Create, Edit Journal, and Submit a Manual Journal Entry

Purpose: Use this document as a reference for creating, running the edit journal process, and submitting a manual General Ledger journal entry in ctcLink.

Audience: Financial Staff/Supervisors

You must have at least one of these local college managed security roles:

  • ZZ GL Journal Entry

You must also set these User Preference Definitions:

If you need assistance with the above security roles or User Preference Definitions, please contact your local college supervisor or IT Admin to request role access.

Need to set up a reversal? Please refer to QRG Creating and Reviewing a Journal Entry Reversal.

Create, Edit Journal, and Submit a Manual Journal Entry

Navigation:  General Ledger > Journals > Journal Entry > Create/Update Journal Entries

Create Journal Header & Lines
  1. The Create/Update Journal Entries search page displays.  Enter existing search criteria or select Add a New Value tab to add a new value. If it did not automatically populate, enter or select the business unit in the Business Unit field.
  2. Select the Add button.
  3. The Create/Update Journal Entries page displays.  The Header tab displays journal header information that uniquely identifies a journal, such as business unit, journal ID, and journal date.  This page also contains options for setting, adjusting and reversing entries.
    1. Enter a Long Description.
    2. Enter or select the Ledger Group to ACTUALS.
    3. Enter or select the Source field to ONL. This is the code used for manual journal entries.
    4. Select the Save Journal Incomplete Status checkbox.
  4. Select the Lines tab.

If supporting documentation is required for the journal entry, select the Attachments link to navigate to the Journal Entry Attachments page where you can attach file(s) with supporting documentation. For example, you might want to attach a spreadsheet with the details on how the accrual entry was derived.  The number in the parenthesis denotes how many documents you have attached.

Header tab
  1. The Lines page displays. Use it to record the transaction lines that comprise the journal. Enter or lookup valid field values for:
    1. Amount.
    2. Account.
    3. Oper Unit.
    4. Fund.
    5. Approp.
    6. Department.
    7. Class.
    8. Enter or select the correct state purpose in the State Purpose field.
  2. Enter the number of Lines to Add and the plus icon [+] to add the off-setting item using the Copy Down ID functionality.

Note: SBCTC requires the presence of a Business Unit (*Unit), Account, Fund, Dept, Class, and State Purpose for every transaction, including journal entry.  Certain Expense Account transactions will also require the Approp. Additionally, grant and project related journal entries require a Project Bus Unit, Project Number, Activity, and Analysis Type. During processing of the journal entry, the system will use this information to check for valid ChartField combinations (Combo Edit Rule) and sufficient budget.

header tab

Note: All values just entered will be copied to the new line, with the exception of the Account and/or Amount. The Amount will be the amount needed to auto-balance the journal. As you change the Amount and add more lines, the Amount will automatically adjust to the amount necessary to balance the journal. You will need to provide an Account for each new line.

  1. Enter or lookup the appropriate account for the additional line items in the Account field.
  2. Select the Save button.
Enter the account and save
  1. The Journal saves and the Journal ID is generated. A Message window displays. The message may say that the journal is saved with ‘T’ (incomplete) status (if that option was selected on the Header tab). “This journal cannot be edited or posted until you change its status to complete.” Select the OK button.

The "T" (incomplete) status flag only prevents the journal from being processed by batch processing. The journal can still be edited, budget checked, and submitted for approval using the online options from the *Process list.

Save journal entry creates the journal id number

Note: The journal entry is balanced when the value in the Total Debits column is equal to the value in the Total Credits column. When you have a balanced journal, you may begin processing the journal directly from this page.

Run the Edit Journal Process

Note: When you run the Edit Journal process, the system runs the ChartField Combination Rule to verify required field values are present and the Budget Check process to validate the journal against a budget based on the type of account.

  1. From the Lines tab, verify (or select) the Process drop-down menu arrow to read Edit Journal.
  2. Select the Process button.
Select Edit Journal and select Process
  1. A couple of windows will display. The first window confirms the journal is saved. Select the OK button.
  2. The next window displays a message if you would like to wait until the process has completed. Select the Yes button.
Journal is saved and message if you would like to wait for edit process

Note:  The Journal Status and Budget Status change to ‘V’ (Valid) after the journal is edited. You can only submit a journal for approval that is valid for both statuses. For help with errors, see QRG Common Combo Edit Rule Errors for more information.

Submit Journal

Note:  Journal entries which require approval cannot be posted until approved through the ctcLink workflow approval process. Approval requirements vary by college district.

  1. Use the *Process drop-down menu to select Submit Journal.
  2. Select the Process button.
submit journal

Note:  Select the Approval tab to review the Approval status. The Journal Status is now awaiting approval and Posting a Manual Journal Entry.

Video Tutorial

The video below demonstrates the process actions described in the steps listed above. There is no audio included with this video. Select the play button to start the video.

Video Tutorial Via Panopto

View the external link to Create, Edit Journal, and Submit a Manual Journal Entry. This link will open in a new tab/window.

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