A general journal is a daybook or subsidiary journal in which transactions relating to adjustment entries, opening stock, depreciation, accounting errors etc. are recorded. The
source documents for general journal entries may be journal vouchers, copies of management reports and invoices. Journals are prime entry books, and may also be referred to as ''books of original entry'', from when transactions were written in a journal before they were manually posted to accounts in the
general ledger or a subsidiary ledger.
It is where
double entry bookkeeping entries are recorded by
debiting one or more accounts and
credit
Credit (from Latin verb ''credit'', meaning "one believes") is the trust which allows one party to provide money or resources to another party wherein the second party does not reimburse the first party immediately (thereby generating a debt ...
ing another one or more accounts with the same total amount. The total amount debited and the total amount credited should always be equal, thereby ensuring the
accounting equation
Accounting, also known as accountancy, is the measurement, processing, and communication of financial and non financial information about economic entities such as businesses and corporations. Accounting, which has been called the "language ...
is maintained.
In manual
accounting information systems, a variety of
special journals may be used, such as a
sales journal,
purchase journal,
cash receipts journal,
disbursement journal, and a general journal. The transactions recorded in a general journal are those that do not qualify for entry in any special journal used by the organisation, such as non-routine or
adjusting entries
In accounting/ accountancy, adjusting entries are journal entries usually made at the end of an accounting period to allocate income and expenditure to the period in which they actually occurred. The revenue recognition principle is the basis of ...
.
Manual processing
A bookkeeper or accountant would usually maintain the general journal. A general journal entry is a record of financial transactions in order by date. A general journal entry would typically include the date of the transaction (which may be dispensed with after the first entry of the day), the names of the accounts to be debited and credited (which should be the same as the name in the
chart of accounts), the amount of each debit and credit, and a summary explanation of the transaction, commonly known as a narration. Each debit and credit account and the narration would be entered on consecutive lines, and typically at least one line would be left blank before the next journal entry, and entries should not be split over more than one page. Though not a requirement, it is widespread practice to enter the debits first, followed by the credits and then the narration. Whatever format is adopted, it should be applied consistently.
There may be multiple debit or credit entries, but the sum of the debits must be equal to the sum of the credits. For example, multiple expenses (debits) may be paid with one payment (a credit).
See also
*
Sales journal
*
Special journal
*
Ledger
A ledger is a book or collection of accounts in which account transactions are recorded. Each account has an opening or carry-forward balance, and would record each transaction as either a debit or credit in separate columns, and the ending o ...
*
Final accounts
Final accounts gives an idea about the profitability and financial position of a business to its management, owners, and other interested parties. All business transactions are first recorded in a journal. They are then transferred to a ledger an ...
*
Waste book
A waste book was one of the books traditionally used in bookkeeping. It comprised a daily diary of all transactions in chronological order. It differs from a daybook in that only a single waste book is kept, rather than a separate daybook for ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:General Journal
Accounting journals and ledgers