Does this spend need the principal to approve it?

A mandate caps a TOTAL, which is the wrong control for the risk people actually fear: "$500 this month" still permits one catastrophic $500 transfer to the wrong place. Set cosignAbove when preparing a mandate and any spend over it needs the principal to approve THAT PAYMENT. Returns whether approval is required and the exact digest to sign. The digest binds the mandate, the transfer AND the amount — an approval therefore cannot be replayed against a different payment, which is what would otherwise reduce the control to theatre. If a spend is refused for want of a countersignature, get the principal to sign it — do NOT split the spend to slip under the threshold.