Sales and Purchase Contra Posting
You must first create a link between a Customer Record and a Supplier Record before you are able to use the Contra Posting function.
Transactions are entered as normal. If a situation arises where it is more efficient to contra the transactions than to pay the separate invoice, this is achieved using the Contra Posting screen. Adjustment transactions are automatically created in each ledger with any settlement discounts taken into account.
You must select the currency and the analysis codes to be used. The default Discount Analysis is brought through. The reference and date will be used on the adjustments created by the contra process.
Depending on whether the Working Periods feature is enabled and on your Security Profile permissions, it may be possible for you to continue to post financial changes, for month end procedures, even after the posting period has been advanced; in this situation the Period becomes a drop-down and you can select the appropriate period.
Using Contra Posting
The method described below uses a fictitious company called 'The Stationery Store', who is both a Customer and a Supplier, and has a reciprocal link between their Customer Record and their Supplier Record.
Enter a Sales Invoice as usual (for example, Annual Contract Renewal: £12000.00).
Enter a Purchase Invoice as usual (for example, Office Supplies: £500.00).
Select Adjustments > Contra Posting.
Using the Sales & Purchase Contra Search window:
Enter the Currency and the Analysis codes to be used,
Enter an Adjustment Reference and Adjustment Date (if not today),
Click the Display button.
The Sales & Purchase Contra Processing window displays Customers who have outstanding transactions which are potentially available for contra posting. Select the Edit toolbar button.
Using the Processing window, in the upper pane, select 'The Stationery Store'.
The two lower panes display Sales Ledger transactions and Purchase Ledger (yellow background) transactions.
You now have choices (detailed below):
let the system balance the transactions, using the Auto Balance button,
Select Individual Transactions in both lower panes to contra,
Select All Transactions in both lower panes to contra.
If the values match then you can Save and the adjustments will be created. If the values do not match then the allocated value can be edited and set to the correct value.
If settlement discount has been applied to one transaction and not the other, then the transaction without the settlement discount must have an allocated value equal to the allocated value plus the settlement discount.
Click the Process button on the toolbar
The Post Contra window appears
Enter the Date, the Adjustment Reference (Note: both of these are copied from the Search window), and a Description
Select the OK button to save the Contra
Close the Contra Posting window
Contra Choices
Auto Balance
Using Auto Balance posts the contra to the oldest transaction.
For example, you have two Sales Invoices for The Stationery Store: one for Consultancy (raised last week, for £900), and another for Annual Contract Renewal (raised today, for £12000). You also have two Purchase Invoices: one Office Supplies (raised today, for £500), and another for Computer Peripherals (raised today, for £250). Using the Auto Balance option will contra the £750 Purchase Invoices against the £900 Sales Invoice.
From the window toolbar, select the Auto Balance button
Select Individual transactions
Using the Individual Transaction option allows you to select single (or multiple by using Ctrl+Click) transactions.
For example: for The Stationery Store, you have three Purchase Invoices: one for Office Supplies (£500), one for New Chair (£425), and one for Computer Equipment (£1200); and a Sales Invoice for Annual Renewal (£12000) You want to select the first two transactions to contra, but not the third.
Using Ctrl+Click, select the £500 and £425 transactions
Select the Select Row button
Select All transactions
Using the All Transactions option allows you to select all displayed transactions.
Using the example given above, all three transactions will be selected for contra.
Select the Select All button