Each month, review the deferred revenue journal ScaleXP suggests, download the detail behind it, and post it to Xero or QuickBooks. First time? Complete Deferred revenue 1: Map and filter your accounts first.
Note: In consolidated companies, the deferred revenue journal is reviewed and posted at the subsidiary level, in line with the accounting connection.
1. Open the deferred revenue journal
The deferred revenue journal is found on the Journals top tab: on the Month-End Close page, click Open on Deferred Revenue Journal under Revenue.
From here, you can review the suggested journal for each month and post it to Xero or QuickBooks.
2. Review the suggested journal
Review ScaleXP’s suggested posting for the month, checking it against your expected revenue and balance sheet positions. How the ScaleXP deferred revenue journal calculates the suggested posting amount explains how the figure is built up and what each section of the page shows.
The banner at the top of the page shows how many system checks passed. Click View checks to expand them, and fix anything flagged before you post:
- All relevant invoices included - every invoice with revenue recognized in the months displayed is in the journal, whenever it was issued.
- No invoices to accounts outside the filters - no invoices are coded to accounts left out of the Included Data filter. If this flags, check the filter in Deferred revenue 1.
- No late adjustments awaiting review - nothing in a closed period has changed in Xero or QuickBooks since the last post. If this flags, see How to identify required journal adjustments.
If you use journals by customer, the Deferred Revenue by Customer step adds a fourth check for journals already posted by account. See section 5.
If the balance doesn’t match what you expect, see Why does my deferred revenue balance not reconcile as expected? To adjust revenue or the balance sheet, see How to add a manual invoice to adjust ScaleXP revenue recognition to match your accounting system.
3. Download the journal detail
To document the journal, use the download icon at the top right of the page and choose from the four options: Download Sections 1-7, Download Detail by Customer - all months, Download Journal Detail for Specific Month, and Download Journal Change Report.
Download Journal Detail for Specific Month provides the calculations shown on the report plus invoice line level detail behind:
- Invoices issued in the month
- Revenue recognized for the month
- Deferred revenue on the balance sheet at the end of the month
Read more in How to download invoice line level detail behind the deferred revenue journal.
4. Post the journal
Use the Post journal button at the top of Section 1: The journal to post.
- In QuickBooks, this posts a journal directly
- In Xero, this posts a draft journal which you then approve in Xero
- If the period is locked in your accounting system, ScaleXP automatically suggests posting to the next available open period
Once posted, sync ScaleXP with your accounting system to see the impact - the recommended journal will reduce to nil. Attach the download from Step 3 to the journal in your accounting system to document the detail behind it.
To reconcile the posted journal, select the deferred revenue or revenue account row on the Reports tab to see every transaction behind the balance. See How to see transaction detail behind account balances.
5. Post journals by customer, if turned on
If you turned on Journals by customer in Setup 3, open the Deferred Revenue by Customer step under Deferred Revenue Journal on Month-End Close. It shows the Comprehensive Journal by customer, with a Post journal button for each month. Each journal line is one customer's change in deferred revenue. The totals are the same as posting by account.
If journals for a month were already posted by account, a system check asks you to remove them in your ledger and sync before you post, because ScaleXP doesn't recognize them and tries to reverse them.
6. Review or change your settings at any time
View or change your settings at any time: click the three dots at the top right, then Revenue Journal Settings. See Setup 3: Choose your settings and Deferred revenue 1: Map and filter your accounts.
