---
title: "Ask a client to approve something"
description: "Send a client an approval request from a ticket, a project, or the portal tab, choose who must answer, and get a signed answer back on the record."
url: "https://support.outpostplatform.com/client-portal/approvals/"
product: "depot"
type: "how-to"
status: "draft"
ai_summary: "MSP plan. Request approval from a ticket's More menu (ticket:write), a client project's Actions menu (project:write), or the client's Client portal tab > Approvals (clientportal:manage). Ask everybody with a role or named people; first answer decides, or all must approve. Optional amount and due date. Answers are e-signatures noted on the ticket or project."
availability:
  plans: ["msp"]
  permission: "ticket:write"
  preview: false
source: "https://gitlab.com/outpostplatform/docs/-/edit/main/src/content/docs/client-portal/approvals.md"
license: "CC BY 4.0"
---

# Ask a client to approve something

An approval asks the client to say yes or no to something, such as a purchase
or an after-hours change window, and records who answered and how. The client
answers in the portal, with a signature. This page shows how to ask, how to
follow the answer, and what the client sees.

## Before you begin

- The portal is on for the client, and the people who will answer are active
  portal users with **Respond to approvals**. See
  [Turn on the portal for a client](/client-portal/turn-on/).
- The permission you need depends on where you ask: `ticket:write` on a
  ticket, `project:write` on a project, and `clientportal:manage` for a
  general approval. Choosing who to ask needs `clientportal:read`.
- A record can have one open approval at a time.

## Ask for approval

1. Start from the record the approval is about:
   - **A ticket:** inside the client's workspace, open the ticket and select
     **More** > **Request approval**.
   - **A project:** open the client's project and select **Actions** >
     **Request approval**.
   - **Anything else:** on the client's **Client portal** tab, select
     **Approvals** > **Request approval**.
2. In **What they are approving**, enter a short title, such as `Replace the
   front desk workstation`.
3. In **Details**, explain what you need. The client sees it above the approve
   and decline buttons.
4. Optionally, enter an **Amount** and its **Currency**, and an **Answer by**
   date. The request expires after that day.
5. Under **Who to ask**, choose:
   - **Everybody with a role**, then the **Role**. It defaults to the
     **Approver** role. Whoever holds the role when they answer can respond.
   - **Named people**, then tick the people.
6. Under **Decided by**, choose **The first answer**, or **Everybody asked
   (one decline declines)**.
7. Select **Send for approval**.

The people asked are notified, by default at once.

## How the client answers

The client opens the request from **Approvals** in the portal or from the
email, and selects **Approve** or **Decline**. To sign, they type their full
name (and can draw a signature), tick that they agree, and select **Sign and
approve** or **Sign and decline**. A decline needs a reason. The portal asks
them to confirm who they are first when they have been idle.

With **Everybody asked**, the request shows who has approved and who has
still to answer. It is approved when everyone asked has approved.

Each answer is kept as a signed record that cannot be changed: who answered,
the name they signed, how they signed, their comment, and when.

## Follow the outcome

- The outcome is added as a note on the ticket or project the approval was
  about.
- On the client's **Client portal** tab, **Approvals** lists every request
  with its status: **Waiting**, **Approved**, **Declined**, **Withdrawn**, or
  **Expired**. Open one to see each signed answer.

To take back a request that is still open, select **Withdraw**.

## Quotes and milestones

You do not need an approval for a quote or a project milestone. A sent quote
and a client-visible milestone that needs acceptance appear in the client's
**Approvals** inbox on their own, and the client accepts them there or on the
quote or project page, exactly as through the link you email. See
[Sales pipeline and quotes](/msp/sales-and-quotes/) and [Projects](/msp/projects/).

## Verify

The request shows **Waiting** on the client's **Approvals** list, and then the
outcome once the client answers.

## Next steps

- [Handle starter and leaver requests](/client-portal/requests/)
- [Using the client portal: approvals and quotes](/portal-guide/approvals-and-quotes/)