Submitting Expenses via Teams

#Setting Up Teams Integration

#Installation

1. Navigate to Settings > Integrations > Microsoft Teams
2. Click Connect Teams
3. Follow OAuth flow to authorize Light in your Teams organization
4. Select the Teams workspace to integrate
5. Light bot is installed and ready

#Configuration

After installation, configure:

1. Select channels where expense bot should be active:

   • Private DMs (employees can DM bot directly)
   • #expenses team channel
   • Department or project channels

2. Set notification preferences:

   • When to notify about expense status
   • Who gets notifications

3. Enable auto-processing:

   • Automatically process receipts, or
   • Require manual confirmation first

4. Click Save

#Submitting an Expense via Teams

#Direct Message to Light Bot

Fastest method for submitting receipts:

1. Open Teams and find Light or Expenses bot in your contacts

2. Click New Expense or type /expense

3. An adaptive card appears with entry fields:

   • Receipt File: Click to attach image/PDF
   • Amount: Dollar amount (pre-filled if receipt has it)
   • Category: Dropdown with spending categories
   • Description: What was purchased
   • Date: When expense occurred

4. Fill in details and click Submit

Light processes the receipt and sends an update card showing extracted data.

#Posting in Team Channel

Submit expense in team or project channel:

1. In Teams channel, click the attachments icon

2. Upload receipt image (JPG, PNG) or PDF

3. In the message, mention @Light Expenses and describe:

   • "Process this receipt for software subscription"

4. Light bot responds asking to confirm extraction

5. Click Looks Good or Edit to correct

6. Expense is submitted for approval

#Sharing Meeting Receipts

For expenses during Teams meetings:

1. During meeting, share receipt screen or upload file
2. Teams message automatically captures for Light
3. Light processes and asks for confirmation
4. Confirm in Teams chat, stay in meeting

No need to leave the meeting to submit.

#Reviewing Extracted Data in Teams

After submitting, Light sends an update card:

"Receipt processed - Please confirm details"

The card displays:

• Merchant: Shop or restaurant name
• Date: Purchase date
• Amount: Total cost
• Category: Suggested spending category
• Buttons: "Looks Good" or "Edit"

#Confirming Extraction

If correct:

1. Click Looks Good
2. Card updates: "Submitted for approval"
3. Card shows status of manager approval

If needs correction:

1. Click Edit
2. Modal appears with editable fields
3. Correct merchant, amount, date, or category
4. Click Fixed to resubmit
5. Light sends new update card to confirm

#Adding Context

Before confirming, add notes about the expense:

1. On the confirmation card, click Add Notes

2. Type description of the expense:

   • "Client dinner with Acme Corp"
   • "Travel for customer visit"
   • "Office supplies for Q1"

3. Click Add

4. Notes appear on card for manager to see

#Tracking Reimbursement Status

Light sends status updates via Teams:

1. Submitted: "Expense submitted to [Manager]"
2. Approved: "[Manager] approved your $X expense"
3. Requested Changes: "[Manager] needs clarification on your expense"
4. Paid: "Reimbursement of $X was deposited"

Click cards to see full details.

#Checking Your Expense Status

Ask Light for updates anytime:

1. DM Light bot or type in team channel: /expense status

2. Light responds with card listing:

   • Pending approval (how long pending)
   • Approved but not paid
   • Paid (with payment reference)
   • Denied (with reason)

3. Click any expense to expand and see details

#Batch Submitting Multiple Expenses

Submit multiple receipts in Teams:

1. In DM with Light, click New Expense
2. Select Multiple Receipts option
3. Attach multiple files (or upload one, then click Add Another)
4. Fill in details for first receipt
5. Click Next to move to second receipt
6. Repeat for all receipts
7. Click Submit All

Light processes all at once; you get one confirmation card.

#Team Expense Splits

For expenses shared by multiple people:

1. Submit expense normally
2. In confirmation card, click Share with Team Members
3. Select teammates to split with (checkboxes)
4. Light calculates individual shares
5. Click Confirm Split

Each team member gets notification of their share. Each person is reimbursed their portion.

#Adaptive Cards and Rich Experience

Teams messages show as adaptive cards with:

• Visual data: Amount, date, category shown prominently
• Quick actions: Approve, reject, or edit with single click
• Context: Notes from employee visible without opening new window
• Real-time updates: Card updates as status changes

No need to click to another app to see expense details.

#Receipt Attachment Best Practices

For best AI extraction:

1. Quality: Take clear photo with good lighting (natural light preferred)
2. Angle: Photo should be straight-on, not at angle
3. Framing: Full receipt in frame, not cropped
4. Format: JPG, PNG (best) or PDF (also works)
5. Size: File size less than 5MB

Light's guidance dialog in Teams shows photo examples.

#Teams Notifications

Control how you're notified about expense status:

1. Go to Teams Settings > Notifications

2. Find Light Expenses

3. Choose notification style:

   • Banner and feed
   • Banner only
   • Feed only
   • Quiet (read in Teams only, no notification)

4. Save preferences

#Troubleshooting Common Issues

#Receipt Couldn't Be Read

Light message: "I couldn't process this receipt. Can you help?"

Options:

• Retake Photo: Click to provide better photo
• Manual Entry: Type details instead
• Try Later: Resubmit the same file later

Click option and continue.

#Wrong Category Assigned

1. In confirmation card, click Edit
2. Change Category dropdown to correct one
3. Light learns from the change
4. Click Fixed

#Double Submission

If you accidentally submit the same receipt twice:

1. Light detects duplicate
2. Sends message: "This looks like a duplicate. Should I skip it?"
3. Click Skip to discard second copy
4. Only original is processed

#Mobile Teams App

Submitting via Teams mobile:

1. Open Light bot in Teams mobile app
2. Click New Expense
3. Camera button to take receipt photo in-app
4. Fill in amount, category, description
5. Click Submit

All same functionality as desktop Teams.

#Related Articles

• Submitting expenses via Slack
• Submitting expenses via email
• Mobile receipt capture
• Expense management overview