Set up employee accounts to correctly bookkeep (record in your accounting records) expense claims in Spendesk. You can use one default account, dedicated accounts per employee, or a mix of both.
For: Controllers and Account owners with the expense claims module activated.
Before you start
You need the Controller or Account owner role to manage employee accounts.
The expense claims module must be activated on your account.
If you use the DATEV UO integration, your employee account codes must follow DATEV's format requirements (see the DATEV UO setup guide linked below).
If you use the Xero native integration, employee accounts sync with your connected chart of accounts.
👥 Roles: Only Controllers and Account owners can set up or edit employee accounts.
🔒 Access: This setting is only available if the expense claims module is activated on your account.
Use a default employee account
Use this option if you don't need employee-specific accounts, or if you prefer to bookkeep all expense claims under one account.
Navigate to Settings > Chart of accounts > Employee Accounts
Enter the account code in the default account field
Click "Save"
Add a dedicated employee account
You can add a dedicated account for a specific employee in two ways.
From the accounting settings
Navigate to Settings > Chart of accounts > Employee Accounts
Select the employee's name from the drop-down menu
Enter the specific account code next to the employee's name
Click "Save"
💡 Tip: Spendesk flags duplicate account codes automatically to help you avoid mismatches. Click a column header to sort account codes alphabetically.
While preparing your monthly closing
Navigate to Bookkeep > Prepare
Click "Group By" and select "Expense Type" to display expense claims only
Click the employee account field on a payment line
Select or enter the account code
Click "Save"
Remove a specific employee account
Navigate to Settings > Chart of accounts > Employee Accounts
Locate the employee account you want to remove
Click the bin icon on the corresponding line
Find employee accounts in your export files
The accounting export contains two documents. Employee accounts appear differently depending on the document and export template.
Document | Export template | Where the employee account appears |
Purchase journal | Double entry (debit/credit) | Credit line |
Purchase journal | Single entry | "Counterparty" column |
Bank journal | Any | "Counterparty" column, only if the employee was reimbursed from Spendesk |
Once you reimburse an employee from Spendesk, the related expense claims automatically appear in the bank journal. If you haven't reimbursed the employee from Spendesk, the bank journal stays empty for that claim.
Your Spendesk bank account is treated as a supplier account (401 Misc) in exports. Find it under Settings > Chart of accounts > Miscellaneous account. All Spendesk card payments (virtual or physical) appear under this 401 account in your bank journal.
Troubleshooting
Symptom: You can't find the Employee Accounts section in Settings.
Cause: Your role doesn't have access, or the expense claims module isn't activated.
Resolution: Confirm you're logged in as a Controller or Account owner. Ask your Account owner to activate the expense claims module if it isn't enabled.
Symptom: An employee account code shows as flagged or duplicated.
Cause: The same account code is assigned to more than one employee.
Resolution: Go to Settings > Chart of accounts > Employee Accounts, review the flagged rows, and assign a unique code to each employee.
Symptom: The employee account column is empty in your export file.
Cause: No default or specific employee account was set for that expense claim before export.
Resolution: Go to Bookkeep > Prepare, group by Expense Type, and assign an account to the payment before exporting again.