Highlight 1
One click in, one click out.
Click Check-in at the start of the day, Check-out at the end, and the same for breaks. No Excel column, no formula, no gathering up the hours at month-end.
Check-in time tracking: clocking in is one click.
Check-in means staff clock in and out via browser, app or a tablet at reception. Start, end and breaks are documented end to end, with editor and timestamp, while the approval workflow runs in the background. Part of online time tracking, with no per-module surcharge.
At a glance
Clocking in that no one needs to explain.
Highlight 2
Three paths, one attendance record.
Browser at the desk, an installable web app on iOS and Android, a tablet at reception. Every click lands in the same attendance record.
Highlight 3
End to end and auditable.
Start, end and breaks are recorded to the second, every correction with editor and timestamp. That supports a record in line with the ECJ ruling of 14 May 2019 (C-55/18).
Three paths, one record
Wherever the click happens, one attendance record.
Browser, app and terminal do not write to three separate lists, they write to the same record. Someone who checks in at home in the morning and carries on at reception at midday still has one continuous attendance record.
Browser
at the desk
App
on the go · iOS & Android
Terminal
at reception · tablet
one attendance running
K. Schmidt · Mon 09 Jun
Start 08:02
Break 0:45
End 17:18
Actual today 8:16 h
Wherever the punch happens, one record for the hour balance, the week and payroll.
Breaks
Breaks the system thinks of for you.
Breaks can be set manually with a check-out and a check-in. Or teamspace deducts them automatically, following the break rules you set up once.
- Manual: break start with a click, resumption with a click.
- Automatic: the system deducts the configured break duration depending on how long someone has been present, without anyone having to remember.
- Per group: shift work at reception follows different rules from knowledge work in the home office.
The working-time model also decides how precisely people clock in. With flexitime, staff record start and end via check-in. With a trust-based model, the working duration alone is enough. Both can be chosen per staff group.
Work location
Where the work happens, without tracking.
teamspace records where someone has worked through categories, not through location tracking. Office, home office, work on site at a client: each category is freely named, with a colour and an icon.
- Office only from the company network: a category can be restricted to certain IP ranges.
- Office-hours window: attendance bookable only within defined times, if that is what you want.
- Premiums per category: night, weekend and public-holiday shares as a percentage on the attendance time.
No GPS, no activity surveillance. For most small and medium-sized teams, that is precisely the condition under which time tracking is accepted at all.
“Our staff appreciate how simple the system is.”
A working day
How a day with check-in runs.
- 1
Morning: check-in
Open the browser, app or terminal, click Check-in. The start is recorded with date and time, and the attendance timer starts running.
- 2
Midday: break
Break start and resumption with a click. Or the configured break rule deducts the break automatically.
- 3
During the day: project time
Anyone who wants to can log time on projects or tickets in parallel. Attendance and project time run alongside each other, with no one entering them twice.
- 4
Evening: check-out
One click, done. The hour balance, the overtime balance and the weekly overview are updated immediately.
- 5
Period close: approval
Managers review their team's hours, approve them or send them back with a comment. Approved hours move into payroll and invoicing.
Correction
Corrections stay traceable.
A forgotten check-out, a typo, a late entry: it happens. teamspace overwrites nothing silently, it documents every correction.
- Editor and timestamp on every change, old and new value alongside.
- Editing windows per staff member: you set how many days back an entry may be changed.
- Locking weekly or monthly: after that the period is closed, only finance administration can still get in.
This way the recording supports a working-time record in line with the ECJ ruling of 14 May 2019 (C-55/18) and the German Federal Labour Court (BAG) ruling of 13 September 2022 (1 ABR 22/21). A forgotten check-out can be added the next day with a comment, while a deliberate distortion would be visible.
First call
Does this fit your clocking-in routine?
In 30 minutes we look at your working-time models, shifts or flexitime, office or home office, and how the approval should run at your company.
Use cases
What builds on the recorded time.
Check-in is the way in. From the same attendance record these six use cases follow, with no second system.
Log project hours
Hours on project, phase and task, split into billable or internal.
Learn moreDigital timesheet
Replace the Excel template with a cloud application with an activatable GoBD mode.
Learn moreActivity record
Hour record per client as a PDF at the press of a button.
Learn moreTravel expense reports
Per diems calculated automatically by duration and country, receipts included.
Learn moreTrack overtime
Plan vs actual live, premiums per collective agreement, payout or time off in lieu.
Learn moreManage leave and sickness
Request and approve absences and offset them against the hour balance.
Learn moreTerminal
A tablet at the entrance becomes a terminal.
Not everyone sits at a desk. For reception, the workshop or the warehouse, teamspace turns an existing device into a clocking terminal.
- Tablet, smart TV or PC in a full-screen browser, as a terminal at the entrance.
- RFID card or touch: staff check in and out as they pass.
- The customer supplies the device. There is no dedicated clocking hardware, only the terminal app that comes with it.
The terminal needs an active connection; without a network there is no clocking. For most entrances that is no issue, for remote sites it is worth knowing.
After clocking in
What happens at period close.
Clocked in is not the same as billed. Three steps stand between the attendance record and the closed period.
Approval
Managers approve the hours.
At week-end or month-end the responsible person reviews their team's times.
- Approve or send back with a comment
- Permission groups define who is responsible for whom
- Only approved hours move on to payroll and invoicing
Self-view
Staff see where they stand.
In their own overview the current week is open at any time, without asking the manager.
- Hour balance and overtime balance
- Working time for the current week
- Leave and pending requests alongside
Locking
Closed periods stay closed.
After locking, no one gets back into a billed month.
- Manually, centrally or automatically by deadline
- Separately for attendance and project time
- A warning before the cut-off date can be enabled
Part of online time tracking
Check-in is the way into time tracking.
From the recorded attendance the overtime and leave balances are maintained; anyone who wants to logs the same time on projects. Timesheet, activity record and travel expenses all run in the same system. The overview page shows how the whole module fits together.
Go to online time trackingFeature set
Check-in recording features at a glance.
Clocking in
- Check-in and check-out with a click
- Browser at the desk
- Installable web app on iOS and Android
- Tablet, smart TV or PC as a terminal
- RFID card or touch at the terminal
- A running attendance timer
Breaks and rules
- Manual break via check-out and check-in
- Break rules, deducted automatically
- Flexitime and trust-based working-time models
- Categories for office, home office and external work
- IP restriction and office-hours window
- Premiums per attendance category
Reviewing and analysing
- Correction with editor and timestamp
- Editing windows per staff member
- Locking weekly or monthly
- Approval workflow with permission groups
- Hour balance, overtime and weekly overview
- Handover to payroll and invoicing data
What it is about
What check-in time tracking is and why it is a duty today.
Check-in time tracking means staff clock their working time with a click, instead of reconstructing it from memory at month-end. The term has replaced the classic punch clock because it works regardless of location: in the browser, in the app or at a tablet terminal, depending on where the work happens.
Since the German Federal Labour Court ruling of 13 September 2022 (1 ABR 22/21), employers in Germany must record the start, end and duration of daily working time. The court builds on the ECJ ruling of 14 May 2019 (C-55/18). teamspace supports such a record: times are kept end to end, corrections carry editor and timestamp, periods can be locked. We do not promise blanket legal compliance, that always depends on the specific setup.
For service providers, check-in is at the same time the way into more. From the attendance record the overtime and leave balances are maintained, and anyone who logs the same time on projects has the basis for utilisation, margin and fee invoicing. That turns the duty to record from an irksome obligation into a usable data base.
Related modules
Three modules draw directly on the hour.
From the recorded attendance come project metrics, invoices and payroll data. Here are the shortest paths into the adjacent modules.
Project management
Logged hours land on project and phase and feed plan vs actual, margin and utilisation.
- Booking on project, phase and task
- Plan vs actual and margin updated daily
- Utilisation per person and team
Invoicing software
Approved hours become the basis for invoicing without an export, with hourly rates, flat rates and travel expenses.
- Partial, progress and final invoices
- ZUGFeRD and XRechnung
- Handover to DATEV Unternehmen online
HR software
Hours, overtime and absences move prepared into payroll, without duplicate maintenance.
- Export prepared payroll data
- Leave and sickness in the same system
- Overtime balances per staff member
Frequently asked questions on recording time via check-in
What is the difference between check-in and a classic punch clock?
A classic punch clock only captures the moment of attendance. teamspace check-in recording can also be logged on projects in parallel, works regardless of location in the browser or via the app, and feeds analysis, payroll and invoicing directly. A tablet as a terminal is possible, but not required.
Do all staff have to clock start and end?
That depends on the working-time model. With flexitime, staff record start and end via check-in; with a trust-based model, the working duration alone is enough. Both can be set per staff group.
Does check-in also work in the home office?
Yes. Staff open the browser or the app and click Check-in. Time tracking in the home office follows the same logic as in the office, with no VPN or special configuration.
How does the system handle a forgotten check-out?
A forgotten check-out can be added the next day with a comment, and the correction is documented with editor and timestamp. Managers see open entries in the overview and can follow up before they approve.
Can I clock check-ins at an entrance terminal?
Yes. teamspace comes with a terminal web app that runs in a full-screen browser on a tablet, smart TV or PC, for example at reception or in the workshop. Staff identify themselves with an RFID card or by touch. The customer supplies the device; there is no dedicated clocking hardware.
How is the check-in protected against tampering?
Every check-in carries a timestamp, corrections are documented with editor and with both old and new value. After locking, periods are closed. That supports an objective, reliable working-time record in line with the ECJ ruling of 14 May 2019 (C-55/18).
Where is the check-in data stored?
In two geo-redundant, ISO 27001 certified data centres in Frankfurt am Main, exclusively in the EU. teamspace is Made in Germany and GDPR-aligned. The contracting party is 5 POINT AG, a German public company headquartered in Darmstadt.
Does this fit your clocking-in workflow?
We go through your working-time models, settle the terminal question and the path from attendance into payroll. A short call shows whether teamspace fits the way you work.