The Summary tab includes three main sections. The Statement Summary section on left contains information as it appears on the bank statement being reconciled. The sections on the right provide a summary of your reconciliation. When you advance to the next period, the program automatically updates this summary information.
The Statement Summary section is meant to mimic the bank statement that is being reconciled. It, like most bank statements, has a section for deposits and other credits, and a section for checks and debits, with the amounts in these fields corresponding to the amounts on the bank statement. The Other bank items field allows for the entry of items that are not recorded as debits or credits on the bank statement. If all bank items have been recorded in the debits and credits sections, the Other bank items field should be left blank.
You can choose to enter monthly totals for a quarterly bank reconciliation directly in the Quarterly Statement Summary dialog, and that information automatically transfers to the Summary tab of the Bank Reconciliation window.
When the amount displayed matches the cleared amount on the appropriate tab, an X appears next to the Deposits & Other Credits, Checks & Other Debits, and Other Bank Items fields
The Unreconciled amount field displays the difference between the Adjusted GL balance and the Bank balance reconciled. When the unreconciled amount is zero, an X will appear next to the field indicating that the bank account is in balance and the reconciliation is complete.
You can advance to the next period only when the account is in balance.
Special information
The following special commands are available from the Edit menu or from the F3 or right-click context menu when the Summary tab of the Bank Reconciliation window is active.
Options
Bank Statement Import
Assign Orphan Checks
Initial Open Items
Quarterly Statement Summary
Non-recurring Adjustments
Recurring Adjustments
Rebuild Uncleared Transactions
View Prior Worksheets
Fields & buttons
The fields in the Statement Summary group box display all of the basic summary information found on the client's bank statement.
Statement beginning date. Enter the statement beginning date. (Defaults to the day after the previous statement end date.)
Statement ending date. Displays the statement end date. (Defaults to one month after the previous statement end date.)
Beginning balance. For your first reconciliation for the selected checkbook, enter the opening balance shown on the statement. For each subsequent reconciliation, this field defaults to the ending balance of the most recently completed reconciliation for the selected checkbook.
Deposits & other credits. Displays the total amount of the deposits and other credits in the general ledger plus any additional deposits or credits. When you have cleared the items for the exact amount of the bank statement, an X appears next to this field.
Checks & other debits. Displays the total amount of the checks and other debits in the general ledger plus any additional checks or debits. When you have cleared the items for the exact amount of the bank statement, an X appears next to this field.
Other bank items. Displays the total amount of other bank items. When you have cleared the items for the exact amount of the bank statement, an X appears next to this field.
Ending balance. The program automatically calculates the ending balance based on the above amounts.
Note: Monthly totals for a quarterly bank reconciliation can be entered directly in the Quarterly Statement Summary dialog.
The Bank Summary box displays information used in reconciling the bank balance with the GL account balance. All of this data is calculated from the information on the other tabs in the Bank Reconciliation window. If any of these amounts are incorrect, you must make your changes on the pertinent tab, not in this box.
Ending bank balance. The ending balance is calculated in the Statement Summary box, and flows automatically to this field.
Open deposits & credits. Displays the total of all deposits and credits that have been entered into the general ledger and have not been cleared.
Open checks & debits. Displays the total of all checks and debits that have been entered into the general ledger and have not been cleared.
Bank errors. Displays the total amount of any bank errors that have been recorded.
Note: To record a bank error in the reconciliation, go to the item in question on the relevant tab, enter the correct amount in the Clear for field, and select Bank Error from the bottom of the drop-down list in the GL account field. The adjustment amount for the bank error is not posted to the GL, and the bank error adjustment stays in the bank reconciliation as an uncleared item until the correction shows on the bank statement, at which point you can clear it.
Bank balance reconciled. Displays the total of the amounts above. The reconciled bank balance should equal the adjusted GL balance.
This box displays the summary information for GL amounts in the program. The Adjusted GL balance should equal the amount of the reconciled bank balance.
Unadjusted GL balance. Displays what the program says you have in your cash account.
Adjustments. Displays the total amount of adjustments made to the general ledger.
Adjusted GL balance. Displays the adjusted total general ledger balance. This amount should equal the amount in the Bank balance reconciled field.
Verify the GL period to which the adjusting entry for this bank reconciliation should be posted. If necessary, you may specify the appropriate period end date by selecting it from the F4 drop-down list. (Note that list includes dates only through the current GL period.)
Note: Each time you advance the GL period and advance to a new bank reconciliation statement, you may need to manually update the setting in this field to ensure that any new adjustments you make are posted to the appropriate month.
Displays the total unreconciled amount.
When this field goes to zero, the Advance to Next statement button will be activated and a box will appear next to the Unreconciled Amount field signifying that the statement has been reconciled.
Advances the client to the next bank statement. This button is enabled only if the Unreconciled Amount field on the Summary tab is zero. (If this field is not zero, you must balance the reconciliation before you can continue.)
After you click the Advance to Next Statement button, the Recurring Adjustments dialog opens to allow you to add or edit any recurring adjustments. You can then enter the new statement information in the Statement Summary group box on the Summary tab.
Note: Prior to advancing to the next bank statement, you should (1) complete your current bank reconciliation and (2) print all necessary reports. Then you can (3) advance to the next statement and (4) advance the GL period to adjust to the next period.
- Once you have advanced to the next statement, you cannot revert to a previous statement. (The only way to revert to a previous bank reconciliation is to restore the client from a backup.)
- Preparing a bank reconciliation when the current GL period is in a future period compared to the bank statement would display outstanding checks and deposits that are not on the bank statement. Changing to a prior GL period would remove the future-period transactions.
Related topics
Bank Reconciliation Overview
Bank Reconciliation [Tasks menu]
Bank Reconciliation WalkThrough (PDF)