How to Set Up Timesheet Policies in greytHR

Updated in July - 2026  | Subscribe to watch greytHR how-to video

Managing work hours across projects, teams, and billing cycles is a challenge for any growing organisation. greytHR's Timesheet module brings structure to this process by giving employees a simple way to log the time they spend on tasks and projects, while giving organisations the visibility they need to track productivity, manage project costs, and align billing accurately.

For employees, timesheets make it easy to record daily work — whether billable hours on a client project or internal tasks — without switching to a separate tool. For organisations, the data collected helps calculate project costs, support payroll processing, and generate insights into how work hours are utilised across teams.

Watch the video to know more on setting up Timesheets:

Setting up Timesheets involves two steps:

1. Configure a timesheet policy — define the rules employees follow when logging time, including how time is recorded, approval workflows, and submission cycles.

2. Configure projects — set up the projects employees log time against, define billability, and control employee access.

Configure a timesheet policy

To create a timesheet policy, from the greytHR Admin portal go to Workforce Management > Admin Tools > Timesheet Settings > Timesheet Policy.

If no policies have been created yet, you'll see an empty state with a Create a Policy button. Click it to begin. The policy is set up across four steps.

Define Policy

1. In the Policy Name field, enter a name for the policy.

2. In the Policy Description field, enter a brief description. (Optional)

3. Under Policy Document, upload a reference document for employees if applicable. You can upload a file or drag and drop it here. (Optional)
   Note: The policy document will be accessible in the document centre of the mobile app and web portal, allowing employees to read all policy details and guidelines.

4. Click Save and Next.

Configure Rules

This step defines how time entries are logged, reviewed, and submitted.

1. In Time must be logged using, select how employees record time:

   1. Start and End Times — employees log their shift login and logout times.

   2. Total Hours — employees log the total number of hours worked.

2. In Show project selection, In Show project selection, select Yes or No. If Yes, the following rule applies:

   1. In Project selection is, select Mandatory or Optional to define whether employees must select a project when logging a task.

3. In Each time entry must be at least, set the minimum duration for a single time entry.

4. In The request will be, select Reviewed Manually or Reviewed Automatically. If Reviewed Manually, the following rules apply:

   1. Under Level 1, select the reviewer and the action they can take.

   2. Click + Add more reviewers to add additional reviewer levels if needed.

   3. In Auto Forward to next level after, enter the number of days of no response after which the request moves to the next reviewer level automatically. This is optional.

   4. In Send Reminder to reviewers after, enter the number of days of inactivity after which a reminder is sent to the reviewer. (Optional)

5. In Timesheets must be submitted on a, select Weekly or Monthly. 

   1. If Weekly:

      1. In Weekly timesheets must be submitted, select the submission window — on or after, on or before, or between specific days.
         For example: on or after Friday (employees can submit from Friday onwards), on or before Monday (employees must submit by Monday), or between Friday and Monday (employees can submit only within this window). 

      2. In Weekly timesheet period must start on, select the start day of the week.
         For example, if you select Monday, each timesheet week runs from Monday to Sunday.

   2. If Monthly:

      1. In Monthly timesheets must be submitted, select the submission window — on a specific date or between a date range.
         For example: on the 25th of every month, or between the 25th and the 30th. 

      2. In Monthly timesheet periods must be based on, select the month type.
         For example, a calendar month (1st to 31st) or an attendance cycle (such as 21st to 20th). 

6. Expand Optional Rules to configure any of the following additional restrictions:

   1. Restrict time entry beyond attendance hours — prevents employees from logging time beyond their actual sign-in and sign-out duration or actual work hours. 

   2. Time logged cannot exceed — set a maximum number of hours an employee can log per day, per week, and per month.
      Note: The daily limit must not exceed the weekly or monthly limit, and the weekly limit must not exceed the monthly limit.

   3. Restrict time entry on — select the days on which employees cannot log time: rest day, holiday, leave day, or off day. 

   4. Attachment and note — make it mandatory for employees to add a note, an attachment, or both when submitting a timesheet entry.

7. Click Save and Next.

Assign Employees

1. Select one of the following options:

   1. All Employees — applies the policy to all active employees.

   2. New Employee Group — create a new filter group by defining criteria such as department, location, or date of joining, and apply the policy to matching employees.

   3. Existing Employee Group — apply the policy to a group already configured in the system.

2. Review the employees listed under the selected option.

3. Click Save and Next.

Note: A filter group, once created, is saved for future use in employee group filters.

Review Policy

1. Review the policy configuration across the Details, Rules, and Employees tabs in the summary.

2. Choose one of the following:

   1. Finish and Activate — activates the policy immediately. You will be prompted to set an activation date. You can select a past date, set it to today's date to activate right away, or choose a future date to schedule the activation. The policy will appear with a Scheduled for Activation tag until the activation date is reached.

   2. Save to Drafts — saves the policy without activating it. You can return to it later from the Manage Timesheet Policies page and activate it when ready.

Note: You can download the list of assigned employees using the Download List option in the Employees tab before activating.

Manage Timesheet policies

All policies are listed on the Manage Timesheet Policies page with details such as Policy Name, Employee Filter, Duration, and Status. Policies can be in one of three states: Draft, Active, or Closed.

• Under the Draft tab, you can Activate, Edit, or Delete a policy.

• Under the Active tab, you can Deactivate or Edit a policy.

When activating a draft policy, you will be prompted to set the date from which the policy applies to employees.

Configure projects

Once your timesheet policy is in place, set up the projects employees will log time against. 

From the greytHR Admin portal hover over the 9 dots and go to Workforce Management > Admin Tools > Timesheet Settings > Project Configuration.

Create a project

1. Click Create a Project or Add Project. A right-side drawer opens.

2. In the Project Name field, select the project from the dropdown.

3. Use the Project Duration calendar picker to set the start and end dates for the project.

4. In the Is this project Billable? field, select Yes or No.

5. If the project is billable and you want employees to also log non-billable tasks, turn on the Allow Non-Billable Tasks toggle.
   Note: Employees can add non-billable tasks in a billable project when this toggle is enabled.

6. In the Employee Filter field, select the filter that defines which employees can access this project.

7. Click Save.

The project is added to the list with a status of Enabled by default.

Project Name, Is this project Billable?, and Employee Filter are required fields. The project cannot be saved if any of these are left empty. The Employee Filter determines which employees can see and log time against this project — only employees who match the selected filter will have this project available to them in the mobile app. 

View and manage projects

After saving your first project, the Manage Projects list displays all configured projects. Projects are organised under two tabs: Enabled and Disabled.

Each project row has a three-dot menu (⋮) with the following options:

• Edit — opens the drawer with existing values pre-filled. Update as needed and click Save.

• Disable / Enable — toggles the project's availability for timesheet use.

Project status and access

Newly created projects start as Enabled by default.

Existing projects (migrated from the Project Management module) are initially set to Disabled. You'll need to manually enable them before employees can log time against them.

Note: Project status is shared between the Project Management module and Timesheet Project Configuration — changes in either location are reflected in both.

When a project is disabled:

• The project remains accessible to employees until 23:59 on the day it is disabled.

• From the following day, employees cannot log time against it.

• If an employee has already logged time on future dates for a project that is then disabled, timesheet submission will be blocked with an error message.

Employee access is based on effective dates. If an employee no longer meets the filter criteria, leaves the organisation, or the project is disabled, they are removed from the project effective the next day. New employees who become eligible are added effective the next day.

Delete a project

A project cannot be deleted if:

• It is linked to any existing timesheet tasks.

• It is in use in the Project Management module.

To remove a project from timesheet use without deleting it, disable it instead.

Note: Admins migrating from an earlier setup will find all existing projects in a Disabled state. Review the list under Project Configuration and enable the projects your teams need before timesheet entries begin.

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