The Policy Control Agent is guided by commands (prompts) given to it. It can, for example, identify excess minibar purchases, tips, and overly expensive hotel stays. The agent checks a receipt as soon as it has been submitted to the system and is only as good as the command it has been given.
The agent activates after a receipt has been saved, and comments and edits appear on the receipt with a few seconds' delay.
You can ask the agent to comment on or edit expenses according to the commands. You can find tips for writing commands further down this guide page.
Activation
Enable the Policy Control Agent under "Automation" in main menu --> AI Features & Agents-tab --> check the Policy Control Agent check box.
Add a travel policy command by a) clicking the cogwheel icon and b) write the prompt in the Policy prompt field.
You can define editing permissions by enabling/disabling "Allow Agent to update the fields in the receipt form".
Once the commands and editing permissions have been defined, click Save.
What findings can the agent make on expenses?
The agent can read the following information to make findings:
receipt image
description
participants
date
country
VAT percentage
receipt ID
amount
purchase type (i.e. expense account)
The agent can, for example, comment if the receipt image total differs from the amount entered on the receipt form, or if it suspects that an incorrect purchase type has been selected. The comments left on expenses depend entirely on the travel policy commands, meaning you can define what things you want the agent to check on expenses.
Comments on receipts are made in the organization's default language.
What changes can the agent make to expenses?
The agent can be asked to edit the expense account, expense rows (VAT rows), and VAT percentages. Edits are made based on the instructions defined in the Policy Command field.
For example, the agent can split a hotel receipt into two rows so that a separate breakfast charge is assigned a VAT rate of 0%.
Editing receipts requires that the "Allow Agent to update the fields in the receipt form" option is enabled.
A comment is left on the expense for any changes made, and after the agent has processed the expenses, they proceed to your organization's normal approval flow.
Default commands
When you activate the agent, the Policy Prompt field will contain the default commands listed below. Commands can be removed, edited, and added at your own discretion, but the field cannot be left empty.
* Receipt must show what was purchased. Payment confirmations, bank statements, and card summaries are not receipts. Flag "invalid receipt — no itemization".
* Receipt must have a visible date. Flag "date missing" if not found.
* If receipt content does not match expense account, flag "expense account may be incorrect" — hotel receipt on non-hotel account, restaurant receipt on non-meals account, flight receipt on non-travel account, taxi receipt on non-transport account. Only flag if mismatch is clear.
* If OCR total differs from entered receipt amount, flag "verify amount — OCR shows €X".
* Finnish hotel breakfast VAT is not deductible. If receipt is from a Finnish hotel and contains breakfast line items, split VAT lines: room at original rate, breakfast at 0%.
* Representation and entertainment VAT is not deductible in Finland. If expense account indicates representation or entertainment, VAT should be 0%.
Tips for writing commands
Follow these guidelines when writing commands:
Be specific
Instead of writing: "Check hotel receipts" Write: "If the expense account is Hotel and the vendor is in Finland, set breakfast VAT to 0%, as it cannot be deducted according to the Tax Administration"
Define what the agent should observe
Specify whether you want the agent to examine e.g. the date, amount, or description.
State the action
Tell the system what to do if a finding is made: "set VAT to 0%", "add a comment", "verify that...", "make sure..."
Add context
Include a justification so that comments are meaningful: "...as it cannot be deducted according to Tax Administration guidelines" or "...as it is not permitted under company policy"
Although the default commands are in English, you can write commands in any language.
The commands do not have to be related to travel — you can also give the agent instructions related to, for example, purchase type accounting.
Example commands
*Alcohol is not an allowed entertainment expense. Comment if detected.
*Tips are not reimbursed. Comment if detected.
*Personal purchases (minibar, sauna, spa, laundry) are not allowed. Comment if detected.
*Cash withdrawals are not allowed on company cards. Comment if detected.
*Flight tickets must be in Economy class. Comment if anything else is detected.