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Administrator Guide
Last Updated: 2026-06-12
Steps: Set Up OCR for Supplier Invoices

Steps: Set Up OCR for Supplier Invoices

You might need to take additional steps to enable this feature based on your organization's subscription service agreement. To determine your subscription service agreement:
  1. Select your profile avatar on Workday Community.
  2. Select
    Profile
    .
  3. On your profile page, select your organization's name, which is beneath your name and next to your job title.
  4. View your
    Subscription Service Agreement
     value.
    If the value is:
    • UMSA
      , you can skip the
      Enable Innovation Services Features and AI Data Contributions for MSA Customers
       step.
      To initiate OCR model training for a company in your Workday tenant, you need to scan at least one invoice for that company through either the
      Upload and Scan
       tab in the
      Supplier Invoice Work Area
       or through
      Email Ingestion
      .
    • MSA
       and
      ISA
      , you must enable this feature through Innovation Services using the
      Enable Innovation Services Features and AI Data Contributions for MSA Customers
       step.
  • Configure these security domains in the Supplier Accounts functional area:
    • Manage: Supplier Invoice Work Queue
    • Process: Supplier Invoice Work Queue
    • Reports: OCR Supplier Invoice
    • Set Up: Supplier Invoice Work Queue
    • Process: Supplier Invoice - Core
      , with unconstrained security group access to give workers the ability to edit the
      Company
       field on the supplier invoice, when OCR leaves the value blank.
  • Configure the file extensions that you want to use in your tenant. Workday supports these file extensions:
    • PDF
    • JPG
    • JPEG
    • TIF
    • TIFF
    • GIF
    • PNG
    • BMP
    • WEBP
    • DOC
    • DOCX
You can configure Optical Character Recognition (OCR) to enable Workday to scan and create supplier invoices directly from uploaded images. Set up rules to classify and prioritize document processing, and specify invoice assignments for workers. OCR scanning accelerates supplier invoice processing and reduces manual effort.
  1. You might need to take additional steps to enable this feature depending on your organization's subscription service agreement. For more information, see this Community article.
    1. In the
      Innovation Service Opt-In
       tab, select the
      Financial Management Generally Available Machine Learning Features and Third Party Services
       service check box.
    2. In the
      Data Select Opt-In
       tab, select the
      Supplier Invoice Data
       check box.
      • If available, select
        Opt in to Additional Data
         checkbox.
        Opting into additional data categories allows Workday to determine how well the machine learning model is performing and may be used in the future to improve its ability to identify and match invoice lines to purchase order lines.
    3. In the
      Feature Availability Status
       tab, verify that the Supplier Invoice Data feature status is
      In Progress
      . It takes up to 2 weeks to display the supplier invoice worktag recommendations in your tenant. Workday then displays a status of
      Available
      .
  2. Access the
    Edit Tenant Setup - Machine Learning
     task.
    Select the region in which Workday hosts data used for improvement and personalization of machine learning and analytics functionality.
    Security:
    Set Up: Tenant Setup - Machine Learning
     in the System functional area.
  3. Access the
    Maintain Machine Learning Prompt Recommendations
     task.
    1. On the initiation page, select the
      Accounts Payable
       product area.
    2. In the
      Supplier Invoices
       grid, select the
      Enable Machine Learning Recommendations
       check box for the worktag or tax attribute types you want to receive recommendations for.
    Security:
    Set Up: Tenant Setup - Financials
     domain in the System functional area.
  4. (Optional) Access the
    Edit Tenant Set Up - Financials
     task.
    Select from these options in the
    Supplier Accounts Options
     section:
    Option Description
    Hide Custom Validations on the Work Queue
    Some custom validations might conflict with the
    Supplier Invoice Work Area
     report. Select to turn those custom validations off.
  5. (Optional) Access the
    Edit Supplier Accounts OCR Tenant Options
     task.
    As you complete the task, consider these options:
    Option Description
    Enable OCR for Supplier Invoices
    Select to enable OCR with machine learning for your supplier invoices. Other configuration steps are required.
    Note: This check box will become a required configuration step in the upcoming 26R2 Workday release. If you are currently configured to use OCR, you must select this check box by 26R2 to ensure your service continues without interruption. Selecting this check box before 26R2 won't change the current behavior of this feature, however Workday recommends you select the check box as soon as possible.
    Create Supplier Invoice Adjustments from OCR
    Select to create a supplier invoice adjustment when the
    Total Amount
     on the supplier invoice is negative.
    Do Not Apply Sequence ID When Company Is Empty
    If you configure a unique sequence ID for a company, and OCR detects that the company is empty, then Workday doesn't apply a sequence ID.
    Disable OCR Supplier Matching
    Select to ignore machine learning recommendations for suppliers.
    Hide OCR Supplier Invoice Custom Validations on the Work Queue
    Some OCR custom validations might conflict with the
    Supplier Invoice Work Area
     report. Select to turn those OCR custom validations off.
    Disable Payment Terms for OCR Supplier Invoice
    Select to ignore the payment terms that OCR finds, then Workday populates the payment terms from the supplier. If OCR doesn't find a supplier, then the payment terms populate from the scanned invoice.
    OCR Supplier Invoice Empty Date Behavior
    If OCR doesn’t recognize the date, you must select either
    Current Date
     or
    Received Date
    . If you leave the field empty, then Workday uses the
    Current Date
     option.
    Disable Due Date for OCR Supplier Invoice
    Select to ignore the
    Due Date
     from OCR and use the due date from the Payment Terms settings. When this check box is clear, then Workday populates the
    Due Date Override
     field.
    Disable Currency for OCR Supplier Invoice
    Select to ignore the currency from OCR and use the default currency from the supplier.
    Freight Option
    Select where to add costs for freight on your Workday supplier invoice:
    • As Invoice Document
      , keeping freight on either the header or as a line. Workday uses this configuration when you leave the prompt blank.
    • On Invoice Header
      , even when freight is on a line in your scanned invoice.
    • On Invoice Line
      , even when freight is on the header in your scanned invoice.
    When your scanned invoice contains multiple freight amounts and you configure
    On Invoice Header
     or
    On Invoice Line
    , Workday consolidates all freight in your scanned invoice to one amount on the header or as a single line, respectively, in the Workday invoice.
    When you configure the
    Disable Line Level OCR Scanning
     prompt as:
    • All Invoices
       or
      PO Related
       and your invoice is related to a purchase order, Workday won't create freight lines on your Workday invoice.
    • Non-PO
       and your
      Freight Option
       is
      As Invoice Document
       or
      On Invoice Line
       and your freight results in a freight line, Workday does create a separate freight line on your Workday invoice.
    Default Spend Category for Freight Options
    Select to include a spend category for freight lines when you select from the Freight Option prompt:
    • As Invoice Document
       and your scanned invoice includes freight as a line.
    • On Invoice Line
       and Workday includes freight always as a line on your invoice.
    When your scanned invoice is not matched against a purchase order, Workday uses your selection to add a spend category on freight lines.
    Disable Machine Learning PO Matching
    Select to ignore machine learning recommendations for purchase orders. When you select this option, Workday still uses application logic to match purchase orders.
    Disable Line Level OCR Scanning
    • Empty
      : Leave the prompt clear to use OCR line-level details. Workday uses OCR values to try to link purchase order lines to supplier invoice lines. If purchase order lines aren't related to any invoice lines, Workday suggests you run the
      Purchase Order Override
       task.
    • All Invoices
      : Select to ignore OCR line-level details for all invoices.
      If the scanned supplier invoice is related to a purchase order, then Workday populates line information from the uninvoiced purchase order lines.
      If the scanned supplier invoice isn't related to a purchase order, Workday populates a single supplier invoice line for the
      Invoice Total
      .
    • Non-PO
      : Select to ignore OCR line-level details only when your scanned invoice is not related to a purchase order.
      If your scanned invoice is not related to a purchase order, Workday populates a single supplier invoice line for the
      Invoice Total
      .
      If your scanned invoice is related to a purchase order, then Workday uses OCR line-level details to populate lines.
    • PO Related
      : Select to ignore OCR line-level details only when related to a purchase order.
      If your scanned invoice is related to a purchase order, Workday populates line level information based on uninvoiced purchase order lines.
      If not related to a purchase order, then Workday uses OCR line-level details to populate the lines.
    Security:
    Set Up: Supplier Invoice Work Queue
     and
    Set Up: Tenant Setup - Financials
     domains.
  6. Access the
    Maintain Supplier Invoice Assignment Rules
     task.
    Set up rule-based routing to send supplier invoices to specific assignees.
    Security:
    Set Up: Supplier Invoice Work Queue
     domain in the Supplier Accounts functional area.
  7. Access the
    Maintain Supplier Invoice Work Queue Tags
     task.
    Create work queue tags to classify and prioritize supplier invoices from OCR scanning.
    Security:
    Set Up: Supplier Invoice Work Queue
     domain in the Supplier Accounts functional area.
  8. Access the
    Maintain Supplier Invoice Work Queue Tag Assignment Rules
     task.
    Set up assignment rule priority based on payment terms, suppliers, currency, and more for your work queue tags.
    Security:
    Set Up: Supplier Invoice Work Queue
     domain in the Supplier Accounts functional area.
  9. Set up custom validations for the
    OCR Supplier Invoice
     transaction type.
  10. Access the
    Configure Profile
     task.
    Select the
    Supplier Invoice Work Area
     option. Then select and reorder the tabs you want to use in the
    Supplier Invoice Work Area
     report.
    Security:
    Set Up: System
     domain.
  11. Upload a file to capture, route, and collect supplier invoice information to submit in Workday.
To view OCR scanning results, use the
Supplier Invoice OCR Scanning Details
 report.
To review the list of data fields extracted from the tenant, click
View Data Collected
 on the
Maintain Innovation Services Data Selection Opt-In
 task.