---
name: compliance-rules
description: Corporate expense policy rules for GuardRail Finance — $500 approval threshold, budget category limits, and compliance report formats.
---

# GuardRail Finance — Compliance Policy Reference

## The $500 Approval Rule

Any single expense exceeding **$500.00 USD** requires a Manager Approval Code before it can be logged.

- Approval code format: `MGR-XXXXXXXX` (the prefix `MGR-` followed by exactly 8 uppercase hexadecimal characters)
- Example valid code: `MGR-A1B2C3D4`
- No exceptions. No retroactive approvals.

If `amount > 500` and `approved_by` is absent or empty, the request **must** be rejected with `COMPLIANCE_VIOLATION`.

---

## Budget Categories & Monthly Limits

| Category  | Monthly Limit |
|-----------|--------------|
| travel    | $2,000.00    |
| software  | $500.00      |
| hardware  | $1,500.00    |
| meals     | $300.00      |
| training  | $1,000.00    |

These are hard ceilings. An expense that would push `spent` above `monthly_limit` must be rejected with `BUDGET_EXCEEDED`.

---

## Compliance Check Procedure

Always execute in this order:

1. **Validate inputs** — amount must be > 0, category must be from the list above, description must be non-empty.
2. **Call `get_remaining_budget(category)`** — never assume budget is available.
3. **Apply $500 rule** — if `amount > 500` and no valid `approved_by`, return `COMPLIANCE_VIOLATION`. Do not log.
4. **Apply budget ceiling** — if `amount > remaining`, return `BUDGET_EXCEEDED`. Do not log.
5. **Call `log_expense(...)`** — only if both checks pass.

---

## Violation Report Templates

### COMPLIANCE_VIOLATION
```
COMPLIANCE VIOLATION
────────────────────────────────
Code         : COMPLIANCE_VIOLATION
Amount       : $<amount>
Category     : <category>
Rule         : Expenses over $500.00 require a Manager Approval Code.
Required     : Provide approved_by in format MGR-XXXXXXXX (8 hex chars).
Action       : Expense NOT logged. Resubmit with a valid approval code.
```

### BUDGET_EXCEEDED
```
BUDGET EXCEEDED
────────────────────────────────
Code         : BUDGET_EXCEEDED
Amount       : $<amount>
Category     : <category>
Remaining    : $<remaining>
Overage      : $<amount - remaining>
Action       : Expense NOT logged. Request a budget increase or reduce amount.
```

### EXPENSE APPROVED
```
EXPENSE APPROVED
────────────────────────────────
Expense ID   : <expense_id>
Amount       : $<amount>
Category     : <category>
Description  : <description>
Approved By  : <approved_by or "N/A (≤ $500)">
Remaining    : $<remaining_budget> / $<monthly_limit>
Policy       : <which rule applied>
```

---

## MCP Tools Reference

| Tool                   | Purpose                                               |
|------------------------|-------------------------------------------------------|
| `log_expense`          | Record a validated expense (enforces rules server-side) |
| `get_remaining_budget` | Query remaining budget for a category                 |
| `get_expense_report`   | List expenses with 50%+ utilization summary           |

Always call `get_remaining_budget` before `log_expense`.