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Reconcile a bank account

Bring in the statement your bank gives you and tick off each line against the books.

Reconciling is checking the bank’s own statement against what the books say went through the account. Every line the bank printed should be something you recorded. When it is not, either the books are missing an entry or the bank did something you did not know about.

Bring in the statement

  1. Download the statement from your net banking as a CSV. Most banks offer it under Account statement, as Excel or CSV. A file saved as .xls or .xlsx needs saving again as CSV first.
  2. Open Books, Bank accounts and choose Reconcile beside the account.
  3. Choose Import statement and pick the file, or paste the rows with their heading row.
  4. Check Which column is which. The date, narration, reference, withdrawals, deposits and balance are found from the headings most Indian banks print; change any that are wrong.
  5. Choose Import. Lines already brought in from an earlier file are skipped, so overlapping downloads are safe.

Match each line

  • Where the books have the same amount, the same way, within a week, it is suggested beside the line. Choose Match if it is the right one.
  • Find in the books lists everything unmatched on the account within a fortnight, nearest amount first.
  • A charge the bank took or interest it paid is not in the books yet. Choose Record as bank charges or Record as interest: it is posted to the account and matched in one step.
  • Set aside is for a line that needs nothing, such as a payment the bank reversed the same day.

Read the result

The bank says is the balance on the last line imported. The books say is the account’s balance in the books on the same day. The lines left to match, and the entries under Only in the books, explain any difference. A cheque you issued that has not been presented yet shows in Only in the books until it clears.

Matching never changes a payment or an expense. To take a match back, choose Unmatch. A bank charge or interest you recorded from the statement goes back out of the books when you unmatch or set aside its line, or delete its file under Statements brought in, so it is never booked twice. A line matched to a receipt or transfer that has since been deleted is unmatched the next time the statement opens.

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