When attempting to import Time Cards that have already been Approved in another system, or generate a Time Card from a script at a state of Approved or Processed, ServiceNow will always move the Time Card back to a Pending state.
This is due to a business rule: "Set values for new time card". This business rule sets the state to Pending and clears the Approved by and Approved on fields. This rule will need to be disabled for Time Cards that are imported or generated via script if the Status of the imported Time Card needs to automatically be set to Approved or Processed. But it may need to remain in place for time cards created by copy. An additional condition may need to be added to the rule to ensure it only executes when necessary.
