General Ledger Year-End FAQs
Here are some frequently asked questions at year-end.
Can I post entries to January before I close the year?
Yes, you can post entries to January before closing the current year. Make sure to change the posting month and year when entering the transaction. You must also select Allow Posting to Prior Periods in General Ledger Transaction Setup.
- Under Advanced Tools, click the Settings tab.
- From the drop-down list, select General Ledger
and click Go
.
- On the Transaction Setup tab, click Edit.
- Select Allow posting to prior periods, then click OK.
A closing account is attached to the wrong fund
When I try to close my year, I get a message that one of the closing accounts is attached to the wrong fund.
To ensure that your books remain balanced after closing the year, each account in your chart of accounts is assigned to a fund, and each fund in Add/Edit Lists is assigned to a closing account. The closing account is also known as the Fund Principal account in the Chart of Accounts.
For Example:
| Fund Principal Account | 1-299999 | Fund | 001 | Closing Account | 1-299999 | Fund | 001 |
| Fund Principal Account | 2-299999 | Fund | 002 | Closing Account | 2-299999 | Fund | 002 |
This example includes two Fund Principal accounts in Add/Edit Chart of Accounts. One is assigned to Fund 001 and the other is assigned to Fund 002. In Add/Edit Lists, the appropriate Fund Principal account is entered in the Closing Account field of each fund.
Also, each account in your Chart of Accounts must have a fund assigned to it. To verify that all accounts have a fund assigned, print the Chart of Accounts - Detail report. You can review each account and its fund. If an account is missing a fund, edit the account in Add/Edit Chart of Accounts and enter the fund.
How do I find open transactions?
When I try to perform year-end procedures, I get a message that there are open transactions. How do I find them?
If you receive this message, the open transactions are in General Ledger, not in any other modules in the Financial Suite. However, they were entered in a prior period or by a different user.
- Under Manage Records, click the Transactions tab.
- From the drop-down list, click General Ledger
Transactions and click Go
- Click Add/Edit Transactions.
- In the drop-down lists, select General Ledger, and Open Transactions.
- Under Posting Period, select All Users and All Periods. The open transactions will display.
- Delete or post the open transactions.
What transaction source should I use for year-end closing?
You must use an Adjustment Source Type for year-end closing. You can define adjustment source types in Define Lists.
The first adjustment source type listed in Define Lists is the transaction source that displays in the General Ledger - Year End Procedures window. You can select other adjustment sources in the Transaction Source drop-down lists. Since each adjustment source is defined as an adjustment source type, you can select any of them.
What is the difference between the transaction sources available for year-end closing?
The only difference between the transaction sources available for year-end closing is the Source Code and Description assigned to each in Define Lists.
Since each transaction source is an adjustment source type, they each post to General Ledger the same way- just select the Source Code you prefer to display on year-end reports.
What if my audit is not done and I need to enter adjustments?
You don't have to wait to close your year- you can enter adjustments at any time. Some audits are performed months after the first of the year, so you should close General Ledger as usual.
Once the audit is complete, if you need to post adjusting entries after the year is closed, you can post them to the General Ledger. When you are posting, make sure you set the Posting Period to December of the Previous Year in the transaction window. This entry changes December's ending balance and January's beginning balance on reports.
If you have adjusting entries to post and the year is closed, you can post them to the General Ledger by using the 13th month feature. When you key your entries, set the 13th month and the Previous Year in the transaction window. These entries do not affect December's ending balance but will reflect January's beginning balance.
The 13th month feature was created for year-end audit adjustments that are Journal Entry and Adjustments entries. It is a false month that falls between the last month of the prior fiscal year and the first month of the new fiscal year. The Office of Accounting uses it to complete year-end entries for reporting purposes.
All 13th month transactions, such as closing entries of all expenditures and income for the prior year, post to the 13th month. Therefore, when you enter those transactions, select the 13th month and the previous year.
What reports should I print before closing?
Print all reports that your Finance Committee, CPA, financial advisers, or auditors need to review.
These may include the Bank Account Journal, Check Register, Posting Journal, and Statement reports such as the Analysis of Revenues and Expenses, Balance Sheet, and Trial Balance.
If I am out of balance, will closing my year put me back in balance?
No. Performing year-end procedures while your funds are out of balance only causes you to start the new year out of balance.
Balance your books before closing the year. You can begin by printing the balance sheet with the option Include Inactive Accounts selected. Perhaps a transaction was posted to an inactive account in error. If so, you can leave the transaction posted to that account or reverse it and post it to an active account.
Another way to determine if your accounts are out of balance is to print the balance sheet for all funds. If your accounts display as balanced, you have a crossing funds transaction that you need to correct.
Can I print reports after closing the year?
Yes, you can. When printing reports, you can change the Post Month/Year to a previous period.