Menu
HomeSystemsGuidesFree tools
Accounts Payable

Payment Run Approval Checklist: What to Check Before You Release

Release is the last moment a wrong payment costs nothing to stop.

Short answer

Before releasing a payment run, check that every payment traces to an approved invoice, that duplicates and recent bank detail changes have been cleared, that the run total agrees to the approved list and the bank file, and that new suppliers and first payments have been reviewed. The person releasing the run should not be the person who prepared it.

Before the run is built

The checks before release

  1. Totals agree three ways. The payment proposal total, the approved list total and the bank file total should match to the cent. Any difference needs an explanation before release.
  2. Every payment traces to an approved invoice. Spot-check the largest payments and a random sample back to the invoice and its approval.
  3. Duplicates tested. Run duplicate tests across the run and recent paid history, not just within the run. See how to find duplicate invoices in Excel.
  4. Bank detail changes verified. List every supplier whose bank details changed since the last run and confirm each was verified by call-back. See the verification procedure.
  5. New suppliers and first payments reviewed. Any supplier being paid for the first time gets a second look.
  6. Unusual payments explained. Payments above your threshold, to a new country, to an account that looks personal, or paid well before the due date.
  7. Manual and urgent payments in the same control. Payments outside the run need the same checks, not fewer.
  8. Bank file integrity. The file should come straight from the system to the bank platform with no manual editing. Compare the record count and total in the bank platform with the system report.

Who signs off

The preparer builds the run and clears exceptions. A different person reviews the checks and releases it. In the bank platform, use dual authorisation so release needs two people. See segregation of duties in AP.

Exceptions: clear or accept, never ignore

Every exception should end in one of three states: cleared with evidence, removed from the run, or accepted by a named approver with a reason. A run should not be released with exceptions simply left open. Recording the outcome is what turns a checklist into an auditable control.

After release

Keep the approved list, the exception log and the bank confirmation together. Send remittances. At month end, the bank reconciliation confirms that what left the bank matches what was approved.

Checklist

  • Proposal, approved list and bank file totals agree
  • Largest payments and a random sample traced to approved invoices
  • Duplicate tests run against recent paid history
  • Every bank change since the last run verified by call-back
  • First payments to new suppliers reviewed
  • Payments above threshold or to new countries explained
  • Bank file not manually edited; record count and total checked
  • Released by someone other than the preparer, with dual authorisation
UK and US

UK: Bacs payments follow a three-day processing cycle, while Faster Payments arrive much sooner, so last-minute changes need extra care before release.

US: ACH and wire payments have different cut-off times and recall options; wires are especially hard to reverse once sent, so check them first.

Free tool

Duplicate Invoice Checker

Paste your invoice list and see likely duplicates in minutes. Free Excel file: enter your work email to download it.

Use the Duplicate Invoice Checker

Make it a control, not a one-off

The Accounts Payable Control System runs four duplicate-invoice tests, supplier master fraud checks and a three-way match on every invoice, with a payment run release gate that blocks release while exceptions are open. Excel, no macros, one-time price.

View the Accounts Payable Control System

Common questions

How long should payment run approval take?

With the checks prepared by the preparer as an exception report, the release review should take minutes. The time is in preparing the evidence, not reading it.

What if an exception can't be cleared before the bank cut-off?

Remove that payment from the run and pay it in the next run once cleared. Don't release a whole run with an unresolved exception in it.

Do urgent one-off payments need the same checks?

Yes. Urgent payments are where fraud and errors concentrate, so they need the same checks, not fewer.

Related guides

Last updated 18 October 2026. General guidance for finance teams; check it against your own policies, systems and local rules.