Last reviewed: 5 October 2026. Every fact about Timesheet Portal below comes from its own website or the sources listed at the end, read on that date. Marvin publishes this guide, so treat our section as a vendor's description.
TL;DR
- Timesheet Portal is a UK pay and bill tool that sits next to your ATS: placements are pushed from the ATS, and timesheets, invoices, self-billing and payroll happen in Timesheet Portal.
- It does a lot that a recruitment CRM does not: hourly and shift timesheets, overtime, full UK payroll with HMRC reporting, AWR and holiday accrual.
- The alternative is to keep timesheets and invoicing inside the recruitment CRM, on the same record as the candidate, the client and the assignment, and to leave payroll to a payroll provider or the contractor's umbrella company.
- That alternative suits day-rate contract desks. If you pay hourly temps through PAYE, Timesheet Portal or another pay and bill tool is the better fit.
What Timesheet Portal is
Timesheet Portal is built by Anfold Software, which says it serves "over 1500 clients worldwide from our London-based premises". The project started in 2007 and the product launched in 2009. Its recruitment pages describe it as "recruitment pay and bill software built for recruitment agencies".
On its own pages, Timesheet Portal covers:
- Timesheets "using a variety of different tracking methods, such as hourly, daily, start/end and more", with overtime and shift rules, multiple rates, and a mobile app with GPS clock-in;
- Client approval "online, by email or by text message", in one or several stages, and clients can submit timesheets on behalf of their workers;
- Client invoicing with your own branded templates, self-billing of contractors from approved timesheets, and expenses with receipts and mileage;
- UK payroll: "Full payroll automation from timesheet to bank file", including CIS deductions and HMRC intermediary reporting, plus holiday accrual and AWR status tracking for PAYE workers;
- Integrations with accounting tools (Xero, Sage, QuickBooks, Kashflow) and with ATSs including Firefish, JobAdder, Voyager and Bullhorn (through a custom API).
Pricing is published in pounds and described as "pay as you go", per module. On 5 October 2026, the timesheets module was listed at £20 including five contractors, then £2 per additional contractor; client invoicing, payroll, expenses, leave and e-signature are separate modules with their own prices.
Reviews are scarce: 4.5/5 from 2 reviews on Capterra UK. One of them, from 2022, notes "you are waiting 15 minutes for the API to do its job". Its iOS app is rated 4.7/5 from 205 ratings on the UK App Store.
What Timesheet Portal does better
- UK payroll. It runs payroll through to the bank file, with HMRC reporting. Marvin does not run payroll.
- Hourly, shift and overtime work. Hourly and start and end timesheets, overtime rules, minimum and maximum shift pay. Marvin records days and half-days only.
- AWR and holiday accrual for PAYE workers, tracked automatically.
- Self-billing of contractors from approved timesheets.
- Approval by text message and multi-stage approval.
- Pricing per contractor, which scales down in quiet months, and works with the ATS you already have.
Why some agencies prefer timesheets inside the CRM
A separate pay and bill tool means two systems that have to agree. The placement is created in the ATS, pushed to the timesheet tool, and every later change of rate, end date or approver has to follow. Firefish, JobAdder and Recruiterflow each document an integration that pushes placement data to Timesheet Portal; Recruiterflow notes that its integration does not automatically re-sync a placement updated after creation, nor historical placements.
When timesheets and invoicing live in the recruitment CRM:
- the assignment is the same record as the candidate, the client and the placement, so there is nothing to sync;
- the margin per assignment is visible next to the pipeline, and frozen month by month once a timesheet is approved;
- a contractor coming off assignment shows up as available to the recruiters who will redeploy them;
- perm fees and contract invoices come out of the same invoicing app.
How Marvin handles timesheets and invoicing
- Assignments in People hold the client, the dates, the client day rate, the contractor's rate and the client contacts allowed to sign.
- Contractors fill in one monthly timesheet, morning and afternoon, even across several assignments, in their own space. They also request time off, submit expenses and upload their own invoice for the month.
- Clients sign off from a secure link, without an account. The agency can require a one-time code by email, and every signature is stored with a snapshot of what was signed.
- Reminders to contractors and client contacts run automatically if you switch them on.
- Cash drafts the client invoice once the month's timesheets are approved: approved days multiplied by the day rate, with rechargeable expenses on a separate line.
The step-by-step workflow is in our guide to timesheet software for recruitment agencies.
Side by side
| What you need | Timesheet Portal | Marvin |
|---|---|---|
| Where it sits | Separate tool, connected to your ATS | Inside the recruitment CRM |
| Time recorded | Hourly, daily, start and end, shifts, overtime | Days and half-days |
| Client approval | Online, email or text message; single or multi-stage | Secure link without an account, optional one-time code |
| Client invoice from approved time | Yes (client invoicing module) | Yes, drafted in Cash at the day rate |
| Contractor self-billing | Yes | No: contractors upload their own invoice |
| UK payroll and HMRC reporting | Yes (payroll module) | No |
| AWR and holiday accrual | Yes, for PAYE workers | No |
| Candidates, clients, outreach | No: that stays in your ATS | Yes: ATS, CRM, email, LinkedIn and WhatsApp sequences |
| Pricing | Per module and per contractor, pay as you go | Per user: Pro £129 annual (£149 monthly), Suite £169 annual (£199 monthly); 12-month minimum term, monthly billing included |
Which one fits your agency
Choose Timesheet Portal, or another pay and bill tool, if you pay hourly temps through PAYE, run shifts and overtime, need self-billing and RTI handled for you, or want to keep your current ATS.
Choose timesheets inside the CRM if your desk places contractors and interim managers on a day rate, paid through their own limited company or an umbrella company that runs its own payroll, and you want one record from the first call to the last invoice. Marvin does not decide IR35 status or run payroll: see our guides to IR35 for recruitment agencies and umbrella company PAYE rules from April 2026.
For the wider market, read Best recruitment CRM for UK agencies (2026), the Bullhorn Back Office alternative and the Spott alternative for contract agencies. Before onboarding new contractors, check our guide to agency workers and the Key Information Document.
See the loop on one of your contractors
Book a demo and we will run one of your real assignments through Marvin, from the contractor's timesheet to the client invoice.
Sources
All read on 5 October 2026.
- Timesheet Portal: recruitment software, timesheets, worker pay, GBP prices, integrations, Bullhorn integration, about, Capterra UK, iOS app
- Integrations documented by ATS vendors: Firefish, JobAdder, Recruiterflow
Frequently asked questions
What does Timesheet Portal do?
Timesheet Portal, built by Anfold Software in London and launched in 2009, describes itself as recruitment pay and bill software. It handles hourly, daily and start and end timesheets, client approval online, by email or by text message, client invoicing, self-billing of contractors, expenses, holiday accrual and AWR tracking, and full UK payroll with HMRC reporting. It connects to ATSs such as Bullhorn, JobAdder and Firefish.
How much does Timesheet Portal cost?
Its GBP price page describes pay-as-you-go pricing per module. On 5 October 2026, the timesheets module was listed at £20 including five contractors, with £2 for each additional contractor, and other modules such as client invoicing and payroll were priced separately.
Can Marvin replace Timesheet Portal?
For a day-rate contract desk that does not need UK payroll, yes: in Marvin, contractors fill in a monthly timesheet in days and half-days, the client signs it off from a secure link without an account, and Cash drafts the invoice at the day rate. For hourly temps, shifts, overtime or PAYE payroll, no: Marvin does none of these.
Does Marvin run payroll or self-billing?
No. Marvin does not run PAYE or RTI payroll and does not decide IR35 status. Contractors, or their umbrella company, upload their own invoice for the month in their People space, and Marvin hands your payroll provider approved, signed timesheets.
What does Marvin cost?
Missions, timesheets and invoicing are included in the Pro plan, at £129 per user per month billed annually or £149 billed monthly. Suite costs £169 billed annually or £199 billed monthly. Both plans have a 12-month minimum term, including on monthly billing.
