Beginning balances for payroll and billing

Payroll beginning balances

Overview

If you are starting mid-year, you must enter the year-to-date payroll amounts for each employee. This ensures that pays, taxes, deductions, and fringes calculate correctly going forward. This information is also needed for year-end reports and W-2 forms.

Follow a work plan

  1. Get payroll totals for each quarter occurring in the current year before the date you plan to begin processing in-house payroll in Ajera. If you are not starting at the beginning of a quarter, you will also need to gather monthly payroll totals for the current quarter.
  2. For each quarter, enter a paycheck for each employee ( > Setup > Company > Beginning Balances > Payroll).
  3. If not starting at the beginning of a quarter, also enter a paycheck for each employee for each month of the current quarter.

Unpaid client invoices beginning balances

Overview

If you enter an amount for your Accounts Receivable account in your trial balance, you need to enter the client invoices that make up that amount.

Follow a work plan

  1. Get the client invoices that make up the balance you entered for Accounts Receivable on your trial balance.
  2. Enter all open client invoices through your beginning balance date ( > Setup > Company > Beginning Balances > Unpaid Client Invoices).
  3. Verify your information by clicking (Reports) and clicking Beginning Balance Unpaid Client Invoices.

Unbilled work-in-progress beginning balances

Overview

If you enter an amount for work-in-progress (WIP) accounts in your beginning balance trial balance or have items prior to the beginning balance date that you want to include on invoices, you must enter any labor, expense, and consultant items that make up that amount.

Follow a work plan

  1. Get a list of the items that make up the balance you entered for work-in-progress on your trial balance.
  2. Enter amounts for any work-in-progress through your beginning balance date ( > Setup > Company > Beginning Balances > Unbilled Work-in-Progress).
  3. Verify your information by clicking (Reports) and clicking Beginning Balance Unbilled Work-in-Progress.

Client prepayments beginning balances

Overview

If you receive prepayments (retainers) from clients prior to your beginning balance date, enter the outstanding balance per client. Amounts entered here should equal the amount entered to the client prepayments account in your trial balance.

Follow a work plan

  1. Select the client, and enter the prepayment beginning balance ( > Setup > Clients > General tab).
  2. Verify your information by clicking (Reports) and clicking Beginning Balance Client Prepayments.

Projects beginning balances

Overview

You can enter project-to-date totals now or at a later time. These totals affect project reports and invoices but do not affect account balances. You enter totals for each phase, and Ajera produces project totals by calculating the phase totals.

Follow a work plan

  1. Make a list of the totals for hours, cost, earned, and billed for all your active projects through your beginning balance date.
  2. Enter this information ( > Manage > Project Command Center> Project Info tab > Beginning Balances subtab) for each project and phase.
  3. When you entered unpaid client invoices earlier, that increased the billed amounts for your projects and phases. On the Beginning Balances subtab, reduce the billed amounts by the amount of any client invoices that are unpaid as of your beginning balance date for each project and phase.
  4. When you entered unbilled WIP earlier, it increased the earned amounts for your projects and phases. On the Beginning Balances subtab, reduce the earned amounts by the amount of any unbilled WIP as of your beginning balance date for each project and phase.
  5. Verify your information by clicking (Reports) and clicking Project List.