---
key: create-a-time-policy
title: Create a time policy
audience: staff
section: settings
routes: ["/settings/org/time-policies"]
permissions: ["work.time_policies.read"]
features: ["settings.org.time-policies"]
since: 0.0.1
updated: 0.0.1
status: published
summary: Set up the pay period, timesheet, approval, rounding, lock and overtime rules your team's time entries follow, and make one policy the organization default.
keywords: [pay period, timesheet rules, overtime, rounding, time tracking, approvals, lock time entries, biweekly, hours]
related: [log-time, submit-and-approve-a-timesheet, submit-and-approve-time-entries, start-and-stop-a-timer]
---

In the sidebar, open **Settings**, then choose **Time Policies** under **Projects & Tasks**. The page address is `/settings/org/time-policies`.

A time policy is the rulebook for time entries: how long a pay period is, whether entries need approval, whether a timer is allowed, how minutes round, when old entries lock, and when overtime starts. Most organizations need one policy, set as the default.

## Before you start

- Your role needs the time policies permission to open the page, permission to write them to create or edit, and permission to assign them to set the default.
- Time tracking has to be turned on for your organization. If the page reads **Time tracking disabled**, ask your admin.

## Steps

1. Press **New policy**. The **New policy** drawer opens.
2. Type a **Policy name**. Optionally set **Effective from** (leave it blank to apply the policy right away) and a **Description** for other admins.
3. Under **Pay period**, choose a **Period type**: **Weekly**, **Biweekly**, **Semi-monthly**, **Monthly** or **Custom**. Weekly and biweekly periods ask for a **Week start**; biweekly and custom ask for an **Anchor date** the pattern counts from; custom also asks for **Custom length (days)**.
4. Under **Time entry rules**, switch on what you need: **Timesheets** groups entries into pay periods; **Approvals** requires review; **Timer** allows live timers; **Require target** insists on an account, project, work order or task; **Require notes** makes notes mandatory; **Allow overlap** permits overlapping entries.
5. Fill in **Rounding (minutes)**, **Minimum duration** and **Lock after (days)** as needed. A new policy starts with 15-minute rounding and a 14-day lock. A blank field means that rule is off.
6. Decide **Edit after approval**. If **Approvals** is on, also decide **Edit after submit**.
7. **Overtime** starts on at 480 daily and 2400 weekly minutes (8 and 40 hours). Change **Daily threshold (minutes)**, **Weekly threshold (minutes)** or **Period threshold (minutes)**, or switch it off. Blank thresholds are ignored.
8. Press **Create policy**. The policy appears in the list.
9. To make it the one everyone uses, press **Set default** on its row (or open it and press **Set as organization default**), then confirm in the **Set organization default policy** dialog.

## What you see

- The list shows each policy's **Name**, **Status**, **Period**, **Overtime** and **Rounding**. The default policy's name carries **Organization default**, and its **Set default** button becomes a **Default** marker.
- Press **Edit** on a row, or click the row, to reopen the drawer, change it, and press **Save changes**. Press **Archive** to retire a policy and confirm in the **Archive time policy** dialog; it stays in the list, and the **Status** filter set to **Active** hides it.
- The flask icon beside **New policy** (its tooltip reads **Resolution preview**) opens a drawer where an admin picks a team member and a moment in time, presses **Run preview**, and sees which policy applies to that person and why.

## If something looks different

- **New policy** is missing and **Edit** is greyed out: your role cannot change time policies.
- **Set default** is disabled: your role cannot assign policies, or the policy is already the default.
- Archiving fails with "Policy has active assignments": the policy is the default or assigned to someone. Make another policy the default first.
- The **Period type** list is locked to **Weekly**: pay period customization is not included in your plan. The field says so.
- **Timesheets**, **Approvals**, **Timer** or **Overtime** is off again after saving: your plan does not include that feature.
- The list reads **No time policies configured yet.** Press **New policy**.

[[route:/settings/org/time-policies|Open Time Policies]]