Field descriptions: Configure General Ledger

If you select this option:

• Users can change the length of account numbers (on the Accounting tab of the Company Information page).
• You can give users permission to change account numbers, using these General Ledger permissions:
  • Financial account numbers
  • Statistical account numbers
• Users with the above permissions can change account numbers.

Select to designate this account as a regularization account.

To comply with regional reporting requirements, you can now set up regularization accounts. A regularization account is an account that can be classified as either an asset or a liability on the balance sheet.

The account classification depends on the account balance at the time that the financial report is run. If the account's balance does not match its normal balance, the account is eligible to be reclassified.

Do not enable this feature unless you need it to comply with regional compliance regulations.

To learn more, see About regularization accounts.

Select the accounting method that you use for reporting. The accounting method that's right for you depends on your reporting needs and other factors.

Cash is available as an option only for new companies. Selecting Accrual and cash affects your setup and (to some extent) usage of Sage Intacct.

• Accrual only

The Construction subscription only allows companies using the accrual method.

• Accrual and cash

Selecting Accrual and Cash gives you the flexibility to report on either method. To save time, select the default accounting method to use for reporting and then make any needed changes on a report-by-report basis.

Learn more about accounting methods.

Only visible when Accrual and cash are selected. For Accrual and cash. The first full dual reporting period is shown for information.

Learn more about reporting periods.

When enabled, you can create Compliance (Generally Accepted Accounting Principles) adjustment journals. Learn more about setting up Compliance journals and reporting on other books.

To stop using Compliance adjustment journals, delete all transactions from them and then clear Enable Compliance adjustment journals.

When enabled, you can create tax adjustment journals. Learn more about setting up tax journals and reporting on other books.

To stop using tax adjustment journals, delete all transactions from them and then clear Enable tax adjustment journals.

Use a 3rd-party tax application to prepare client tax returns?

To export book balance data with tax codes to your tax application, select Enable tax codes. When you export, the tax application will map the tax codes you've entered and pre-populate the corresponding tax forms.

When you select this checkbox, multi-currency options are turned on in other applications, and Company options for managing currencies and exchange rates are shown on the Company Setup menu.

The other applications that support multi-currency are:

• Accounts Payable

• Accounts Receivable

• Cash Management

• Order Entry

• Purchasing

• Expenses

Select the currency exchange rate to use, either the Current rate, or the rate from 1 day prior.

This is a company-wide setting that's permanent when you set it. You select this setting when configuring multi-currency.

• Current rate: The rate that Intacct fetches from Oanda at UTC -3 and propagates throughout Intacct about an hour later.
• 1 day prior: The Intacct 1 day prior option uses the Oanda rate from 24 hours before the Intacct Daily rate. This option is useful for recording transactions in a time zone far removed from UTC -3. In such locales, using the Current rate risks recording half a day's transactions using the next exchange rate in the middle of a work day. Best practice is to use the 1 day prior rate if your transactions take place in UTC +6 through +14, or UTC -9 through -12.

Create or select an expense account to be used for recording rounding differences during journal entry import. This rounding account keeps debits and credits in balance, if the rounding of base currency amounts causes a minor difference between debits and credits (typically, a penny).

Here's how it works:

1. During journal entry import, transaction amounts are converted to the base currency and rounded as required for that type of currency.
2. If the rounding process causes debits and credits to be out of balance, Intacct tries to balance the debit and credit line items automatically.
3. If there's a minor discrepancy (typically, a penny) that can't be distributed across line items, the discrepancy is added as a debit or credit to the Rounding account.

If a rounding entry was needed, it appears in the uploaded journal entry in the Automatic balancing entries section at the bottom of the page.

Select the account to use to record gains and losses when running a revaluation report.

The response if a user tries to set a future period date as the general ledger posting date.

• Allow and do not show warning: The user can proceed with the transaction without any warning. Default setting.
• Allow and show warning: Displays a warning message, but allows the user to proceed.
• Don’t allow: Displays a message asking the user to select a date within the current period.

To create transaction allocation tables by percentage or fixed value, select Enable transaction allocation in journal entry. The General Ledger then automatically calculates and distributes values to departments and locations.

For example, in an Enterprise company distributing insurance premium costs across regional sales offices, you can select a transaction allocation when paying the AP purchase invoice. The AP purchase invoice amount is then automatically distributed across the appropriate locations.

In multi-entity companies, allocation is useful when a corporate office manages the accounting for multiple entities. Corporate can automatically allocate AP purchase invoices without manually calculating each entity's share. For example, a property management company could automatically divide the monthly cost of landscape maintenance proportionately to the square footage of each property.

Companies subscribed to the Taxes application can enable allocations. The allocation line item field is available in transactions for entities configured with Simple Tax, Advanced Tax, or Avalara Tax. It is not available in transactions for entities using a VAT/GST tax solution.

Select to enable posting of nonfinancial data tracked with statistical accounts to closed periods. For example, if labor costing is turned off, you can use this with Projects to post statistical labor hours to a closed period.

Recommended only if you have a legal requirement for your region.

Enable if your regional accounting requirements specify that each accounting transaction entered in the following applications must carry a unique sequential number at the header level.

• General Ledger

• Accounts Payable

• Accounts Receivable

• Cash Management

The accounting sequence ensures that each batch posted to the General Ledger is assigned an Accounting Numbering Sequence, based on the numbering sequence defined, including by Entity and year.

This field is available after you select Enable accounting sequence. Use it to select the entities that require an account sequence.

1. Select the Select button.
2. Select entities from the Available items list by selecting the arrow to move them to the Selected items list.
3. Select Done.

If you have enabled accounting sequences, select an option to determine when they're created.

• Select On transaction creation to create the accounting sequence when the transaction is initially created.

• Select On transaction post to create the accounting sequence when the transaction is posted.

  Select this option if you often backdate transactions to help ensure consistency with the accounting sequence and the posting date.

This option is available if Enable accounting sequence is selected.

Select to enable lettrage.

Lettrage is an accounting reconciliation process in which you match debits and credits using unique lettering codes. To learn more, see Lettrage.

Even if enabled here, lettrage is available only if the operating company at the top level or entity is set to France.

Select the document sequence to use when matching transactions.

The sequence selected here is used for any account that has lettrage enabled but does not have a lettrage sequence assigned on the Account information page. If there's a lettrage sequence assigned on the account information page, it's used instead of this one.

This field is available if Enable lettrage is selected.

Select to enable locking of closed statutory reporting periods so that they cannot be reopened or changed (even with adjustments).

After enabling this feature, assign users permission to lock closed periods. See General Ledger permissions.

This option is available only if your company uses standard accounting periods.

To make a financial report available to selected users on a case-by-case basis, go to the report and select the Permissions tab.

To make all new financial reports private, clear Set default permissions to public. In this case, the creator's user ID is set as the owner, and permission is denied to the group Everyone. Unless the report creator grants permission to others, no one else can access the report.

This setting is company wide, applying to all users. It cannot be set at the entity level.

When this option is selected, a Title field is added to Department, Location, and Entity records, where you can enter additional header text. For example, you can include the office name, address, and manager for each location.

To change the display order of dimensions, drag and drop the icons in the first column.

Shows the display order of the dimensions.

The dimensions that are available in your company.

To display a dimension in the General Ledger, select Enable. Track and report against each dimension you select.

After you've enabled a dimension, you cannot deactivate it if it has been used in a transaction.

To use dimensions in individual applications, you also need to enable the dimensions in the specific applications:

• Accounts Payable
• Accounts Receivable
• Contracts
• Inventory Control
• Order Entry
• Projects
• Purchasing
• Expenses

To enable dimensions for other applications:

1. Go to Company > Admin > Subscriptions.
2. Select the name of the application, then select Configure to complete the dimension settings.

To prevent users from directly entering a journal entry or other transaction into the General Ledger that does not balance for the selected dimension, select Enforce balancing.

To save a journal entry or transaction, you select identical dimension values for both sides of the transaction. For example, if you select Enforce  balancing for Department, both the debit and the credit for a journal entry must be attributed to the same department or no department.

For multi-entity companies, the Enforce Journal Entry Balancing option is automatically selected for the Location dimension.

You can enforce balancing for user-defined dimensions on the Advanced General Ledger options section of the configuration page.

Select how you want the dimensions to appear on transaction pages. The selection you make here affects how dimensions are displayed in AP and AR advanced and recurring transactions. However, it does not affect how dimensions appear on GL pages.

For transactions created in subledgers that are posted to the general ledger, you can have General Ledger automatically create balancing journal entries by dimension. For example, you create a journal entry with a debit and offsetting credit for the same project, and set the debit and credit to different dimensions. General Ledger does the work for you by creating 2 balancing entries.

To require that all transactions in a particular journal get approved before posting, select Enable journal entry approvals. (Transactions from a subledger are automatically posted to a journal.)

Select each journal that requires approvals, and select who needs to approve the transactions for each journal.

For multi-entity companies, you can require approval of journal transactions entered at the top level, entity level, or both:

• Top-level transactions: To require approval for journal transactions entered at the top level, enable journal entry approval and assign approvers at the top level. Journal entry approval that you set up at the entity level will be ignored.
• Entity-level transactions: To require approval for journal transactions entered at the entity level, enable journal entry approval and assign approvers at the entity level. If you do not, we check if you've enabled approval and assigned approvers at the top level. If you enable and assign at both levels, Intacct uses the entity-level assignments.

Approvals must be enabled to reclassify approved journal entries.

The remaining fields in this section appear when you select this checkbox.

To have a backup person available to approve any transaction, select an Admin approver.

Select a person outside your existing approvers: you want someone who can step in if a journal's assigned approver is unavailable.

To add someone to the list of choices, give an Admin or Business user permission to Approve Journal Entries in the General Ledger application.

An Admin approver is essentially an unrestricted approver. These users can approve journal entries submitted by anyone. Journal entries submitted by an Admin approver are considered automatically approved.

Select this option to allow users to approve their own transactions.

To require that a separate user reviews an approver's transactions in a journal, clear Submitter can approve own entries. Then select a Substitute Approver for the journal.

When an approval request is received, the request is processed as follows:

• If submitters cannot approve their own entries:

  • If the approver submits a transaction, an email is sent to the substitute approver. If the approver is a user group, the substitute approver cannot be a member of the group.
  • If someone other than the approver (including the substitute approver) submits a transaction, an email is sent to the approver.

• If submitters can approve their own entries:

  • If the approver submits a transaction, it's automatically approved and no email is sent.
  • If someone other than the approver or the substitute approver submits a transaction, an email is sent to the approver.
  • If the substitute approver submits a transaction, no email is sent, or an email is sent if there are further approvals needed.

Allows approvers to delegate their approval responsibility to assigned delegates who can approve on their behalf.

To require that all transactions in a particular journal get approved before posting, select the field and select the journal.

To approve automatically all transactions in a particular journal (no approval required), leave the journal off the list.

Enables the Outlier Assistant, which changes the workflow, returning flagged transactions to the submitter for re-evaluation instead of flagging the transaction to the Approver.

To require that all transactions in the selected journal get approved before posting, select an approver. Approvers can be an individual or a user group.

To require a chain of approvers for the journal, select the person who must approve first. Then beneath your entry for the first approver, select the same journal and the next approver.

To require the manager of the person who submitted the transaction, select Employee Manager Approval.

To add someone to the list of choices, give an Admin or Business user permission to Approve Journal Entries in the General Ledger.

Select a journal that uses approvals.

Specify who will be sent notifications when approvals are needed for the selected journal.

Each journal that uses Approvals is visible and can take its own settings. You might see more journals than in the list for approval. This is because some journals listed are entity restricted and the Outlier Detection customization is done at the top level. Each currency is listed (entity-level journals can use different currencies).

Select the currency used to evaluate the transaction. The currency used is taken from the Company or Entity settings.

Define the amount at which a transaction triggers an evaluation. For example, if the materiality is set to 50.00, transactions of less than 50.0 are not evaluated.

What's materiality?

Materiality means that something—such as an entry amount—is relevant. It’s the threshold at which information could have an impact on decision making.

Shows whether all dimensions are selected. If only some dimensions are selected, shows the number of dimensions being used for evaluation. By default, all dimensions enabled in the company are selected.

If you have different reporting standards that you need to track, beyond Compliance and tax, this option enables you to:

• Define your own reporting books.
• Add journal entries to the books.
• Report on the user-defined books as needed, either alone or with other books.

Learn more about user-defined books.

To change the display order of dimensions, drag and drop the icons in the first column.

Create a row for each dimension whose count to track. You can create multiple rows for the same dimension to create multiple rules for that dimension, and multiple dimensions.

Select the account that this dimension rule applies to.

The active dimension group determines which members are included in the count. This allows you to limit dimensions to a specific group, such as active customers or specific departments or locations.

The posting description is included when the updated count is posted to the statistical journal. By default, the General Ledger uses the active dimension group name.

This setting applies to companies with more than 1 entity. If a dimension is created at the top level, a posting entity is required to specify the entity that will be used on the posting statistical journal entry.

Add a new user-defined dimension. The Object properties & attributes page for creating a new object appears.

The name of the dimension.

The name to be used when referring to more than 1 dimension member. Automatically added when you created the dimension. However, you can edit it as needed.

To prevent users from entering a journal entry or other transaction that does not balance for the selected dimension, select Enforce Journal Entry balancing.

For example:

• You select Enforce Journal Entry Balancing for a user-defined dimension called Line of Business.

• Both the debit and the credit for a journal entry must be attributed to the same line of business.

Indicates whether the dimension was deployed across your company.

Edit an existing user-defined dimension. The Object properties & attributes page for editing the dimension appears.

The name of the base dimension.

If the dimension relationship is set to autofill a value for the related dimension, the checkbox is selected.

Autofill works with “to-one” relationships. It’s used in the UI only, in order to make entry faster.

With autofill enabled, the values you set are included when you enter the first value in a transaction entry line or in transaction entry defaults section. That means that the autofill happens only from direct entry.

Entering the first value any other way tells Intacct not to send the autofill instruction to complete the other fields.

For transactions with multiple dimension relationships and competing values, you can set which value takes precedence. To set dimension value precedence:

In the Priority Order column for the appropriate dimension, grab the handle beside the dimension whose value takes precedence, and drag it up.

If the dimension relationship enables override of the related dimension value, the checkbox is selected.

This column appears if you're using Enabled filtered dropdowns. These dimensions have multiple values that can be restricted to a smaller set for use in transactions.

If no values are defined for a dimension value, all values are allowed.