Use the Enter Trial Balance screen

You can use the
Enter Trial Balance
screen to review and edit account information.
You can switch the
Journal Entry View
on or off to add, maintain, and view adjusting journal entries directly in the
Trial Balance
grid.
To add, edit, or delete customized views, open the
View Maintenance
window.
To access the
Enter Trial Balance
screen, go to
Actions
Enter Trial Balance
or select
Enter Trial Balance
icon in the Accounting section of the Navigation pane.
note
  • You can use trial balance functionality if you have the accounting and trial balance licenses installed.
  • Enable the Journal Entry View by marking the
    Display journal entry view
    checkbox in the
    Edit
    Enter Trial Balance Options
    window. When you turn on the Journal Entry View, the screen displays the Trial Balance grid and the Journal Entry View. With both views, you can edit transactions and instantly view their effects on accounts.
  • Each row in the Journal Entry grid corresponds to a row in the Trial Balance grid. The application verifies the balance after you complete each entry.
  • To edit general information, assign codes, renumber accounts, segment accounts, or merge accounts, go to
    Edit
    Edit Multiple Accounts
    .
  • To create multiple trial balance views per client, select
    View Maintenance
    on the
    Enter Trial Balance
    screen.
  • If you add a Beginning Balance column to a Trial Balance View, the application updates that column during the year-end close. The system generates a transaction to support the beginning balance amounts automatically. These events can cause the trial balance to be out of balance, but you must resolve any discrepancies before closing the year.
  • You can transfer trial balance views between clients.

Fields on the screen

Data entry grid
Enter account balances in the data entry grid. Select
View Maintenance
on the
Enter Trial Balance
screen to add or modify views for your client.
Enter accounts from the client’s Chart of Accounts to create transactions that support the entered balances.
Ensure that each balance you enter in the grid is a year-to-date balance for the account. The application calculates the transaction amount as the difference between the year-to-date amount and the amount from the previous activity for that account.
Examples:
  • For Account 100, if the current balance is $250.00 and you enter $700.00 as the new year-to-date balance in the Unadjusted column, the application generates a transaction of $450.00.
  • For Account 400, if the current balance is ($875.00) and you enter ($600.00) as the new year-to-date balance in the Unadjusted column, the application generates a transaction of $275.00.

Default Trial Balance view

The Default view includes the following columns:
  • Account
  • Description
  • Account Grouping / Account Classification
  • Account Grouping (Subcode) / Account Classification
  • Unadjusted [CY, C]
  • Adjusting JE (Debit) [CP, C]
  • Adjusting JE (Credit) [CP, C]
  • Adjusted [CY, C]
note
You can delete any column from a view except the Account number and Description columns.

Journal Entry View

Use the Journal Entry View section in
Actions
Enter Trial Balance
to review and enter adjusting journal entries. The application updates the corresponding entries in the Trial Balance grid at the same time.
You can choose from the following journal entry subtypes in the Subtype column:
  • Adjusting
    : Post entries to unadjusted balances to include them in the adjusted trial balance.
  • Tax Adjustment
    : Modify account balances to comply with taxing authority regulations.
  • Reclassifying
    : Make entries for financial statement purposes only. These are typically not entered in the books.
  • Other
    : Prepare financial statements on another comprehensive basis of accounting and combine them with the adjusted trial balance to create the other basis trial balance.
  • Potential
    : Record journal entries that may be needed later. You can easily convert potential journal entries to another type.
Required Fields in Journal Entry View
  • Journal
    : Select a journal from the dropdown list. The list includes journals set up in
    Setup
    Journals
    .
    note
    To add a new journal, enter a unique description, verify when prompted, enter the journal information in the
    Journal
    window, and select
    Enter
    , then
    Done
    .
  • Posting Period
    : Select a period for the current or future year.
    note
    For prior-period entries, change the end date of the general ledger period to the prior year to force a close, then move the year-end date forward to update balances.
  • Subtype
    : Select the subtype from the dropdown list. The default is Adjusting, but you can select a different default in the Enter Trial Balance Options window.
  • Amount
    : Enter positive amounts for debits and negative amounts for credits. You can enter decimals, or if you marked the
    Implied decimal on amounts
    checkbox in
    Setup
    User Preferences
    , the application will handle decimals automatically.
  • Difference
    : Select
    Temporary
    or
    Permanent
    to map the journal entry to the correct Schedule M-3 column. The application maps temporary entries to Schedule M-3, Column B, and permanent entries to Column C in UltraTax CS. This field is available only for Tax Adjustment, Reclassifying, or Other subtypes.
  • Reverse
    : For Adjusting journal entries, mark the
    Reverse
    checkbox to have the application reverse the entry in the next posting period.