---
title: "Create and approve a change order"
slug: "bc-create-and-approve-a-change-order"
description: "Learn to create and approve project change orders in Microsoft Dynamics 365, ensuring accurate tracking of budget deviations and project tasks."
tags: ["Walkthrough"]
updated: 2026-06-25T09:59:11Z
published: 2026-06-25T09:59:11Z
canonical: "docs.staedean.com/bc-create-and-approve-a-change-order"
---

> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.staedean.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Create and approve a change order

The work to carry out and the contract amount agreed are known at the beginning of the project. In many cases, the actual work deviates from the original budget. The change order makes it possible to track these deviations and implement a procedure where an estimate for the changes is created, an approval is obtained, and when the project change order is approved, a project task can be created. The project task number becomes visible in the project change order, and on the project task the change order is visible.

In this walk-through, you learn how to create a project change order estimate. When the estimate is complete, submit it for approval using the combined lifecycle and workflow. From an approved estimate, create a project task through the **Create Project Task** action.

## About this walk-through

This walk-through covers how to create a project change order estimate, submit an estimate for approval, and use the **Create Project Task** action. It illustrates the following tasks:

- Setting up the sample data.
- Creating a project change order.
- Completing the estimate and submitting for approval.
- Using the **Create Project Task** action to create project tasks from an approved estimate.

## Prerequisites

To complete this walk-through, you need:

- Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central.
- CRONUS International Ltd. demonstration database.
- STAEDEAN Industrial Equipment Manufacturing RapidStart demo set.

## Story

Prakash is the project manager at CRONUS International Ltd. Prakash encounters additional requirements in the project that the customer did not make clear earlier. Prakash estimates the additional work and asks David, the salesperson, to obtain approval from the customer. Prakash and David decide to keep the change order separate from the project's fixed price and complete the additional work on a **Time & Material** basis.

## Setting up the sample data

### The project change order number series

Change orders have their own number series, set in the **Project Control Suite Setup**.

### Steps- Workflow setup

1. Choose the ![Lightbulb](https://cdn.document360.io/da662430-6a41-47b1-8c7e-7e4ac37a9756/Images/Documentation/search_small(3).png) icon, enter **Workflows**, and then choose the related link.
2. In the **Workflows** list, select **New** and then **New** again to start a new workflow.
3. Complete the following fields (this is an example, modify to match your business process):

| When Event | On Condition | Then Response |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Approval of a project change order is requested. | Approval Status: **Open** | Add record restriction. |
|  |  | Set document status to **Pending Approval**. |
|  |  | Create an approval request using approver type **Approver** and approver limit type **Direct Approver**. |
|  |  | Send approval request and create a notification. |
| An approval request is approved. | Pending approvals: 0 | Remove record restriction. |
|  |  | Release the document. |
| An approval request is approved. | Pending Approvals: > 0 | Send approval request and create notification. |
| An approval request is rejected. | Always | Reject the approval request and create a notification. |
|  |  | Reopen the document. |
| Approval of a project change order is canceled. | Approval Status: **Pending Approval** | Cancel the approval request and create a notification. |
|  |  | Reopen the document. |
|  |  | Show message "The approval request for the record has been cancelled." |
| An approval request is delegated. | Always | Send approval request and create a notification. |

### The project change order reason codes

Change orders can be classified by a **Change Order Code**:

| Code | Description |
| --- | --- |
| CUSREQ | Additional customer requests. |
| NOSPEC | Not in original specification. |

## Process

### Steps - Create a project change order

1. Open the **Projects List**: /Departments/Project Control Suite/Project Control Suite/Projects.
2. Select the project for which you want to create a change order and click **Change Order** in the ribbon.
3. In the **Project Change Orders** list, click **New**. On the new line, complete the following fields:

| Field | Description |
| --- | --- |
| Project Change Order Code | Click the assist edit to select a number series. Click **OK** in the **No. Series List** to confirm. |
| Description | Provide a short description for the change order. |
| Comments | Use comments for a more elaborate description. The **Comments** field on the change order line indicates if comments exist (**Yes**/**No**). Drill down on this field or use the **Comments** action on the **Navigate** tab. |
| Change Order Code | Select one of the change order codes to classify the change order. |
| Estimated Resource Cost | Specify the total estimated resource costs. |
| Estimated Material Cost | Specify the total estimated material costs. |
| Estimated Equipment Cost | Specify the total estimated equipment costs. |
| Estimated Expenses | Specify the total estimated expenses. |
| Total Estimated Cost | Shows the total for the estimated fields. Calculated, not editable. |
| App | Indicates if the change order has been approved. Set through the approval workflow. |
| Enhanced Status | Shows the current lifecycle state. |
| Project Task No. | Shows the project task number created from the change order. |

### Steps - Processing an approval

The following activity is based on the workflow described in Workflow setup.

1. From the **Project Change Order** page, click **Request Approval** and then **Send Approval Request** from the drop-down menu.
2. Accept the confirmation: "An approval request has been sent."

> [!NOTE]
> **Note** The status of the project change order changes from **Open** to **Pending Approval**.
3. From the **Related** > **Change Order** > **Approvals** menu, open **Approval Entries** to monitor the status of the approval request, or select **Delegate** to delegate the request.
4. The approver sees an additional **Approve** option in the project change order.
5. Click **Approve** and select one of the following:
  - **Approve**: the status changes to **Released**. This makes the **Process** action visible, from which the **Create Project Task** wizard can be started.
  - **Reject**: the status changes to **Open**.
  - **Delegate**: the status remains **Pending Approval**.

### Steps - Use the Create Project Task action to create project tasks from an approved estimate

1. When the change order has the **Approved** state, the **Create Project Task** action is available in the ribbon.
2. Click **Create Project Task** to open the wizard.
3. Complete the following fields:

| Field | Description |
| --- | --- |
| Project Task No. | Enter a new project task number that is not yet in use in the project. |
| Description | Provide a short description for the project task. |
| Project Element | Select one of the project elements, when in use. |
| Project Activity | Select one of the project activities, when in use. |
| Invoice Template Code | Select the invoicing template for the change order project task to set the invoicing method. Leave blank to use the project invoicing method. |
| Invoicing Method | Set through the selected invoicing template. |
| Contract Amount | Enter an amount when the invoicing method for the change order project task is **Fixed Price**. |
| Contract Amount (LCY) | Calculated when the invoicing currency or the project's currency differs from the local currency. |
| Starting Date | Select the starting date for the change order project task. |
| Ending Date | Select the ending date for the change order project task. |
| Nr. of Days | Enter the number of working days for the change order project task. |
| Project Posting Group | Select a project posting group for the change order project task when different from the project's posting group. |
| Surcharge Model Code | Select a surcharge model code for the change order project task when different from the project's surcharge model code. |
| WIP Method | Select a WIP method for the change order project task when different from the project's WIP method. |
| WIP Total | Select a **WIP Total** code (**Blank**, **Total**, **Excluded**) for the change order project task when different from the project's WIP Total. |

1. Click **OK** to create the project task. The project task number shows in the change order to confirm creation and prevent duplication.

## Related

- [Industrial Equipment Manufacturing Apps](/bc-industrial-equipment-manufacturing-apps.md)