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The direction of balances

⏱ 3 min readUpdated on

A receivable with a credit balance, a debt with a debit balance: a balance in an unusual direction often reveals a reversed entry. Fiplan looks for it at each year-end and flags it in the checks badge.

What it is for

Each balance sheet account (classes 1 to 5) carries, in Fiplan's chart of accounts, its normal direction: debit for an asset, credit for a liability. A few accounts carry the opposite direction by construction — accumulated depreciation (amortissements actés / geboekte afschrijvingen) (249000…), uncalled amounts (montants non appelés / niet-opgevraagde bedragen), the loss carried forward (perte reportée / overgedragen verlies) — and a credit balance at the bank is an accepted overdraft.

At each year-end, a balance against this direction, with no accepted reason, becomes a signal: the checks badge adds it (“· 1 signal”) and turns from green to orange, never to red.

Steps

  1. Read the checks badge: a signal is added at the end of its text.
  2. Open the Plan checks panel: the Direction of balances section lists each account, the financial year, the balance and its normal direction.
  3. Find the line that posts to this account and check its direction.
The “Direction of balances” section of the checks panel.
The “Direction of balances” section of the checks panel.

Worked example · Boulangerie Dupont SRL

Over the bakery's three year-ends, number of signals found: 0; every balance sheet account has a balance in its normal direction. Account 249000, the accumulated depreciation of the van (-€5,333.30 on the assets side in 2027), has a credit balance by construction: it is a declared contra account, so it is not flagged.

Pitfalls

A signal blocks nothing. It asks for a check; it prevents neither the report nor the export, and it does not count among the 17 checks.
An income statement account has no normal direction. Only balance sheet accounts are checked.

What it changes · all financial years

① Income statementNo effect€0.00The direction is read on balance sheet balances.
② CashNo effect€0.00A bank overdraft is an accepted opposite direction.
③ Balance sheetNo effect€0.00Nothing is corrected: the signal shows, it does not repair.

Source

Minimum standard chart of accounts (plan comptable minimum normalisé / minimumindeling van een algemeen rekeningenstelsel, annex to the Royal Decree (AR / KB) of 21 October 2018): the accounts marked “(–)” — accumulated depreciation, uncalled amounts — carry the opposite direction to their heading.

Fiplan convention (sens-des-soldes.ts, chart of accounts reference D32): the normal direction and the accepted reasons are declared in Fiplan's chart of accounts.