Finalizing the timesheet is the handoff between time & attendance and payroll. Once locked, the figures can no longer be edited — that is exactly the point.
Requirement for enabling the lock feature
The lock button only appears when the Lock timesheet toggle is turned on in Time & Attendance › Settings › General (article B6-03). If you don't see the button, check that toggle first.
Pre-finalization checklist
| Check | Passes when |
|---|---|
| Confirmation queue | The unconfirmed count in Attendance Data is 0 |
| Requests in the period | All leave, overtime and business trip requests have been approved or rejected, with no pending requests |
| No Clock-in cells | Reviewed and resolved, and each remaining cell has a clear reason |
| Offline data | You have waited long enough for offline attendance data to sync |
| Attendance machines | The last sync ran after the last day of the period |
| Three tricky profiles | People with a lot of overtime, people who left mid-period, new hires — check each row |
Pending requests are the number one cause of incorrect timesheets at period end. An unapproved leave request will show as No clock-in and deduct working days from the employee. Review pending requests before finalizing, not after.
Steps
- Open Timesheet and select the correct month to finalize.
- Go through the entire checklist above.
- Click Approve in the top-right corner. The button has an arrow next to it with options for finalizing by scope.
- After finalizing, the cells change to Locked shift status and can't be edited.
- Export a copy of the timesheet to a file for your records.
- Move on to running the payroll period — see article group B9.
IMAGES TO BE ADDED — the confirmation window when clicking Approve and the options in the arrow menu
If you find an error after locking
- Reopen the timesheet for that period — requires administrator permissions.
- Edit the record and state the reason clearly.
- Finalize again.
- If the payroll period has already been run, you must rerun it or make adjustments in the next period — coordinate with your payroll accountant.
Reopening a locked timesheet should be rare. If you have to reopen it every month, the problem lies in your daily process, not the finalization step: the confirmation queue isn't being handled consistently, or requests aren't being approved in time.
