This is the end-to-end workflow for a nonprofit supporting several people. Create the beneficiary, open the case, link a project, record the expense once, then decide whether the amount belongs directly to one person or must be allocated across several beneficiaries. Finally, review the beneficiary/case report separately from the project report. TidyOne keeps these layers distinct; it does not automatically split the money in a shared project and it does not turn a report into an audited, legally approved filing.
Why this workflow is different from simply setting up the case file
The Beneficiary → Case → Project guide explains the structure. This guide continues from that structure through an expense and into reporting. The distinction matters because linking a project to a person does not by itself say how much of a shared invoice belongs to that person.
In TidyOne, the beneficiary identifies the person, the case represents a specific need, and the project organizes a program or funding effort. The transaction stores the real total. If one transaction concerns several people, allocation rows store each person's share. The beneficiary/case report can then use those allocations instead of counting the full transaction for everyone.
Before step 1: check the nonprofit mode and base links
This workflow assumes the organization is configured for multiple beneficiaries / cases. In that mode, the Finance form shows Beneficiary, Case and the “Split the amount among several beneficiaries” option. A single-beneficiary organization hides or changes those selectors.
For a shared project, first open Projects & Funds and review the linked beneficiaries/cases. One project can support several people and each link can optionally point to a different case. This defines the project's scope, not the financial distribution of each transaction.
Step 1 — Choose the real beneficiary and case
In Beneficiaries & Cases, select the person and the case that represents the need behind the expense. If one person has two active needs — for example “Therapy 2026” and “Adaptive equipment” — do not create a second beneficiary profile. Keep one person and separate cases.
A case can have a primary project, and projects can also carry beneficiary/case links. Reporting uses these links to decide which projects are relevant to a selected person or case.
Step 2 — Link the project before recording money
In Projects & Funds, the project should represent the program or campaign to which the expense belongs. In multi mode, a project may support one or several beneficiaries. If there is exactly one beneficiary/case link, the transaction form can preselect that person and case when you choose the project. If there are several beneficiaries, the form cannot safely infer whose share the amount represents.
Step 3 — Record the expense once
Open Finance → + Expense. Enter supplier, amount, currency, category, subcategory, date and description. For nonprofit workspaces the form can also store contact, beneficiary, case, project and fund. If you start from a project-specific add flow, the project — and sometimes its currency — can be prefilled.
If the expense belongs to one person, choose that beneficiary and case directly on the transaction. If it belongs to several people, enable “Split the amount among several beneficiaries” and add one row per beneficiary with the optional case and allocated amount.
TidyOne validates two things before saving allocations: a selected case must belong to the beneficiary on the same row, and the allocation total must equal the transaction total within a cent-level tolerance. A positive allocation cannot be saved without a beneficiary.
Step 4 — Attach evidence and keep the technical link
The Finance form accepts an image or PDF up to 15 MB as an attachment. When you attach evidence from the transaction flow, the archive keeps a link between the document and transaction. Documents can also be uploaded and analyzed in Documents, then confirmed with the correct nonprofit context.
For reporting, a direct document-to-transaction link is the clearest way to show that an expense has supporting evidence in the current selection. The report flags expenses without a linked document and shows up to 100 missing-document examples.
Step 5 — Review the beneficiary / case report
Open Reports, choose Beneficiary / case report, a period and a person or case. When no project is fixed, the code applies allocation scoping to shared transactions: if rows exist in transaction_allocations, the report keeps only the allocations matching the selected beneficiary/case and replaces the reported amount with the sum of those matching allocations.
If a transaction has no explicit allocations, it can still enter the individual report when it is linked directly to the selected beneficiary/case. A project transaction may also enter without an allocation when the project unambiguously belongs to that beneficiary or case. A project linked to several beneficiaries is not automatically attributed to one of them.
Step 6 — Reconcile against the project report
The beneficiary/case report answers “what share belongs to this person or case?”. The project report answers “what happened in the entire project?”. Those perspectives should not be conflated for a shared project.
With a project filter, project transactions remain at their full value. That is correct for the project total. If a RON 1,000 expense is allocated RON 600 to Ana and RON 400 to Radu, the project report should show RON 1,000 while the individual reports — when scoped correctly — show RON 600 and RON 400.
Worked example: one project, two cases, one invoice
| Item | Ana | Radu | Project total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Beneficiary / case | Ana · Therapy | Radu · Rehabilitation | “Rehabilitation transport” project |
| Transport invoice | — | — | RON 1,000 |
| Explicit allocation | RON 600 | RON 400 | RON 1,000 |
| Individual report | RON 600 | RON 400 | — |
| Project report | — | — | RON 1,000 |
The invoice is stored once. The transaction is stored once. Allocations describe the internal distribution. Creating two RON 1,000 transactions would double the project cost. Linking only the shared project without allocations would not give the individual report a safe basis for a 600/400 split.
Which documents enter the report
Reporting loads organization documents and keeps them when they are linked to an included transaction, or when they match the selected project/beneficiary/case and period. For shared projects, directly linking the document to the transaction reduces ambiguity.
The transaction CSV includes reported amount, original amount and an allocation-applied indicator. The ZIP export also contains documents.csv, and beneficiary/case selections include timeline-caz.csv. Full PDF/CSV/ZIP exports are gated by reports_full_export; in the current UI that is presented as an Association PRO capability, while the base report remains viewable without full export.
AI: report draft, not decision
TidyOne can send the report type, beneficiary, case, project, fund and period to the AI report function. For a case report, the prompt explicitly asks it to use only supplied non-sensitive case facts, timeline data, directly linked or explicitly allocated transactions, project finances and document completeness.
The AI function is instructed not to invent impact outcomes, diagnoses, legal compliance, donor motives, missing amounts or exchange rates. Currencies must remain separate and data gaps should be surfaced. The draft is not audited, filed or legally approved.
Current limits that matter in this workflow
- Shared project ≠ automatic allocation. Linking several beneficiaries does not split transactions.
- The project filter changes individual-report logic. Do not select a shared project when you need only one person's allocation.
- Allocations must cover the full transaction. The form does not save a partial split with an unallocated remainder.
- Currencies remain separate. TidyOne does not automatically apply FX conversion in this report.
- Missing-document signals are technical. They are not accounting conclusions.
- Reports do not file anything automatically. Exports are working material for review, accounting or funders.
Checklist before you call the workflow complete
Common mistakes
- Duplicating the invoice for every beneficiary. One invoice should create one transaction, then allocations.
- Confusing project membership with financial ownership. A project may contain several people and does not determine each person's share by itself.
- Selecting the shared project in the individual report and reading the total as an allocation. In the current version this can show the whole project.
- Using the wrong case in an allocation. The form verifies that the case belongs to the selected beneficiary.
- Allocations that do not match the total. Saving is blocked until the amounts reconcile.
- Treating the project report as a bank balance. The report reflects TidyOne records, not a confirmed bank-account balance.
- Sending an AI draft without review. Check numbers, evidence and context before external use.
Frequently asked questions
If a project has two beneficiaries, does TidyOne split the expense automatically?
No. The form can show that the project has several beneficiaries, but the split only exists when the user records explicit allocations.
Can I assign a different case to each beneficiary within one expense?
Yes. Each allocation row can have its own beneficiary and case, and the app checks that the case belongs to that person.
Why does my beneficiary report show the full project expense?
Check whether you also selected the project. In the current version, an explicit project filter keeps the project's full transactions. For the person's allocation, select the beneficiary/case and leave the project unselected.
What happens if I have no allocations?
The individual report may include a transaction if it is directly linked to the beneficiary/case or if the project belongs unambiguously to that scope. A shared project is not automatically attributed to one person.
Can I use the TidyOne report directly as a legal filing?
TidyOne organizes and exports the data held in the app. Accounting, tax, contractual and official reporting requirements must be checked separately for your organization and jurisdiction.
Continue with the verification guides
Choose two people, one shared project and a well-documented real or test expense. Verify allocations and both report views before importing a large historic archive.
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