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Timesheet Locking

Automatically lock timesheets after a specific period to prevent changes. Learn how to set up timesheet locking and manage unlocked entries.

Updated over 3 months ago

To ensure accurate time tracking and prevent unauthorized changes to logged hours, you can define a period after which timesheets automatically lock in Productive.

This feature is useful for teams that require consistent and finalized time entries for billing, payroll, or project tracking purposes.

Timesheet locking is available on the Ultimate subscription plan.

Setting Up Timesheet Locking

To configure the timesheet locking feature:

1) Navigate to Settings

  • Go to Settings > Time tracking.

2) Set the Lock Schedule
Here, you can define when timesheets will lock:

  • Daily: Timesheets lock at the end of each day.

  • Weekly: Timesheets lock at the end of each week.

  • Monthly: Timesheets lock at the end of each month.

Note: If you choose daily locking, email notifications won't be sent out.

3) View the Next Lock Date
After setting up the lock time, you can see the exact date when the next timesheet lock is scheduled.

4) Enable Email Notifications
Optionally, select Send an email notification to remind teammates that they have until the end of the day to add or edit their time entries.

Notifications and Locking

  • End of Period Notification
    On the day the timesheets are scheduled to lock, a banner will notify your teammates that their timesheets will be locked at 23:59. It will also show how many hours they tracked in the previous period (week or month, depending on your settings).

  • Dismissing the Notification
    Teammates can dismiss the banner by clicking the X button on the right side.

  • Locked Timesheets
    Once locked, the timesheet will no longer be editable, and it will display as locked.

Managing Locked Timesheets

If a teammate is unable to track their time before the deadline, managers or admins can unlock timesheets for specific users.

Note: This must be done individually for each person who requires their timesheet to be unlocked.

Unlocking for a Specific User:

  1. Go to Settings > Users.

  2. Select the person's profile.

  3. Open the three-dot menu on the right and click to unlock time tracking for the desired period.



Time Zone Considerations

  • Priority: The user's time zone is prioritized over the organization’s.

  • Example:

    • Organization’s time zone: "London" (Settings > General)

    • User's time zone: "Tokyo" (Settings > Account)

    • Timesheet locking: According to Tokyo time at the end of Sunday.

    • London equivalent: At approximately 4:00 p.m. on Sunday in London.

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