> ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.dualentry.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # How to Create and Run Accrual Templates > Create a reusable accrual under Transactions, run it each period to post a journal entry and reversal, and track the entries it produces. Use this guide when the same accrual comes back every period (unused vacation, an estimated utility charge, unbilled revenue) and you want to post it from a saved template instead of re-keying the journal entry. You finish with an accrual on the Accruals list, a posted journal entry (and its reversal, when you set one), and those entries linked back on the accrual. An accrual on **Accounting → Transactions → Accruals** is a reusable template. It does not post to the General Ledger on its own. **Run** opens a journal entry prefilled from the template. You set the dates, confirm the amounts, and post. Everything that governs a [journal entry](./journal-entries) (balancing, period locks, approval routing, classifications) governs the entry that Run creates. For a one-time accrual you will not run again, skip the template and post a journal entry with a reversal date. See [How to Post and Reverse Month-End Accruals](./post-and-reverse-accruals). ## Before you start Line these up before you open Accruals. The template only stores the reusable shape of the entry; the period dates and any amount change happen when you run it. * A role that can post journal entries. Accruals uses the same journal-entry permission as the Journal Entries list. Where an [approval workflow](../../platform-configuration/approval-workflows) covers journal entries, the entry Run creates is held in draft and routed instead of posting on save. * An open period for both dates you will set on Run. The posting date and the reversal date are each checked against the AP, AR, and Other GL [period locks](../close-management/period-locking) for the company. * An accrued liability (or accrued revenue) account in your [chart of accounts](./chart-of-accounts), plus the expense or revenue account the accrual hits. Do not credit the A/P control account if you plan to run the accrual after an [A/P cutoff](../close-management/ap-cutoff-and-accelerated-accruals). * The amount and the basis for it, or a starting amount you will revise on Run. A vacation accrual sized from current headcount changes with every joiner and leaver; the template holds the accounts and classifications, and you set this period's amount in the Run Accrual drawer. * Classification values for any account that has **Require classification** enabled. Posting is blocked when a required classification is missing. ## Create an accrual The Accruals page stores the company, currency, and lines you reuse. Create the template once; you do not date it here. 1. Navigate to **Accounting → Transactions → Accruals** and choose **New accrual**. Accruals also appears in quick create next to Journal Entries, Intercompany Journal Entries, and Bank Transfers. 2. Enter a **Name** that you can recognize on the list later, such as `Monthly vacation accrual` or `Unbilled professional fees`. 3. Set **Company** first. The accounts available on the lines are the accounts that company can use. 4. Set **Currency** to the currency the accrual posts in. 5. Add a debit line for the expense (or receivable) account and a credit line for the accrued liability (or revenue) account. 6. Add classifications on the expense or revenue line where you report by department, location, or project. 7. Set **Customer** or **Vendor** on a line when you want the accrual visible in that sub-ledger. 8. Confirm the totals row shows debits equal to credits. 9. Save the accrual. After you save, the accrual detail page opens. The record is active and has no General Ledger impact yet. The list **Active** tab shows it. An unbalanced template does not save: the save is blocked until debit and credit totals agree. Saving the accrual does not post anything. The General Ledger changes only when you run the accrual and save the journal entry that Run creates. ## Run the accrual Run posts this period's entry from the template. Open **Run** from the Accruals list (row actions) or from the footer on the accrual detail page. 1. Choose **Run**. The **Run Accrual** drawer opens with the company, base currency, and lines copied from the template, plus a reversal preview that flips every debit and credit. 2. Set **Date** to the last day of the period the amount belongs to, such as 09/30/2026 for a September accrual, not the day you are working. 3. Set **Reversal Date** to the first day of the next period when the accrual should clear itself. Leave it blank only when the amount should stay on the books until you true it up later. 4. Confirm **Transaction Currency**. **Base Currency** shows the company's currency so you can review both before you post. 5. Revise any line amount, account, memo, or classification that is different this period. The template is unchanged by edits you make in the drawer. 6. Choose **Save and Post**. **Cancel** closes the drawer without creating an entry. The drawer footer stays pinned with **Cancel** and **Save and Post**. Where no approval workflow matches the entry, **Save and Post** posts it to the General Ledger. Where a workflow matches, the entry stays in draft until every stage approves, the same as a journal entry you open from Journal Entries. Both dates must fall in an open period. A reversal date earlier than the posting date is rejected. After a successful post, the drawer closes and the new journal entry appears on the accrual's **Related Records** tab. ## Review the journal entries an accrual created Each run creates a journal entry linked to the accrual, the same parent-and-child pattern as an [allocation schedule](./allocation-journals) and the journals it generates. Open the accrual and choose the **Related Records** tab. Every journal entry posted from **Run** is listed there and is clickable. Open an entry to confirm its **GL Impact**, its reversal (when you set a reversal date), and its **Activity** log. The entry is a normal journal entry. It also appears on the **Posted** tab of **Accounting → Transactions → Journal Entries**, and you can reverse or edit it there under the same rules as any other entry. Editing a posted entry that falls under an approval workflow returns it to draft and re-runs approval. Use Related Records on the accrual when you want the full history of a repeating accrual in one place (July, August, September) instead of searching Journal Entries by memo. ## Edit, archive, or recover an accrual Change the template when the reusable shape changes. Archive it when you no longer run it. Recover it if you need that shape again. None of these actions posts or reverses a journal entry on its own. ### Edit the template Open the accrual and choose **Edit**. Update the name, company, currency, or lines, keep the totals in balance, and save. The next **Run** uses the saved shape. Journal entries already posted from earlier runs stay as they were, including their dates, amounts, and reversals. If only this period's amount changed, leave the template alone and revise the amount in the Run Accrual drawer instead. ### Archive a template you no longer run Choose **Archive** on the detail page and confirm. The accrual moves off the **Active** tab and the list opens filtered to archived records. Archiving the template does not reverse or archive the journal entries it already created, and it does not prevent you from opening those entries from Journal Entries. You cannot run an archived accrual until you recover it. ### Recover an archived template Open the accrual from the archived list and recover it. It returns to **Active** and can be run again with the same company, currency, and lines it had when you archived it. Related Records still lists every journal entry posted from earlier runs, so the history stays in one place. ## Choose a one-off entry or a recurring journal entry instead Accrual templates are the on-demand path. Two other features cover nearby work, and picking the wrong one usually means re-work at close. Use a [one-off journal entry with a reversal date](./post-and-reverse-accruals) when the accrual is unique to this period: a late audit invoice, a one-time true-up, a catch-up across locked months. There is nothing useful to reuse next month. Use a [recurring journal entry](./journal-entries#recurring-entries) when the amount is fixed and you want a draft generated on a calendar without anyone clicking **Run**. Recurring templates generate on the schedule you set. Accrual templates do not generate on their own. Use an [amortization schedule](../prepaid-expense-amortization) when the amount was already paid and you are spreading a prepaid balance forward, not accruing a cost that has not been billed yet. ## Verify The accrual is ready for close when all of these hold: * The accrual appears on the **Active** tab of **Accounting → Transactions → Accruals**. * After you run it, **Related Records** lists the new journal entry, and that entry's **Related Records** tab shows the reversal when you set a reversal date. * The journal entry appears on the **Posted** tab of Journal Entries (or **Pending Approval** if a workflow matched). * The **GL Impact** tab on the entry shows the expense (or revenue) and accrued liability (or accrued revenue) accounts, and no line on the A/P control account if you ran the accrual after an A/P cutoff. * A second run in the next period creates a second linked entry. The first entry is unchanged. ## Troubleshooting Most problems on an accrual come down to balancing the template, dates on Run, or the same posting rules that apply to any journal entry. | What you see | What to do | | - | - | | The accrual will not save and the totals row shows a difference | Debits and credits on the template must agree. Add the missing credit (or debit) before you save. | | **Save and Post** on Run is blocked with a locked-period error | The error names the section (AP, AR, or Other GL) and the company. Change the date to an open period, or unlock the period. | | **Save and Post** asks for Transaction Currency | Transaction Currency is required on the journal entry. Set it in the Run Accrual drawer, even when **Base Currency** is already filled. | | **Save and Post** is blocked over a missing classification | An account on the entry has **Require classification** enabled. Add the classification value on the line. | | The entry posted straight to the GL when you expected a review | No active approval workflow matched the journal entry. Workflows apply per record type and per condition, so check the conditions on your journal entry workflow. | | Run created an entry but no reversal | **Reversal Date** was blank. Set it on the next run, or use **Create Reverse** on the posted entry. See [Reverse it](./first-journal-entry#step-5-reverse-it). | | The accrual is missing from the Active list | It may be archived. Switch the list to archived records, then recover it if you still need it. | | Accruals is not in the Transactions sidebar | Your role needs the journal-entry view permission. Accruals uses the same permission as Journal Entries. | ## Related reading * [How to Post and Reverse Month-End Accruals](./post-and-reverse-accruals) * [Your First Journal Entry](./first-journal-entry) * [Journal Entries: Reference](./journal-entries) * [How to Set an A/P Cutoff and Accelerate Accruals](../close-management/ap-cutoff-and-accelerated-accruals) * [How to Lock and Unlock Accounting Periods](../close-management/period-locking) * [How to Configure Approval Workflows](../../platform-configuration/approval-workflows) * [How to Amortize Prepaid Expenses](../prepaid-expense-amortization) * [Month-End Close Checklist](../close-management/month-end-close-checklist) * [How to Draft Accruals with a Scheduled Agent](../../ai-automation/accounting-intelligence/draft-accruals-with-copilot-and-a-scheduled-agent) This documentation is built and hosted on [Mintlify](https://mintlify.com), a developer documentation platform.