Update opening balances
Opening balances are what you had on the go-live day. Each type is entered in a different place, and all of them are dated on the go-live day. Account and party balances are balanced against Opening Balance Equity; opening stock goes against the account you pick.
Quick add
- Accounts, bank and cash: in the admin console open Configuration › Finance › Chart of Accounts, click Add opening balance under an account, enter Amount and Side, click Save.
- Stock: add a Stock Adjustment, set Adjustment Type to Opening Stock, date it on the stock start date, and pick a Reason Account for each line.
- Customers and suppliers: on the party form fill Opening Balance, pick the side and the date.
- Run the checks below.
Done. Every balance from your old system is in, and the Opening balance check matches.
Full guide
Ledger accounts, bank and cash
Bank and cash are ordinary accounts in the Chart of Accounts, so they use the same screen. Under each account click Add opening balance, then Save. The row shows "Opening balance ... as of" the go-live day; Revise and Remove change it. Only an organisation admin can do this, and the go-live date must be set first ("Set the go-live date on the Accounting Period page first.").
Fields in this section
| Field | Required | What to enter |
|---|---|---|
| Amount | Yes | More than zero, in your base currency. |
| Side | Yes | Debit or Credit. |
An account cannot take a balance here when it is linked to a control account (use the customer, supplier or employee instead), is a stock account (use opening stock), is a group (use the accounts under it), is deactivated, or is Opening Balance Equity itself. Dates inside a closed period are refused.
Stock: quantity, value and batches
Items hold no opening quantity. Create a Stock Adjustment, pick Opening Stock as the Adjustment Type and date it on the stock start date. The form suggests the type and date for each other.
Fields in this section
| Field | Required | What to enter |
|---|---|---|
| Adjustment Date | Yes | The stock start date. Earlier is refused. |
| Adjustment Type | Yes | Opening Stock. |
| Location | Yes | Where the stock sits. |
| Item Details | Yes | One line per item and condition. |
| Reason Account | Yes | The account on the other side of the stock value. |
| Physical Qty | Yes | What you counted. |
| Total Value | No | The total cost of the line. Use it when a rate does not divide cleanly (3 units worth 1,000). The unit cost is then worked out from it. |
| Unit Cost | No | Cost per unit. A line with no cost is a zero-value line and asks you to confirm. |
For batch or serial items, use the lot chip under Physical Qty to name each lot, expiry and serials. The adjustment debits the item's inventory account and credits the Reason Account you pick. Pick your opening-stock or equity-type account if one is listed; the list does not offer equity accounts today, so after saving check the posting and run the Opening balance check before you rely on the Balance Sheet. The stock sheet is Bulk Import under Stock Adjustment, with columns for batch, supplier batch, expiry, serial numbers, unit price and valuation amount.
Customer and supplier outstandings
On the customer or supplier form fill Opening Balance, choose the side and enter the date (labelled "as on"). Amount and date go together. The date is not filled for you: use the go-live day. No live document for that party can be dated before it. Old documents can.
| Party | They owe us | We owe them |
|---|---|---|
| Customer | Normal (amount owed to you) | Advance they paid |
| Supplier | Advance you paid | Normal (amount you owe) |
On the phone the fields are Opening Balance and Opening Balance Date, with Clear opening balance. To enter the open bills one by one, see Old documents. The two must agree.
Check the books balance
There is no trial balance to run and no year to close. Bizconnekt works out every balance straight from your documents (each posted document and opening balance carries its own journal entries, added up to the date you ask for), so your figures are always up to date. Account and party balances are posted against Opening Balance Equity, so the books balance as you enter them; nothing needs to be carried forward or cleared afterwards.
- Balance Sheet as at the go-live day: compare the account totals and the Opening Balance Equity line with your old system's closing figures.
- Account Statement (Reports › Business Reports): one account's movements, starting from its opening balance.
- Opening balance check (Reports › Business Reports, web only): per customer or supplier, Opening balance against Open on old documents, with Difference and Status (Matches or Mismatch). Use Mismatches only, then Fix opening balance. Suppliers also show a Pending Inward card for goods billed before go-live and not yet received: enter their value as a journal dated go-live, Dr Pending Inward Asset and Cr Opening Balance Equity.
- The check adds your old invoices, less old credit notes and old receipts, so a part-paid old invoice needs its old receipt entered too. A row also warns if the opening is dated on a day other than go-live.
- Stock: compare Inventory Valuation and Stock Ledger with your old stock report.
Also enter your Opening credit ledger balance for GSTR-3B. See Tax Compliance main screen.
On the mobile app
Customers and suppliers: opening balance can be added on the phone. Stock Adjustment with Opening Stock and Total Value (optional) works and asks for a Reason Account, but there are no batch or serial fields. Account balances, Bulk Import and the Opening balance check are web only. Same on iPhone and Android.
Problems and fixes
An opening balance is refused for the date
The date cannot be before the go-live date, and cannot sit in a closed period.
Mismatch on one customer
Check the side, then whether a part-paid old invoice is missing its receipt.