Bank Reconciliation
Proof that your book matches the bank — one period per statement, matched line by line, then locked.
Bank reconciliation is the proof that your accounting records agree with the actual bank statement. It is not optional — it is the control that catches posting errors, timing differences, bank charges and fraud. In Trabalance a reconciliation is a period: one bank account, one statement's dates and balances, every statement line either matched to a book line or sent to Classification, and then locked.
Whether you post bank-led or journal-led, the mechanics are the same: import the statement, open a period, match. The difference is only how many lines the book already has when you start.
Navigate to Reconciliation
Navigate to: Finance → Banking → open the account → Reconciliation
The tab shows Book (ledger) as at today and Bank (statement) as at the last import, a status line ("Reconciled perfectly" or "Difference of …" with a Start a period action), the Reconciliation periods, and the Import history.
Reconciling a Period
Click Update in the account header and import the statement. Nothing posts — see Importing Statements.
Click New period (or Start a period on the difference banner). The form is pre-filled from the last import: Period start, Period end, and the Statement closing balance. The first period for an account also asks for the Opening balance as printed on the statement; every later period carries forward the previous locked period's closing balance and cannot change it. Both figures are read off the statement — never from the ledger. Click Start session.
The period header shows Opening · Movement · Closing. If opening plus the imported movement does not reach the closing balance you typed, an alert says so: either lines are missing from the import or a balance was mistyped. Edit balances corrects a typed figure; re-import fixes missing lines.
Click Auto-match. Statement lines are linked to book lines that agree exactly on amount, date and direction, then to lines of the same amount within three days. See Auto-Matching for the rules.
Two tables sit side by side — Bank statement (N) and Book / ledger (N). Pick one line on each side and click Match selected to link them by hand. Statement lines the book never had go to Send N to Classification: they post to the bank account against Uncategorized Income or Expenses, and you assign the real accounts on the Classification tab. Undo on a sent line reverses that posting; Unmatch breaks a link.
Four rows — Opening balance, Money in, Money out, Closing balance — each with Your book, Bank statement and Difference. Money in and out are gross, so the row that differs tells you where to look. A sentence above it states the cause: statement lines not yet in the book, book entries not yet on the statement, or opening balances that disagree.
Reconcile stays disabled until the statement's own figures add up and every statement line is matched or sent. Book entries the bank has not cleared yet do not block it — they are normal outstanding items. Clicking it locks the period; its closing balance becomes the next period's opening.
The Reconciliation Report
Every period carries the classical proof, computed by the backend and shown expanded once the period is locked:
Bank closing balance (period end)
+ Outstanding items (in the book, not yet on a statement)
= Book balance as at period end
Balanced — difference 0.00
The outstanding items are listed beneath it with their dates and journal numbers.
Period Status
| Status | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Open | Lines are being matched. Only one period can be open per account at a time; Discard deletes it (and its matches, never the ledger) if you need to start again. |
| Reconciled | Every statement line was explained and the period is locked. Its closing balance is carried forward as the next period's opening. |
A Super Administrator can Unreconcile a locked period to reopen it.
Handling Differences
| Difference Type | What You See | Resolution |
|---|---|---|
| Bank charge not in books | A statement line with nothing to match | Send it to Classification and categorise it to Bank Charges — the journal posts from there |
| Interest earned not in books | A money-in statement line with nothing to match | Send it to Classification and categorise it to Interest Income |
| Deposit in transit | A book line with nothing on the statement | Timing only — leave it. It appears as an outstanding item on the report and clears in a later period (older unmatched book entries are carried into the next period's list) |
| Outstanding cheque or transfer | A book line with nothing on the statement | Timing only — leave it as an outstanding item. Investigate if it is still outstanding months later |
| Double-entered payment | Two book lines for one statement line | Match one; void the duplicate document or journal |
| Wrong amount recorded | Amounts differ to the cent, so they will not match | Edit or void the document and re-post it with the right amount, then match |
| Customer payment the book never had | A money-in statement line | Send to Classification, then Convert to receipts for the customer so the invoice is settled |
Common Mistakes
| Mistake | What Happens | Prevention |
|---|---|---|
| Typing the ledger balance as the opening balance | Opening + movement never reaches the closing figure, so the period can never be locked | Both balances come off the paper statement; use Edit balances to fix a typo |
| Skipping a statement | The next period's carried-forward opening will not agree with the bank | Import and reconcile statements in order |
| Forcing a match between different amounts | Not possible — manual matches must agree to the cent | Correct the document, then match |
| Discarding a period after sending lines to Classification | Refused — those postings are real | Undo all on the Sent to Classification list first |
| Reconciling before the two Uncategorised accounts are cleared | The period locks, but the month cannot be locked in Financial Close | Classify what you sent before closing the month |
A period with unexplained statement lines cannot be reconciled — the button stays disabled and the page says why. Every statement line must be matched to the book or sent to Classification. Nothing is assumed, and nothing is marked reconciled that has not been proved.
Related
- Banking — every cash, bank and card account
- Importing bank statements — getting statement lines in
- Auto-matching — how statement lines find their book entries
- Classifying uncategorised money — clearing the holding accounts
- Converting bank lines to documents — when a line is really a receipt or payment