--- title: How to Set Up and Use Budget Tolerance Configuration description: Learn how to configure Budget Tolerance settings in Aclarian, including how to set dollar and percentage limits, manage override requests, use the Warning option, and review budget tolerance history on your forms. --- [Skip to content](https://support.aclarian.com/aclarian-client-support-knowledge-base/how-to-set-up-and-use-budget-tolerance-configuration-in-aclarian#main-content) English - United States Show submenu for translations [Client Support Portal](https://support.aclarian.com/aclarian-tickets?hsLang=en-us) [![BRANDING ELEMENTS LIBRARY (11)](https://support.aclarian.com/hs-fs/hubfs/BRANDING%20ELEMENTS%20LIBRARY%20(11).png?width=500&height=141&name=BRANDING%20ELEMENTS%20LIBRARY%20(11).png)](https://Aclarian.com) Open main navigation Close main navigation - English - United States Show submenu for translations - [Client Support Portal](https://support.aclarian.com/aclarian-tickets) How can we help you? - There are no suggestions because the search field is empty. 1. [Aclarian Client Support Knowledge Base](https://support.aclarian.com/aclarian-client-support-knowledge-base?hsLang=en-us) 2. [Payments](https://support.aclarian.com/aclarian-client-support-knowledge-base/payments?hsLang=en-us) 3. [Data Management](https://support.aclarian.com/aclarian-client-support-knowledge-base/payments?hsLang=en-us#data-management) September 14, 2026 # How to Set Up and Use Budget Tolerance Configuration ## Learn how to configure budget controls, set tolerance limits, manage override requests, and review budget tolerance history on your forms Budget Tolerance Configuration allows your organization to set controls on how much spending can exceed the remaining budget balance before the system blocks or flags a transaction. This article walks you through how to set it up and how it works in practice. --- ### Step 1: Access the Budget Tolerance Configuration Navigate to the Payments Module. From the main menu, select **Data Management**, then click **Budget Tolerance Configuration.** ![](https://support.aclarian.com/hs-fs/hubfs/image-png-Sep-14-2026-05-07-02-2506-PM.png?width=1621&height=227&name=image-png-Sep-14-2026-05-07-02-2506-PM.png) This is where you enable and customize your budget controls. --- ### Step 2: Configure Your Budget Tolerance Settings #### Turn It On Set **Is Applicable** to **Yes** to activate budget controls. If set to No, no restrictions apply and payments can be submitted even if they exceed the budget. #### Include Pre-Encumbrances You can also set **Include Pre-Encumbrances** to Yes or No. - **Yes:** Requisitions, Purchase Orders, and Change Orders immediately reduce the available budget balance when entered or submitted, not just when approved. If the document is rejected or canceled, the pre-encumbrance releases automatically. Once approved, it converts to a formal encumbrance. - **No:** Pre-encumbrances are not factored into the remaining balance calculation. ![](https://support.aclarian.com/hs-fs/hubfs/image-png-Sep-14-2026-05-07-09-3188-PM.png?width=1619&height=578&name=image-png-Sep-14-2026-05-07-09-3188-PM.png) #### Set the Level of Budgetary Restriction Select the level at which the system checks the budget. You can set this at three levels: - **Entity Level:** E1 (Fund), E2 (Fund Type), E3 (Fund Group), and more - **Organization Level:** O1 (Department), O2 (Sub-Function), O3 (Function), and more - **Account Level:** A1 (Account), A2 (Sub-Object), A3 (Object), A4 (Character), and more This determines whether the budget check looks at a specific GL string or at a broader aggregated level. For example, selecting E3, O3, and A4 checks the budget across all expenses in that fund group, function, and character combined. #### Set Your Tolerance Limits You can set tolerances by: - **Dollar amount:** for example, $500 - **Percentage:** for example, 10% - **Both:** select whether the system uses the Higher or Lower of the two values Enable **Include Encumbrances** if you want committed amounts to be factored into the remaining balance calculation. ![](https://support.aclarian.com/hs-fs/hubfs/image-png-Sep-14-2026-05-07-17-9743-PM.png?width=1625&height=639&name=image-png-Sep-14-2026-05-07-17-9743-PM.png) #### Set the Override or Warning Behavior Choose what happens when a budget tolerance is exceeded: - **Override:** The user is prompted to request an override approval before the form can be submitted - **Warning:** The user sees a warning but can proceed without a separate approval If you choose Override, you can also set **Is Budget Tolerance Override Allowed** to Yes or No. You can also add one or more users authorized to approve override requests. To grant a user that permission, navigate to the Roles tab in their User profile. Once all settings are configured, click **Save Changes.** --- ### Step 3: Review Your Budget vs. Actual Report Before testing your configuration, review your Budget vs. Actual Report to understand the current balances. Navigate to the **Budget vs. Actual Report** in the General Ledger module. Select your Fiscal Year and focus on Expenses. ![](https://support.aclarian.com/hs-fs/hubfs/image-png-Sep-14-2026-05-07-32-2589-PM.png?width=1633&height=338&name=image-png-Sep-14-2026-05-07-32-2589-PM.png) A few important things to know about how the report works: - The system uses the **Revised Budget**, not the Original Budget, for tolerance checks - Budget checks only apply to expense accounts. Non-expense accounts are ignored. - If Include Pre-Encumbrances is enabled, the report will show a dedicated Pre-Encumbrance column and a drill-down section listing pending requisitions, Purchase Orders, and Change Orders ![](https://support.aclarian.com/hs-fs/hubfs/image-png-Sep-14-2026-05-07-40-8489-PM.png?width=1618&height=660&name=image-png-Sep-14-2026-05-07-40-8489-PM.png) --- ### Step 4: How the System Calculates the Remaining Balance The formula the system uses to check the remaining balance depends on whether the form is tied to a Purchase Order and how Include Encumbrances is set. | Scenario | Formula | | --- | --- | | Forms not related to a PO, Include Encumbrances set to Yes | Remaining = Revised minus (Actual plus Encumbrances) | | Forms not related to a PO, Include Encumbrances set to No | Remaining = Revised minus Actual | | Forms related to a PO, Include Encumbrances set to No | Remaining = Revised minus Actual | | Forms related to a PO, Include Encumbrances set to Yes | Allowable = Revised minus Actual minus Encumbrance minus Pre-Encumbrance plus Transaction Amount | ![](https://support.aclarian.com/hs-fs/hubfs/image-png-Sep-14-2026-05-07-49-7833-PM.png?width=1616&height=560&name=image-png-Sep-14-2026-05-07-49-7833-PM.png) If the Remaining Balance at the configured level is negative, the budget tolerance check will trigger regardless of the Include Encumbrances setting. #### Change Orders For Change Orders specifically, the system only checks the incremental difference between the Revised PO Amount and the Original PO Amount. It does not check the full revised PO total. This prevents the original PO amount from being counted twice against the remaining balance. For example, if a $10,000 PO is increased to $12,000 via a Change Order, only the additional $2,000 is evaluated against the budget tolerance. #### Worked Example: Invoice Approval with PO ![](https://support.aclarian.com/hs-fs/hubfs/image-png-Sep-14-2026-05-07-59-7106-PM.png?width=1609&height=400&name=image-png-Sep-14-2026-05-07-59-7106-PM.png) For GL 001.1000.552004: - Revised Budget: $10,000 - Actual: $7,500 - Encumbrance: $2,000 - Pre-Encumbrance: $0 - Remaining Balance: $500 An Invoice Approval with PO is submitted for $852.50 against this same PO. Allowable Amount = $500 plus $852.50 = $1,352.50. Since $852.50 is less than $1,352.50, the transaction passes. ![](https://support.aclarian.com/hs-fs/hubfs/image-png-Sep-14-2026-05-08-12-8817-PM.png?width=1502&height=377&name=image-png-Sep-14-2026-05-08-12-8817-PM.png) A payment against its own already-encumbered PO amount will effectively always pass, unless the GL string is already over budget for another reason. --- ### Step 5: Test the Configuration and Override Process Let's walk through what happens when a transaction exceeds the budget tolerance. Using a Quick Pay Form for GL string 001.1400.541000 with a Remaining Balance of $15,000 and a tolerance of $500: - Enter an amount of $15,500. Click Save. The form saves successfully as a draft because it is within the allowable amount. **![](https://support.aclarian.com/hs-fs/hubfs/image-png-Sep-14-2026-05-08-30-6204-PM.png?width=1623&height=289&name=image-png-Sep-14-2026-05-08-30-6204-PM.png)** - Change the amount to $15,700 and click Save. The system will display a Spending Limit Exceeded error. An automatic Excel download will also be generated to help you identify which GL accounts triggered the error. ![](https://support.aclarian.com/hs-fs/hubfs/image-png-Sep-14-2026-05-08-38-4477-PM.png?width=1629&height=642&name=image-png-Sep-14-2026-05-08-38-4477-PM.png) #### Requesting an Override If Budget Tolerance Override is set to Yes, you will see the option to request an override. Clicking Yes will prompt you to select an approver. **![](https://support.aclarian.com/hs-fs/hubfs/image-png-Sep-14-2026-05-09-17-3602-PM.png?width=1317&height=547&name=image-png-Sep-14-2026-05-09-17-3602-PM.png)** - If the approver **approves** the request, the form returns to draft mode and can be submitted for workflow approval - If the approver **denies** the request, the form returns to draft mode and the originator must make changes before resubmitting --- ### Step 6: Using the Warning Option The Warning option is an alternative to the Override option. It allows a user to proceed past an exceeded budget without requiring a separate approval, while still recording that it happened. ![](https://support.aclarian.com/hs-fs/hubfs/image-png-Sep-14-2026-05-09-37-6431-PM.png?width=1619&height=569&name=image-png-Sep-14-2026-05-09-37-6431-PM.png) When Warning is selected on the configuration screen, the Is Budget Tolerance Override Allowed question is hidden. The two settings work independently. When a form exceeds tolerance and Warning is enabled, a popup appears: **"Budget tolerance has been exceeded. Do you wish to proceed?"** - **Yes:** The user proceeds. No override approval is created. The form continues through its normal workflow. - **No:** The user is returned to the form to make changes. ![](https://support.aclarian.com/hs-fs/hubfs/image-png-Sep-14-2026-05-09-46-6403-PM.png?width=504&height=372&name=image-png-Sep-14-2026-05-09-46-6403-PM.png) The warning check re-runs at every submission and every approval step for as long as the form remains over budget. Every approver in the workflow will see the warning popup if the form is still over budget when they take action. This feature applies to: Invoice Approval with PO, Purchasing Requisition, Change Order, Multiple Payment, Multiple Payee Payment, Check Request, P-Card, and Quick Pay forms. --- ### Step 7: Review the Budget Tolerance Exceeded and Approval History Section Every form that runs a budget tolerance check now includes a **Budget Tolerance Exceeded and Approval History** section. **![](https://support.aclarian.com/hs-fs/hubfs/image-png-Sep-14-2026-05-10-24-3227-PM.png?width=1618&height=468&name=image-png-Sep-14-2026-05-10-24-3227-PM.png)** Here is how this section works: - It is hidden unless a budget tolerance exceed, override, or warning event has actually occurred on that form - Once an event occurs, it appears with a count in the header, for example: Budget Tolerance Exceeded and Approval History (2) - Every event adds a new record. Nothing is overwritten. A single form can accumulate multiple entries. Expanding an entry shows: - Who triggered it and the status: Pending, Approved, or Declined - When it occurred in the workflow, for example Submitted for Approval - What triggered it: initial submission, override requested, or form edited and resubmitted - What was exceeded: the specific GL accounts and amounts - A snapshot of the tolerance configuration at the time of the check - The approval status at the time of the event **![](https://support.aclarian.com/hs-fs/hubfs/image-png-Sep-14-2026-05-10-59-0248-PM.png?width=1620&height=537&name=image-png-Sep-14-2026-05-10-59-0248-PM.png)** This section applies to: Check Request, Quick Pay, Invoice Approval with PO, Multiple Payment, Multiple Payee Payment, Change Order, Purchasing Requisition, and P-Card forms. --- ### Step 8: Dashboard Alert for Pending Override Requests If you are authorized to approve budget tolerance override requests, a gold **Budget Tolerance Requests** widget will appear on your Dashboard when you have pending requests waiting for your review. ![](https://support.aclarian.com/hs-fs/hubfs/image-png-Sep-14-2026-05-11-17-9918-PM.png?width=1653&height=858&name=image-png-Sep-14-2026-05-11-17-9918-PM.png) - The widget shows the count of pending requests, capped at 99 - Clicking the widget takes you directly to the Needs Your Approval section on your Dashboard - The widget only appears when your pending count is greater than zero ### Need Help If you have questions about Budget Tolerance Configuration, contact the Aclarian Client Support team for assistance. - Email: [clientsupport@aclarian.com](mailto:clientsupport@aclarian.com) - Contact your assigned Customer Support liaison - For urgent issues, use the Live Chat Feature   - [Billing/AR](https://support.aclarian.com/aclarian-client-support-knowledge-base/billing-ar?hsLang=en-us#main-content) - [Forms](https://support.aclarian.com/aclarian-client-support-knowledge-base/billing-ar?hsLang=en-us#forms) - [Data Management](https://support.aclarian.com/aclarian-client-support-knowledge-base/billing-ar?hsLang=en-us#data-management) - [Budgeting](https://support.aclarian.com/aclarian-client-support-knowledge-base/budgeting?hsLang=en-us#main-content) - 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