Approving a task

What you'll learn#

• How to review a task and its document
• How to fill in any fields required by the task
• How to approve, add a comment, and attach files
• What happens to the document after you approve

What approving does#

When you approve, you're saying "this step of the workflow is complete — move on". VAT Portal then advances the approval to the next task in the flow, which lands in the next assignee's My Tasks list. If your approval was the final step, the document moves to Approved status and the approval is finished.

Approvals are final for your step. Once you click Approve, you can't un-approve it from the UI. If a mistake was made and needs to be reversed, the creator has to wait for the outcome (Approved or Rejected) and then issue a correction — or an admin has to intervene.

Opening a task#

The fastest way:

1. Open Document Flow → My Tasks in the sidebar.
2. Click the task you want to work on.

You can also click a task from the My Tasks callout on the Dashboard or from a direct link if someone shared one.

The task detail page has two columns on desktop:

• Left column — the context you need to make a decision: a document excerpt, any task-specific fields you must fill in, existing attachments, and a discussion board.
• Right column — the task's metadata (deadline, who it's assigned to, when it was activated) and the Action Panel where you actually approve, reject, or delegate.

Reviewing the document#

Read the Document Excerpt card on the left. It shows:

• Title — what the document is about.
• Content — the main text (on request forms) or the template used to generate the document.
• Field values — the data the creator entered (amount, dates, department, etc.).

If something isn't clear, use the Discussion Board (also in the left column) to ask the creator a question. See Using the discussion board.

Filling in task fields (if any)#

Some tasks require you to enter extra information when you approve — for example, an accounting code, a reviewer's note, an approved amount. These appear in the Task Fields card on the left.

When you click Approve, any fields marked with a red asterisk (*) are required — you can't finish the approval without filling them in. Optional fields can be left blank.

If you don't see a Task Fields card, this task doesn't require any extra input.

Approving, step by step#

1. In the right column, click the green Approve button.
   • The button highlights to show it's selected, and a small form expands below it.
2. (Optional) Write a comment explaining your approval — useful for audit history and for the next approver or the creator.
3. (Optional) Attach any supporting files by clicking Upload and selecting them. You can attach multiple files; each one you add can be removed before submitting.
4. If the task has required fields (left column), fill them in now.
5. Click the green Approve button at the bottom of the form to submit.
   • The button shows a spinner while the approval is being processed.
6. After a moment, you'll see a green checkmark and a "Redirecting…" message.
7. You're returned to the My Tasks list; the task you just approved is no longer there.

What happens next#

Behind the scenes, VAT Portal does a few things:

• The task is marked complete.
• The document's history records your approval, your comment, and any files you attached.
• The approval flow advances to the next task (or completes, if this was the last step).
• Assignees of the next task see the task appear in their own My Tasks.
• If this was the final step, the document moves to Approved status.

The creator and anyone else watching the document can see that you've acted on it — the document's Workflow Copies section shows each task's status.

If the confirmation takes a while#

Most approvals finish within a few seconds. If it takes longer than about 30 seconds, VAT Portal stops waiting and shows an amber note saying the process is still running in the background.

When that happens:

1. Don't click Approve again — the approval has already been submitted.
2. Wait a moment, then go back to My Tasks.
3. The task should have disappeared, confirming it's done.

If the task is still there after a minute or two, something went wrong. Contact your admin or try again.

Common questions#