Correcting Irregularities in the maestro* Trial Balance Report

Objective

This document explains how to find the cause of an imbalance in the trial balance, where the debit balance is different than the credit balance. We will also see how to implement the solution.

The following examples come from real situations and require the use of Excel.

 

Steps

Finding the Cause of the Imbalance

See the following examples:

• The trial balance of the previous month balances (December 1 to 31, 2021)

• The trial balance of the current month balances (January 1 to 31, 2022)

• The trial balance of the current month is out of balance (January 1 to 31, 2022)

1. Transfer the three trial balances to Excel and place them side by side.
2. Place the trial balances side by side, making sure the accounts are all lined up.
3. Check if the balance carries over from December to January for each account.
   1. Add the Projected Balance column with the following formula:
      (Debit Balance of the December trial balance - Credit balance of the December trial balance) + (Debit Balance of the Current trial balance - Credit Balance of the Current trial balance).
   2. In Excel terms: =(C29-D29)+(H29-I29)
4. Compare the amount displayed with the balance that we see in the Credit/Debit columns of the January trial balance.
   1. Add the Difference column with the following formula:
      If Projected Balance <> (Current Debit - Current Credit), then display Projected Balance -(Current Debit - Current Credit).
   2. In Excel terms: =IF(P29=(M29-N29);"";P29-(M29-N29))
   3. In the following example, we can see that for the account 11001 (in yellow), the 500 balance was not carried from December to January.

 

Solution

maestro* > Maintenance > Toolbox > Transactions > General Ledger Maintenance

1. In the General Ledger Maintenance option, check only the Recalculate Balance box.
2. Select each account out-of-balance account.
3. Select the date range, beginning at the last balancing period and ending at the current period (in this example, from 30/12/2021 to 31/12/2022).
4. Click on Accept.

5. Result: The trial balance in date of 31/01/2022 balances:

 

See Also

• Discrepancies Within Auxiliaries and the General Ledger
• Closing a Fiscal Year in maestro*

 

Last modification: September 19, 2024