How do you automate time registration and invoicing?

Time registration and invoicing automate well because they are the same data twice: what was done, for whom, under which agreement.

In two steps that are usually done in the wrong order. First capture the hours where they happen, from calendar, email, tickets and phone, and let the person confirm instead of type. Then draft every invoice from the contract, the confirmed hours and the expenses, in the customer's required format, for a person to approve. This guide says how, what it costs, and where the human stays.

By Tom Joseph · Last updated: 14 September 2026

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In short

Time registration and invoicing automate well because they are the same data twice: what was done, for whom, under which agreement. AI captures the hours from the systems where work leaves traces (calendar, email, tickets, calls), proposes the entries, and a person confirms them in seconds; invoicing then follows from the contract terms, including the rate card, the cap and the customer's required e-invoice format such as Peppol or UBL. Specialist business services are already the most AI-adopting sector outside ICT, at 39.8% of firms with 10 or more employees in 2024 (CBS AI Monitor 2024), and hours that never get written down are the most expensive leak a services firm has.

How

The four steps, in the right order

Capture, then confirm. The system reads the calendar, sent email, ticket updates and call logs and proposes time entries per client and matter; the consultant confirms or corrects in a daily two-minute review. Nobody reconstructs a week on Friday.
Classify against the contract. Every entry is matched to the agreement: fixed fee, hourly with a cap, retainer, or not billable. The system shows the consultant what is about to exceed a cap before it happens.
Draft the invoice. Per contract period, the invoice is drafted with the confirmed hours, expenses, the customer's PO number and the format the customer demands, and routed to the partner for approval.
Send as an e-invoice. Peppol or UBL where the customer requires it, PDF where they do not, straight into Exact, AFAS, Twinfield or Moneybird, with the ledger entries made.

Who does what

AI or the person

Step	AI	Person
Hours	Proposes entries from calendar, email, tickets, calls	Confirms or corrects daily
Billability	Applies the contract terms, warns on caps	Decides the write-off
Invoice	Drafts per contract, in the required format	Approves and sends
Disputes	Shows the trail behind every line	Talks to the client

Where it fails

What automation does not fix

It does not fix a contract that was never written down: if the rate, the cap and the billing period live in someone's head, the audit starts by putting them in a table. It does not decide what is worth writing off; that stays with the partner. And it is not a public chatbot: hours, client names and matters are confidential, so the system runs in your own tenancy and logs every access. The Dutch Data Protection Authority reported dozens of breaches in 2025 from staff entering client data into public AI tools.

Cost

What it costs a services firm

Three fixed steps: a €2,500 audit on three months of hours and invoices, which measures unbilled hours, days from work to invoice and invoice corrections; a €20,000 Production-ready MVP that captures and drafts for one team; and production from €50,000, integrated with your calendar, ticketing and accounting software and Peppol. Excl. VAT, all code handed over. See getting processes out of spreadsheets and process automation.

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FAQ

Frequently asked questions

Can AI fill in timesheets automatically?

It can propose them from calendar, email, tickets and call logs, per client and matter, and a person confirms them in a short daily review. Fully automatic entry without confirmation is not advisable: the confirmation is what makes the hours defensible to a client.

Can invoices be generated automatically from the hours?

Yes, per contract period, from the confirmed hours, expenses and the contract terms, in the customer's required format, routed to a person for approval before sending.

What is Peppol and do we need it?

Peppol is the European network for exchanging e-invoices in a structured format such as UBL. Dutch government bodies require it and a growing share of large customers do; the system sends in the format each customer demands.

Does it work with Exact, AFAS, Twinfield or Moneybird?

Yes. Confirmed hours and approved invoices are written into your accounting package with the ledger entries; the integration is scoped in the audit.

What does it cost?

At Crux Digits: a €2,500 audit, a €20,000 Production-ready MVP for one team, and production from €50,000, all excl. VAT, with the code handed over.

Want to know how many hours you never bill?

Book a free consultation. Bring three months of hours and invoices and we will tell you honestly what is leaking and whether automation pays for it.

Book a free consultation