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Receivables and debts

⏱ 5 min readUpdated on

A rent deposit, a loan granted to a third party, a debt spread over several months: these are amounts that arise, then are settled on a schedule. The account you choose tells Fiplan whether it is a receivable (to collect) or a debt (to pay).

What it is for

The Receivables & Debts module accepts receivable and debt accounts (class 4, the receivables and guarantees in 28-29, and a few accounts 17). The type of an asset account makes it a Receivable (to collect); any other account, a Payable (to pay). You do not choose the direction: it comes from the account.

Steps

  1. Open Encoding, then Receivables & Debts, and click New.
  2. Choose the PCMN Account (Belgian minimum chart of accounts, PCMN / MAR) and a Title; the badge shows the direction detected.
  3. Enter the Total amount and the Counterparty.
  4. Choose the Payment schedule: Single payment, Monthly, Quarterly or Yearly; then the Number of payments and the Payment start.
  5. If the receivable or debt bears interest, enter the Annual interest rate (%) (otherwise leave 0).
  6. Check the Start period — the month in which the receivable or debt arises —, read the schedule and click Save.
The “New line — Receivables & Debts” window: a rent deposit of €3,600.
The “New line — Receivables & Debts” window: a rent deposit of €3,600.

Worked example · Boulangerie Dupont SRL

The bakery pays the shop's landlord a rent deposit of €3,600.00 (garantie locative / huurwaarborg) in January 2027, returned in one go at the end of the lease, in December 2035. Account 288000 (cash guarantees paid, in “IV. Financial fixed assets” on the balance sheet): it is a receivable.

What Fiplan postsPeriodDebitCreditAmount
The receivable arises: the money goes outJanuary 20272880005500003,600.00
The refundDecember 2035——outside the plan

The refund falls after the last financial year: on 31 December 2029, the receivable is still on the balance sheet at €3,600.00.

The principal of a schedule is repaid in equal parts, the last instalment taking the remainder; if there is a rate, the interest of each instalment is calculated on the outstanding balance.

Pitfalls

When it arises, money moves. With a schedule, Fiplan posts in the Start period a cash movement of the total amount: an outflow for a receivable (you lend, you pay), an inflow for a debt. It suits what has actually changed hands.
A supplier or customer invoice is not entered here. The payment delay of a sale or a purchase is set on its line, with the Payment delay (days): Fiplan then records the customer receivable or the supplier debt without any cash movement, until payment.
On a receivable, interest is income. A non-zero rate creates the line “Interest – …”. On a debt, it is an expense paid (650000); on a receivable, the journal records income received (751000), even though the line created still shows account 650000 on screen.
A bank loan belongs in Financing & Contributions. The module's banner reminds you of this: money lent by a bank or a shareholder is entered in Financing & Contributions.

What it changes · 2027

① Income statementNo effect€0.00A deposit without interest is neither an expense nor income.
② CashThe deposit paid-€3,600.00In January 2027.
③ Balance sheetThe receivable from the landlord€3,600.00In account 288000, until it is returned.

Source

Minimum standard chart of accounts (plan comptable minimum normalisé / minimumindeling van een algemeen rekeningenstelsel): accounts 29 (receivables after more than one year), 40 and 41 (receivables within one year), 44 to 48 (debts payable within one year), 650 (debt charges).

Fiplan conventions, declared in the code (DebtFormSection.tsx, journal-engine.ts): the direction read from the account type; the creation in the start month of the line, for the total amount, as soon as a schedule is declared; the principal in equal parts, the last instalment settling the remainder.