Background

Often, users will have old transactions that they would like to clear from the Reconcile Accounts Window (Banking > Reconcile Accounts). How to handle these transactions depends on why the transactions are still there.

Uncleared Checks

If you have checks that you've written from past years that never cleared the bank (ie: the checks were never cashed) you can reverse the check. As a note - the reversal has to occur in the current year. Once the check is reversed you will be able to check off the initial check and the reversal in the Reconcile Accounts window (they will balance each other out) and reconcile them.

To Reverse the Check:

1. Go to Setup > Preferences from the menu bar at the top of the screen
2. Click on the Security tab
3. Make sure that the first box is checked (Transactions can't be changed; they must be Reversed). Click OK
4. Go to Banking > Reconcile Accounts
5. Click on the arrow (double arrow) next to the transaction you want to clear
6. Select Edit > Reverse from the menu bar at the top of the screen
7. Change the date of the transaction to be in the current Fiscal Year
8. Record the transaction

After you've done this you can change your Security preference back if desired. You can then check off both the original transaction and the reversal in the reconcile accounts window.

Transactions Posted to Incorrect Accounts

If you have transactions that were entered into the incorrect account you can create a journal entry to clear the transaction. This will allow you to move the dollar value to the correct account and the journal entry and original transaction will balance each other out. Please note - the transaction can only be recorded as of the beginning of the current Fiscal Year.

To Create the General Journal Entry:

1. Go to Accounts > Record Journal Entry
2. Enter in a date in the current year (generally either 1/1 or 12/31 - but it's up to you)
3. Enter a memo to indicate the reason for the entry
4. Select the bank account the transaction was originally posted to
5. If the transaction was a check debit the original bank account. If the transaction was a deposit credit the original bank account
6. Enter in the dollar value of the transaction
7. Add a line to the transaction for the account that the transaction should have originally been posted to
8. Enter in either the debit or credit to balance the transaction
9. Click record

You can then check off both the original transaction and the journal entry in the reconcile accounts window.

Transactions Became Unreconciled

If you changed information in a transaction that caused a transaction to become unreconciled (ie: it was actually included in a previous reconciliation) you should be able to just check off that transaction during your next reconciliation without any problem. If you have any trouble with this you do have the option of undoing your bank reconciliation - but often this is not necessary.

Unknown Old Transactions

If you have transactions that you do not know why they are still showing as outstanding you may want to speak to your accountant about how to best handle them. These usually indicate a transaction that was entered into AccountEdge but never actually cleared your account in real life. While it's possible to clear these transactions during the Start a New Fiscal Year process - this will just mark them as cleared and will cause reconciliation problems moving forward.