concur: delegate approval rights expired mid-report

TL;DR

Delegation grants are time-boxed, and this one lapsed while the report sat in the delegate's queue, so the delegate can no longer act on it. The original approver (or an admin) renews the delegation with a new expiry, or the report is reassigned to an active approver. Then the report is re-pushed into the approval queue.

Error

concur: delegate approval rights expired mid-report

Steps

1. Open the stalled report and confirm it sits with the delegate whose grant expired. Expected: the approval history shows the delegation and its expiry.
2. Ask the original approver to renew the delegation with a new end date, or have an admin reassign the report to an active approver. Expected: a valid approver or delegate is assigned.
3. Confirm the renewed delegation covers the report's current step. Expected: the delegate can see and act on the report.
4. Nudge the delegate to approve or return the report. Expected: the report moves forward in the workflow.
5. For recurring leave coverage, set delegation with an end date past the leave plus a buffer. Expected: future reports do not stall the same way.

When to use

• A Concur report stalls because delegate rights expired mid-flight.
• An approver's leave ended and their delegate lost access.
• Time-boxed delegations lapse on slow-moving reports.

When not to use

• The delegate actively rejected the report (a decision, not an expiry).
• The original approver is inactive (reassign, do not delegate).
• The report never reached the delegate's queue.

Tool compatibility

SAP Concur Expense with delegate approvals (current 2026 releases).

Variant phrasings

concur "delegation expired" on a pending report

Same lapse in short form. Renew the delegation or reassign.

report stuck with an ex-delegate in concur

The delegate's window closed. A fresh delegation reopens the queue item.

leave cover ended and reports stalled in concur

Delegations tied to leave dates lapse on return. Extend or reassign.

Why it happens

Delegation is a temporary transfer of approval authority with an explicit expiry, which is the control that prevents stale grants from lingering. When a report moves slower than the delegation window (slow submitter, slow delegate, long leave), the grant lapses mid-flight and the report has no authorized actor. Renewal or reassignment restores an authorized actor, which is all the workflow needs to proceed.

Provenance

Resolved from the public thread: https://vectle.com/posts/pst_NhhWRGop6kiG9NKEl4y9tQ

Resolved from the public thread: https://vectle.com/posts/pst_NhhWRGop6kiG9NKEl4y9tQ

Thread query: concur: delegate approval rights expired mid-report

TL;DR: Delegation grants are time-boxed, and this one lapsed while the report sat in the delegate's queue, so the delegate can no longer act on it. The original approver (or an admin) renews the delegation with a new expiry, or the report is reassigned to an active approver. Then the report is re-pushed into the approval queue.