Use On hold to flag an expense or purchase request as temporarily blocked while you wait for information or action from someone else. This helps your team separate blocked work from items they can act on straight away.
Who can do this
Every use with access to an expense or purchase can put it on hold.
Set an item 'On hold' from a comment
On-hold is available on the following expense types and workflow states:
Card transactions — Collect, Approve, Review
Reimbursements — Approve, Review
Invoices — Review, Verify, Approve
Purchase requests — Approve
Items outside supported workflow states
If the 'On hold' toggle does not appear, the item is in a state that does not support on-hold for that expense type. See the supported states listed above.
Open the expense or purchase request.
Go to the comment area in the drawer.
Write your comment. Tag other users if needed.
Turn on the On hold toggle switch.
Click 'Send'.
The item shows an On hold tag in the drawer header and in the relevant list view. A new entry appears in the activity timeline: "{{ExpenseType}} set on hold by {{UserName}}".
Comment required
The On hold toggle is submitted together with your comment. You need to write a comment or add an attachment before you can send.
Set an invoice On hold while emailing a supplier
Open the invoice drawer.
Click 'Email supplier'.
Fill in the required fields and compose your email.
Turn on the 'Set invoice on hold' toggle in the footer of the email dialog.
Click 'Send'.
The invoice is marked On hold and the activity timeline is updated in the same way as when setting on-hold from a comment.
Note: The on-hold toggle in the email dialog is only available for invoices in supported workflow states.
Remove On hold from an item
Open the expense or purchase request.
Go to the comment area.
Write a comment if needed.
Turn off the 'On hold' toggle.
Click 'Send'.
The on-hold tag is removed and the activity timeline records: "{{ExpenseType}} removed from hold by {{UserName}}".
Automatic removal
Moss removes the On hold flag automatically when the item moves to a different workflow step. You do not need to clear it manually before approving or rejecting.
View how long an item has been On hold
When an item is on hold, hover over the On hold tag in the list view to see a tooltip showing how many days it has been on hold.
If an item has been on hold for more than 5 days, the day count appears in orange.
Filter by actionable status
Use the Actionable status filter to focus your list on blocked or actionable items only.
Open the list view for the relevant expense type.
Open the filters panel.
Select Actionable status.
Choose one of:
Show all {{ExpenseType}} — shows everything regardless of on-hold state (default)
Show actionable only — hides items that are on hold
Show on hold only — shows only items currently on hold
What happens with items that are on hold
On hold does not change the item's workflow status and does not block any actions. You can still approve, reject, or review an item while it is on hold.
When the item moves to a different workflow step, Moss removes the on-hold flag automatically. The activity timeline records this as: "{{ExpenseType}} removed from hold due to status change."
Frequently asked questions
Does On hold stop approvals or other actions?
No. It is a visual marker only. All normal workflow actions remain available.
Why did the On hold label disappear?
Moss removes the flag automatically when the item changes workflow status. A user with the right permissions may also have removed it manually. Check the activity timeline to see what happened.
Can I see how long something has been on hold?
Yes. In list views, hover over the On hold tag to see the number of days since it was placed on hold.
Can I set multiple items On hold at once?
No. On hold is set per item. There is no bulk on-hold action.