How to Enter Opening Balances in Sage 50

Entering Opening Balances in Sage 50 can give you a ton of clarity on how to get started. Once you have opened your account in Sage, there are several times when you may want to update the opening balance in Sage 50. However, most times, these changes are what your system requires in itself. So, how do we do this? Well, here is the list of changes that our system may need in itself, and how to accomplish the same.

Enter Opening Balances in Sage 50

When starting a new business venture or transitioning between sizes of the business, you will need to set the right procedures for accounting. This is where the Sage 50 software comes into the picture. You can open a balance for:

• Ledger Accounts
• Bank Accounts
• Customers and Suppliers

To enter the opening balance: the requirements

Here is a list of basic requirements that you need to set in place before you enter the opening balance in Sage 50:

• It is important to confirm the START date for the accounting transactions before opening balances in SAGE 50.
• The VAT scheme setup must be done accurately. To adjust the information, you will need to:
• SETTINGS > ACCOUNTING DATES & VAT > Enter the ACCOUNTS START DATE in the required field.
• Next, you will need to get a record of the Supplier, bank account, customer, Credit card, and loan accounts.
• After the above steps have been accomplished, you can go ahead and begin entering the opening balances for the following:
  • Outstanding supplier transactions
  • Nominal ledger trial balance
  • Outstanding customer transactions
  • Bank accounts.

Read More: Resolve Sage 50 Balance Sheet Doesn’t Balance

How to Separate Opening Balance and Reconcile Items

For this, you will need to perform the following steps:

Step 1: The uncleared items can be found in the opening balance; in this case, you will have to reverse all the data. For this, you will need to:

• Select the Bank Account, and next, click on the account you need to create the changes in. To this select EDIT/NEW or EDIT.
• Next, click on CURRENT BALANCE OPTION
• Select the SAGE 50 version, select the Bank, and click on the ACCOUNT. Here you will discover the CURRENT OPENING BALANCE OPTION in the BANK RECORD OPTION.
• Next, you will need to enter the DATE AND REFERENCE in the opening balance. This is where you need to enter the un-cleared payments, located in the RECEIPT OPTIONS, and click on SAVE.
• Next, click on CURRENT BALANCE once again and enter the DATE AND REF. in the OPENING BALANCE. It is here that you enter the UNDECLARED RECEIPT.
• Next, click on SAVE and then click on CLOSE.

STEP 2: When you need to enter Receipt or Bank Payments to enter the Uncleared Item

For Bank payments

• You will need to select the Bank Account and click on the Bank Account you need to process. Next, click on the Bank Payments.
• Next, enter the Date and Reference and enter the SAN CODE 9998. This is the SUSPENSE ACCOUNT NOMINAL CODE. The digits are by default.
• Next, you will need to enter all the important credentials, like Tax, T9, and Net column)
• Finally, you can repeat the above steps to take care of all the individual payments. Lastly, select SAVE and CLOSE.

For the corrections in the Opening Balance

There are two methods for making corrections in the bank opening balance:

• At first, for the case when the wrong entry is made in the Opening balance, you will need to reverse the opening balance and enter the opening balance with the right.
• In case the reconciled items are entered wrongly, which are meant to cover the Lump Sum reconciled Opening balance, you will need to correct and rectify the ERROR. This is done by correcting the right sequence of the transactions in the Bank Reconciliation Window.

Below are a few more informative steps that will help you correct the bank Opening balance:

The reversal of the Incorrect Opening Balance

One can reverse the error entered into the reconciled opening balance if one enters the opposite transaction into the original transaction. For this, you will need to enter the same date and reference. To do so, you will need to:

• Select the Bank Account. Next, you will need to click on the Required Account. Next, you will need to click on EDIT/NEW or EDIT.
• Select SAGE 50 LATEST VERSION- Select the Bank, and click the required account. Finally, select the BANK RECORD.
• Click on the CURRENT BANK OPTION, it is here that you enter the credentials: date and reference.
• In case the Receipt of the Debit is the original entry, you will need to enter the data in the PAYMENT BOX.
• If the CREDIT happens to be the original entry, then you will need to enter the necessary CREDENTIALS in the RECEIPT BOX.
• Finally, Click on SAVE and CLOSE.

Read More: Fix Sage 50 Not Showing All Transactions

Conclusion

So, there you have it, my accounting whiz. These are some of the prominent aspects of entering the opening balance in Sage 50. Be sure to check your requirements and follow the steps accordingly.

Frequently Asked Questions