# Purchase Request Approval Policy
_Effective 2026-01-01_

## 1. Approval Thresholds (USD)

| Amount                | Approver                          | SLA       |
|----------------------|------------------------------------|-----------|
| < 1,000              | Auto-approve (if vendor preferred) | Instant   |
| 1,000 – 4,999        | Department Manager                 | 1 biz day |
| 5,000 – 14,999       | Finance Director                   | 2 biz days|
| ≥ 15,000             | CFO + CEO (dual sign)              | 3 biz days|

## 2. Vendor Checks (mandatory)
- Tax ID must be verified.
- MSA must be on file for any Professional Services category.
- Vendors with `risk_rating = High` require Legal review before PO issuance.

## 3. Category Rules
- **IT Hardware ≥ 5,000**: requires IT Director acknowledgement.
- **Travel**: must follow Travel Policy v3 (economy class < 4hr flights).
- **Professional Services**: SOW required as attachment.
- **Marketing > 3,000**: requires CMO sign-off in addition to threshold approver.

## 4. Exceptions
Any deviation from the above must be logged with `EXCEPTION-` prefix in the justification field and routed to CFO regardless of amount.