant frequency using the ‘Recurring options’ field.

Once you've entered the relevant details for the expense, select 'Save' in the top-right corner to complete the process.