How Tessel decides what it can match on its own

Every team that tries Tessel asks the same question first: what will it do without asking? The answer is a short list of rules you set, and a longer list of cases where it stops and waits.

The threshold

Each workspace has an auto-match limit. Below it, a line with an exact reference is matched and logged without a person. Above it, the same match is proposed and waits in the approval queue. The default is 500.00, and most teams move it once and leave it.

Tessel never matches a line it can’t explain in one sentence.

Exact references

An exact reference means the invoice number or payment reference on the bank line appears, character for character, on one open ledger entry, and on only one.

Operating account · March 2026Operating account

Two bank lines: one matched on its invoice number, one waiting

#	Date	Description	Bank	Ledger	Status
01	01 Mar	Northfold Freight · INV-223101 Mar	4,200.00	4,200.00	Matched
09	10 Mar	Transfer · ref 8821310 Mar	1,500.00	—	Open

When it holds back

A first-time vendor, a duplicate reference, an amount outside the usual range for that vendor, or a missing receipt above your receipt threshold. Any one of them turns a match into a flag.

auto_match:
  max_amount: 500.00
  reference: exact
  hold_if:
    - first_time_vendor
    - duplicate_reference
    - missing_receipt_above: 75.00

What gets logged

Every auto-match writes one line to the evidence log: the bank line, the entry, the rule, and the time. An auditor can start from any balance and walk back to it.