A payment order is a record that Workday creates when your company decides to pay an invoice, employee reimbursement, or vendor bill—but before the money actually leaves your bank account.
Think of it as an instruction slip. Your accounting team or manager approves a payment in Workday, the system generates a payment order, and that order then moves into a queue to be processed. The payment order sits between approval and execution. It tells Workday what to pay, who to pay, how much, and when. Until the payment order is actually processed—usually by your finance team or an automated batch job—no funds have moved.
The payment order is also an audit trail. It records who approved the payment, when they approved it, what the payment was for, and which vendor or employee received it. If your company ever needs to prove that a payment was authorized, the payment order is the document that shows it.
Key Takeaways
- A payment order is Workday's record of an approved payment before the money leaves your bank—it is the instruction, not the execution.
- Payment orders move through a workflow: created when approved, held in a queue, then processed into actual bank transfers on a schedule your company sets.
- You will see payment orders in Workday if you manage vendor payments, process employee reimbursements, or review accounting transactions.
- A payment order can be held, recalled, or cancelled before it is processed, but once processing begins, it usually cannot be stopped.
Where payment orders fit in the payment cycle
Your company's payment process usually follows this order: invoice arrives, someone enters it into Workday or it imports automatically, a manager or accountant approves it, Workday creates a payment order, the payment order waits in a batch, and then on a scheduled date (often weekly or twice weekly), the finance team or an automated process converts all pending payment orders into actual bank transfers.
The gap between payment order creation and processing can be hours or days, depending on your company's setup. Some organizations process payment orders the same day they are created. Others hold them for a week to catch errors or to align with cash flow. This timing matters if you are waiting to know when a vendor will actually receive money—the payment order date is not the same as the payment date.
Once a payment order is processed, it becomes a payment record in your bank's system and in Workday's payment history. At that point, the money is in transit or has arrived at the vendor's bank. The payment order itself is now closed.
Why you might need to find or cancel a payment order
If you submitted an invoice for payment and want to know its status, you can search for the payment order in Workday. It will tell you whether the order has been created, is waiting to be processed, or has already been processed. This is faster than asking your finance team.
If you discover that a payment order was created by mistake—a duplicate invoice, a wrong amount, or a vendor you no longer work with—you can usually cancel it before it is processed. The exact steps depend on your company's Workday setup, but generally you find the payment order, check its status, and if it has not yet been processed, you can recall or delete it. Once processing has started, cancellation becomes much harder and may require your finance team to reverse the payment after it posts to the bank.
Some companies also use payment orders to hold payments temporarily. If cash is tight or you are waiting for a customer payment to arrive, you might create a payment order but delay processing it. This keeps the approval on record without moving the money yet.
Payment order status and what each one means
Workday shows payment orders in different states as they move through the workflow. The exact status names vary by company, but these are the most common:
| Status | What it means | Can you cancel it? |
|---|---|---|
| Draft | The payment order has been created but not yet submitted for approval. | Yes, easily. |
| Pending Approval | The payment order is waiting for a manager or accountant to review and approve it. | Yes, usually by rejecting it. |
| Approved | The payment order has been approved and is waiting to be processed into a bank transfer. | Yes, but you may need finance team permission. |
| Processing | The payment order is currently being converted into a bank transfer as part of a batch run. | No, or only with difficulty. |
| Processed | The payment order has been converted into a bank transfer and the money is in motion or has arrived. | No; you would need to reverse the payment instead. |
If you need to stop a payment, act as soon as you notice the error. The earlier in the workflow you catch it, the simpler the fix. A draft or pending payment order can usually be cancelled in seconds. A processed one requires a reversal, which means the vendor receives the money and you have to ask for it back.
How payment orders connect to your bank account
Workday does not move money directly. When a payment order is processed, Workday sends instructions to your company's bank (or to a payment processor your company uses) telling it to transfer a specific amount to a specific account. The bank then executes the transfer on its own schedule, which is usually the same day or the next business day.
This is why you might see a payment order marked as "processed" in Workday but not see the money leave your bank account until the next day. Workday has done its job; now the bank is doing its job. The payment order is the instruction. The bank transfer is the execution.
If a payment order is processed but the bank transfer fails—because the vendor's account number is wrong, or the bank rejects it for some reason—Workday will usually flag the payment order with an error status. Your finance team then has to investigate and either correct the information and reprocess it, or contact the vendor to get the right details.
Payment orders for different types of payments
Workday creates payment orders for vendor invoices, employee reimbursements, payroll, and other outgoing money. The process is the same in each case: approval, payment order creation, batch processing, bank transfer. But the approval workflow and timing can differ.
Vendor invoices usually go through a three-way match (invoice, purchase order, receipt) before a payment order is created. Employee reimbursements often require manager approval and sometimes a receipt scan. Payroll is usually automated—Workday creates payment orders on a set schedule, like every other Friday, without waiting for individual approvals each time.
If you are waiting for a reimbursement or vendor payment, ask your finance team what day they process payment orders. Knowing that they process every Tuesday and Thursday, for example, helps you understand when your payment order will move from "approved" to "processed" and when the money will actually arrive.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does a payment order mean the money has left my company's bank account?
No. A payment order is the approval and instruction. The money does not leave until the payment order is processed and the bank executes the transfer. A payment order can sit in "approved" status for days without any money moving.
Can I see payment orders in Workday if I am not in the finance department?
It depends on your company's permissions. If you submitted an invoice or reimbursement request, you can usually search for your own payment order to check its status. If you manage a budget or approve payments, you may have broader access. Ask your finance team or Workday administrator what you can view.
What happens if I cancel a payment order after it has been processed?
You cannot cancel a processed payment order in Workday. Instead, your finance team has to reverse the payment through the bank, which means the vendor receives the money and you have to request it back. This is why catching errors early matters.
Why does my payment order say "approved" but the vendor says they have not received the money yet?
Approved means your company has authorized the payment, not that the bank has executed it. The payment order still needs to be processed into a batch and sent to the bank. Bank transfers usually take one business day, sometimes two. Ask your finance team when they last processed payment orders.
Can I change the amount or vendor on a payment order after it is created?
Usually not. Once a payment order is created, you cannot edit it. If the amount or vendor is wrong, you have to cancel the payment order and create a new one. This is a control measure to prevent fraud and keep the audit trail clean.