mvanhorn Zoho Expense — Printing Press CLI
Prerequisites: Install the CLI
This skill drives the zoho-expense-pp-cli binary. You must verify the CLI is installed before invoking any command from this skill. If it is missing, install it first:
- Install via the Printing Press installer. It defaults binaries to
$HOME/.local/binon macOS/Linux and%LOCALAPPDATA%\Programs\PrintingPress\binon Windows:npx -y @mvanhorn/printing-press-library install zoho-expense --cli-only - Verify:
zoho-expense-pp-cli --version - Ensure the reported install directory is on
$PATHfor the agent/runtime that will invoke this skill.
If the npx install fails (no Node, offline, etc.), fall back to a direct Go install (requires Go 1.26.6 or newer):
go install github.com/mvanhorn/printing-press-library/library/productivity/zoho-expense/cmd/zoho-expense-pp-cli@latest
If --version reports "command not found" after install, the runtime cannot see the binary directory on $PATH. Do not proceed with skill commands until verification succeeds.
When to Use This CLI
Reach for this CLI when an AI agent needs to ingest invoices from email (or any source) and post them to Zoho Expense on a recurring cadence. It's also the right tool for monthly close automation — bundling expenses into a report and submitting in one command — and for India-specific GST splitting that the Zoho web UI doesn't expose. Not the right tool for occasional one-off expense editing through the UI (Zoho's web app is fine for that).
Unique Capabilities
These capabilities aren't available in any other tool for this API.
Hermes-first ingestion
invoice ingest— Batch upload a folder of invoices to Zoho Expense, SHA256-dedup against the local store, poll autoscan in parallel, and auto-tag from learned merchant memory — the headline workflow for AI agents that ingest invoices from email.Agents that ingest invoices on a cadence need one command that handles dedup, autoscan, and tagging — not three.
zoho-expense-pp-cli invoice ingest ~/Downloads/october-invoices --auto-tag --agentreceipt upload— SHA256-hash incoming receipts at upload, refuse duplicates (use --force to override).Idempotent receipt upload — safe to re-run on a folder agents have already processed.
zoho-expense-pp-cli receipt upload ~/Downloads/uber-receipt.pdf --auto-tagexpense-untagged— List expenses missing category_id or project_id;--auto-fixapplies the merchant→tag memory map and PUTs back to Zoho.One command turns 30 untagged scanned receipts into 30 tagged ones, using the user's own historical mapping.
zoho-expense-pp-cli expense-untagged --auto-fix --agent
Local intelligence
merchant list— Build a local merchant→category/project/tag mapping from sync history; pre-fill tags on first sight of a new merchant.Solves Zoho's 'first-time merchant is always uncategorized' limitation with zero API calls.
zoho-expense-pp-cli merchant list --agent --select merchant_name,category_name,seen_countmerchant map— Train the local merchant→category mapping for future auto-tag (one merchant at a time, or bulk from a CSV).Lets the user (or agent) explicitly seed the auto-tag map without waiting for sync history to learn it.
zoho-expense-pp-cli merchant map 'AWS' --category Software --project Engineering
Monthly automation
close— Bundle a month's unreported expenses into an expense report in one shot — flags still-processing autoscans, flags untagged items, creates the report, attaches, optionally submits.The natural end of every monthly agent workflow — turn raw expenses into a submitted report without leaving the terminal.
zoho-expense-pp-cli close --month 2026-10 --auto-submit --agent
India tax workflow
gst-split— India-specific: parse an expense's tax_id and line items, compute CGST/SGST (intra-state) or IGST (inter-state) shares, emit the breakdown or update the expense.Turns a monthly export into something a CA can directly file, without the user re-doing the math by hand.
zoho-expense-pp-cli gst-split exp_1234567890 --emit-csv
Command Reference
currencies — Currencies and exchange rates
zoho-expense-pp-cli currencies create— Add a currency to the orgzoho-expense-pp-cli currencies delete— Delete a currencyzoho-expense-pp-cli currencies get— Get a currencyzoho-expense-pp-cli currencies list— List currencies configured in the orgzoho-expense-pp-cli currencies update— Update a currency
customers — Customers (contacts) expenses can be billed to
zoho-expense-pp-cli customers create— Create a customerzoho-expense-pp-cli customers delete— Delete a customerzoho-expense-pp-cli customers get— Get a customerzoho-expense-pp-cli customers list— List customerszoho-expense-pp-cli customers update— Update a customer
expense_categories — Expense categories used to classify expenses
zoho-expense-pp-cli expense_categories create— Create an expense categoryzoho-expense-pp-cli expense_categories delete— Delete an expense categoryzoho-expense-pp-cli expense_categories disable— Disable a categoryzoho-expense-pp-cli expense_categories enable— Enable a categoryzoho-expense-pp-cli expense_categories get— Get an expense categoryzoho-expense-pp-cli expense_categories list— List expense categorieszoho-expense-pp-cli expense_categories update— Update an expense category
expense_reports — Expense reports — bundles of expenses submitted for approval and reimbursement
zoho-expense-pp-cli expense_reports approval-history— View the approval history of a reportzoho-expense-pp-cli expense_reports approve— Approve an expense reportzoho-expense-pp-cli expense_reports create— Create an expense reportzoho-expense-pp-cli expense_reports get— Get an expense report (includes attached expenses)zoho-expense-pp-cli expense_reports list— List expense reportszoho-expense-pp-cli expense_reports reimburse— Mark an expense report as reimbursedzoho-expense-pp-cli expense_reports reject— Reject an expense reportzoho-expense-pp-cli expense_reports update— Update an expense report — used to attach more expenses
expenses — Expenses — the primary entity for an expense management CLI
zoho-expense-pp-cli expenses create— Create an expense (JSON body — for receipt upload use 'receipt upload')zoho-expense-pp-cli expenses get— Get a single expensezoho-expense-pp-cli expenses list— List expenses with rich filters (date range, status, user, category, project)zoho-expense-pp-cli expenses merge— Merge multiple expenses (used to dedupe a scanned-receipt expense with a manual one)zoho-expense-pp-cli expenses update— Update an expense — used to add category/project/tags after autoscan
organizations — Zoho Expense organizations you have access to
zoho-expense-pp-cli organizations get— Get organization detailszoho-expense-pp-cli organizations list— List organizations accessible to the authenticated user
projects — Projects expenses can be associated with
zoho-expense-pp-cli projects activate— Mark a project activezoho-expense-pp-cli projects create— Create a projectzoho-expense-pp-cli projects deactivate— Mark a project inactivezoho-expense-pp-cli projects delete— Delete a projectzoho-expense-pp-cli projects get— Get a projectzoho-expense-pp-cli projects list— List projectszoho-expense-pp-cli projects update— Update a project
receipts — Upload receipts for autoscan
zoho-expense-pp-cli receipts— Upload a receipt file (multipart). Server queues for autoscan; pollexpenses getfor status.
reporting_tags — Reporting tags (custom tagging schema for expenses, e.g. cost center, billable, GST treatment)
zoho-expense-pp-cli reporting_tags activate— Activate a reporting tagzoho-expense-pp-cli reporting_tags create— Create a reporting tagzoho-expense-pp-cli reporting_tags deactivate— Deactivate a reporting tagzoho-expense-pp-cli reporting_tags delete— Delete a reporting tagzoho-expense-pp-cli reporting_tags get— Get a reporting tagzoho-expense-pp-cli reporting_tags list— List reporting tagszoho-expense-pp-cli reporting_tags list-options— List all options for a reporting tagzoho-expense-pp-cli reporting_tags update— Update a reporting tag
taxes — Taxes (GST in India) applied to expenses
zoho-expense-pp-cli taxes create— Create a taxzoho-expense-pp-cli taxes delete— Delete a taxzoho-expense-pp-cli taxes get— Get a taxzoho-expense-pp-cli taxes list— List taxeszoho-expense-pp-cli taxes update— Update a tax
trips — Business trips that group related expenses
zoho-expense-pp-cli trips approve— Approve a tripzoho-expense-pp-cli trips cancel— Cancel a tripzoho-expense-pp-cli trips close— Close a trip (no further expenses can be added)zoho-expense-pp-cli trips create— Create a tripzoho-expense-pp-cli trips delete— Delete a tripzoho-expense-pp-cli trips get— Get a tripzoho-expense-pp-cli trips list— List tripszoho-expense-pp-cli trips reject— Reject a tripzoho-expense-pp-cli trips update— Update a trip
users — Manage users in the organization
zoho-expense-pp-cli users activate— Mark a user as activezoho-expense-pp-cli users deactivate— Mark a user as inactivezoho-expense-pp-cli users delete— Delete a userzoho-expense-pp-cli users get— Get a userzoho-expense-pp-cli users invite— Invite a user into the orgzoho-expense-pp-cli users list— List userszoho-expense-pp-cli users me— Get the authenticated user's profilezoho-expense-pp-cli users update— Update a user
Freshness Contract
This printed CLI owns bounded freshness only for registered store-backed read command paths. In --data-source auto mode, those paths check sync_state and may run a bounded refresh before reading local data. --data-source local never refreshes. --data-source live reads the API and does not mutate the local store. Set ZOHO_EXPENSE_NO_AUTO_REFRESH=1 to skip the freshness hook without changing source selection.
Covered paths:
zoho-expense-pp-cli currencieszoho-expense-pp-cli currencies createzoho-expense-pp-cli currencies deletezoho-expense-pp-cli currencies getzoho-expense-pp-cli currencies listzoho-expense-pp-cli currencies updatezoho-expense-pp-cli customerszoho-expense-pp-cli customers createzoho-expense-pp-cli customers deletezoho-expense-pp-cli customers getzoho-expense-pp-cli customers listzoho-expense-pp-cli customers updatezoho-expense-pp-cli expense_categorieszoho-expense-pp-cli expense_categories createzoho-expense-pp-cli expense_categories deletezoho-expense-pp-cli expense_categories disablezoho-expense-pp-cli expense_categories enablezoho-expense-pp-cli expense_categories getzoho-expense-pp-cli expense_categories listzoho-expense-pp-cli expense_categories updatezoho-expense-pp-cli expense_reportszoho-expense-pp-cli expense_reports approval_historyzoho-expense-pp-cli expense_reports approvezoho-expense-pp-cli expense_reports createzoho-expense-pp-cli expense_reports getzoho-expense-pp-cli expense_reports listzoho-expense-pp-cli expense_reports reimbursezoho-expense-pp-cli expense_reports rejectzoho-expense-pp-cli expense_reports updatezoho-expense-pp-cli expenseszoho-expense-pp-cli expenses createzoho-expense-pp-cli expenses getzoho-expense-pp-cli expenses listzoho-expense-pp-cli expenses mergezoho-expense-pp-cli expenses updatezoho-expense-pp-cli organizationszoho-expense-pp-cli organizations getzoho-expense-pp-cli organizations listzoho-expense-pp-cli projectszoho-expense-pp-cli projects activatezoho-expense-pp-cli projects createzoho-expense-pp-cli projects deactivatezoho-expense-pp-cli projects deletezoho-expense-pp-cli projects getzoho-expense-pp-cli projects listzoho-expense-pp-cli projects updatezoho-expense-pp-cli reporting_tagszoho-expense-pp-cli reporting_tags activatezoho-expense-pp-cli reporting_tags createzoho-expense-pp-cli reporting_tags deactivatezoho-expense-pp-cli reporting_tags deletezoho-expense-pp-cli reporting_tags getzoho-expense-pp-cli reporting_tags listzoho-expense-pp-cli reporting_tags list_optionszoho-expense-pp-cli reporting_tags updatezoho-expense-pp-cli taxeszoho-expense-pp-cli taxes createzoho-expense-pp-cli taxes deletezoho-expense-pp-cli taxes getzoho-expense-pp-cli taxes listzoho-expense-pp-cli taxes updatezoho-expense-pp-cli tripszoho-expense-pp-cli trips approvezoho-expense-pp-cli trips cancelzoho-expense-pp-cli trips closezoho-expense-pp-cli trips createzoho-expense-pp-cli trips deletezoho-expense-pp-cli trips getzoho-expense-pp-cli trips listzoho-expense-pp-cli trips rejectzoho-expense-pp-cli trips updatezoho-expense-pp-cli userszoho-expense-pp-cli users activatezoho-expense-pp-cli users deactivatezoho-expense-pp-cli users deletezoho-expense-pp-cli users getzoho-expense-pp-cli users invitezoho-expense-pp-cli users listzoho-expense-pp-cli users mezoho-expense-pp-cli users update
When JSON output uses the generated provenance envelope, freshness metadata appears at meta.freshness. Treat it as current-cache freshness for the covered command path, not a guarantee of complete historical backfill or API-specific enrichment.
Finding the right command
When you know what you want to do but not which command does it, ask the CLI directly:
zoho-expense-pp-cli which "<capability in your own words>"
which resolves a natural-language capability query to the best matching command from this CLI's curated feature index. Exit code 0 means at least one match; exit code 2 means no confident match — fall back to --help or use a narrower query.
Hand-written Extensions
These commands are declared by the spec author and require separate hand-written wiring; the generator does not emit Cobra registration for them. They are listed here for discoverability and are intentionally outside ## Command Reference so the verify-skill unknown-command check does not treat them as generator-owned paths.
zoho-expense-pp-cli auth login— Exchange a 10-min self-client authorization code for a refresh token (India region)zoho-expense-pp-cli auth refresh— Force-refresh the access token using the stored refresh tokenzoho-expense-pp-cli auth status— Show token validity, organization, and connected accountzoho-expense-pp-cli org use <organization_id>— Set the active organization for subsequent commandszoho-expense-pp-cli receipt upload <file>— Upload a receipt file, poll until autoscan completes, return the populated expense (the Hermes hot path)zoho-expense-pp-cli invoice ingest <dir-or-file>— Batch upload invoices from a directory with hash dedup, parallel autoscan pollingzoho-expense-pp-cli expense tag <expense_id>— Tag an expense with category, project, customer, billable flag, reporting tags via flags (--category, --projectzoho-expense-pp-cli expense-untagged— List expenses missing a category (typically scanned receipts awaiting tagging)zoho-expense-pp-cli close— Close out a month: bundle unreported expenses for the month, alert on still-processing autoscans and untagged itemszoho-expense-pp-cli merchant list— List merchants synthesized from local expense history with learned category mappingzoho-expense-pp-cli merchant map <merchant>— Train the local merchant→category/project mapping for future auto-tagzoho-expense-pp-cli gst-split <expense_id>— India-specific: parse tax_id and line items, compute CGST/SGST/IGST split, emit the breakdownzoho-expense-pp-cli sync— Sync expenses, categories, reporting tags, projects, customers into the local SQLite storezoho-expense-pp-cli search <query>— Full-text search across synced expenses (merchant, description, line items, reference numbers)zoho-expense-pp-cli stale— Show what local data is older than configured staleness thresholds and would benefit from a synczoho-expense-pp-cli doctor— Check auth, region, organization, and API reachability
Recipes
Monthly Hermes flow
zoho-expense-pp-cli invoice ingest ~/Inbox/expenses --auto-tag --agent | tee /tmp/this-month.json && zoho-expense-pp-cli close --month $(date +%Y-%m) --auto-submit
Ingest every saved invoice with hash dedup + auto-tagging, then bundle the month and submit. The pattern Hermes runs end-of-month.
Audit untagged expenses
zoho-expense-pp-cli expense-untagged --agent --select expense_id,merchant_name,amount,expense_date | jq '.[] | select(.amount > 1000)'
Find untagged expenses over ₹1000 — the ones most worth manually tagging when auto-fix can't help.
Train the merchant memory
zoho-expense-pp-cli merchant list --agent --select merchant_name,category_name,seen_count | jq '.[] | select(.category_name == null)' | head -5
Find the top 5 merchants the local memory hasn't classified yet — feed them into merchant map to bootstrap the auto-tag map.
Search synced expenses
zoho-expense-pp-cli search 'AWS' --agent --select expense_date,amount,merchant_name,description
Full-text search across synced expenses — instant local query, no API call.
GST report for the CA
for id in $(zoho-expense-pp-cli expense list --month=2026-10 --json | jq -r '.[].expense_id'); do zoho-expense-pp-cli gst-split $id --emit-csv; done > october-gst.csv
Generate a CGST/SGST/IGST breakdown CSV for the month's expenses, ready to hand to a chartered accountant.
Auth Setup
Zoho Expense uses OAuth 2.0 with a self-client authorization-code flow. Create a self-client at https://api-console.zoho.in/, generate a 10-minute authorization code, then run zoho-expense-pp-cli auth login --client-id <id> --client-secret <secret>. The CLI exchanges the code for a long-lived refresh token (stored at ~/.config/zoho-expense-pp-cli/config.toml) and refreshes access tokens transparently. Tokens use the literal Zoho-oauthtoken Authorization prefix (not Bearer).
Run zoho-expense-pp-cli doctor to verify setup.
Agent Mode
Add --agent to any command. Expands to: --json --compact --no-input --no-color --yes.
Pipeable — JSON on stdout, errors on stderr
Filterable —
--selectkeeps a subset of fields. Dotted paths descend into nested structures; arrays traverse element-wise. Critical for keeping context small on verbose APIs:zoho-expense-pp-cli currencies list --agent --select id,name,statusPreviewable —
--dry-runshows the request without sendingOffline-friendly — sync/search commands can use the local SQLite store when available
Non-interactive — never prompts, every input is a flag
Explicit retries — use
--idempotentonly when an already-existing create should count as success, and--ignore-missingonly when a missing delete target should count as success
Response envelope
Commands that read from the local store or the API wrap output in a provenance envelope:
{
"meta": {"source": "live" | "local", "synced_at": "...", "reason": "..."},
"results": <data>
}
Parse .results for data and .meta.source to know whether it's live or local. A human-readable N results (live) summary is printed to stderr only when stdout is a terminal AND no machine-format flag (--json, --csv, --compact, --quiet, --plain, --select) is set — piped/agent consumers and explicit-format runs get pure JSON on stdout.
Agent Feedback
When you (or the agent) notice something off about this CLI, record it:
zoho-expense-pp-cli feedback "the --since flag is inclusive but docs say exclusive"
zoho-expense-pp-cli feedback --stdin < notes.txt
zoho-expense-pp-cli feedback list --json --limit 10
Entries are stored locally at ~/.zoho-expense-pp-cli/feedback.jsonl. They are never POSTed unless ZOHO_EXPENSE_FEEDBACK_ENDPOINT is set AND either --send is passed or ZOHO_EXPENSE_FEEDBACK_AUTO_SEND=true. Default behavior is local-only.
Write what surprised you, not a bug report. Short, specific, one line: that is the part that compounds.
Output Delivery
Every command accepts --deliver <sink>. The output goes to the named sink in addition to (or instead of) stdout, so agents can route command results without hand-piping. Three sinks are supported:
| Sink | Effect |
|---|---|
stdout |
Default; write to stdout only |
file:<path> |
Atomically write output to <path> (tmp + rename) |
webhook:<url> |
POST the output body to the URL (application/json or application/x-ndjson when --compact) |
Unknown schemes are refused with a structured error naming the supported set. Webhook failures return non-zero and log the URL + HTTP status on stderr.
Named Profiles
A profile is a saved set of flag values, reused across invocations. Use it when a scheduled agent calls the same command every run with the same configuration - HeyGen's "Beacon" pattern.
zoho-expense-pp-cli profile save briefing --json
zoho-expense-pp-cli --profile briefing currencies list
zoho-expense-pp-cli profile list --json
zoho-expense-pp-cli profile show briefing
zoho-expense-pp-cli profile delete briefing --yes
Explicit flags always win over profile values; profile values win over defaults. agent-context lists all available profiles under available_profiles so introspecting agents discover them at runtime.
Exit Codes
| Code | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 0 | Success |
| 2 | Usage error (wrong arguments) |
| 3 | Resource not found |
| 4 | Authentication required |
| 5 | API error (upstream issue) |
| 7 | Rate limited (wait and retry) |
| 10 | Config error |
Argument Parsing
Parse $ARGUMENTS:
- Empty,
help, or--help→ showzoho-expense-pp-cli --helpoutput - Starts with
install→ ends withmcp→ MCP installation; otherwise → see Prerequisites above - Anything else → Direct Use (execute as CLI command with
--agent)
MCP Server Installation
- Install the MCP server:
go install github.com/mvanhorn/printing-press-library/library/productivity/zoho-expense/cmd/zoho-expense-pp-mcp@latest - Register with Claude Code:
claude mcp add zoho-expense-pp-mcp -- zoho-expense-pp-mcp - Verify:
claude mcp list
Direct Use
- Check if installed:
which zoho-expense-pp-cliIf not found, offer to install (see Prerequisites at the top of this skill). - Match the user query to the best command from the Unique Capabilities and Command Reference above.
- Execute with the
--agentflag:zoho-expense-pp-cli <command> [subcommand] [args] --agent - If ambiguous, drill into subcommand help:
zoho-expense-pp-cli <command> --help.