Journal Entries: Reference

Journal entries are the core transaction record in DualEntry. Every financial event, whether entered manually, created by a sub-ledger, or synced from an integration, posts to the General Ledger as a journal entry with balanced debits and credits. New to journal entries? Your First Journal Entry walks through entering, posting, and reversing one; this page is the field-by-field reference. This page and the Accounting → Transactions → Journal Entries list it documents cover manually entered journal entries only. System-generated GL postings, such as currency revaluations, depreciation, amortization, revenue recognition, and allocations, are journal entries in the accounting sense above, but they don’t appear on this list. View them from the GL Impact tab of their own source record instead, for example Currency Revaluation.

Header fields

Each journal entry has a header that sets the context for the transaction. The table below lists all header-level fields, their types, and whether they are required.

Field	Type	Required	Default	Description
`date`	date	Yes	N/A	The accounting date the entry posts to. Must fall within an unlocked period.
`transaction_date`	date	No	None	The actual date the transaction occurred, if different from the accounting date.
`company_id`	string	Yes	N/A	The legal entity this entry belongs to.
`memo`	string	No	None (empty)	A description of the entry, visible in reports and search.
`currency`	string	No	Company’s base currency	ISO 4217 currency code.
`exchange_rate`	decimal	No	None	Exchange rate to base currency. Required when `currency` differs from the company’s base currency.
`reversal_date`	date	No	None	If set, DualEntry automatically creates a reversing entry on this date. Used for accruals.
`record_status`	enum	Yes	N/A	One of `draft`, `posted`, or `archived`. Only `posted` entries affect account balances.
`approval_status`	enum	No	None	Tracks approval workflow state. Entries requiring approval cannot be posted until approved.

The date field determines which period an entry belongs to. If the period for that date is locked, the entry cannot be created or modified. Change the date to an open period or unlock the period first.

Line fields

Each entry contains two or more lines. Total debits must equal total credits before the entry can be posted. The table below lists all line-level fields.

Field	Type	Required	Default	Description
`account_number`	string	Yes	N/A	The GL account to debit or credit. Must exist in your chart of accounts.
`debit`	decimal	Conditional	N/A	Debit amount. Provide either `debit` or `credit` per line, not both.
`credit`	decimal	Conditional	N/A	Credit amount. Provide either `debit` or `credit` per line, not both.
`position`	integer	No	Insertion order	Sort order of the line within the entry.
`memo`	string	No	None	Line-level description. Useful for identifying individual line items in multi-line entries.
`classifications`	array	No	None	Dimension tags (department, location, project) applied to this line. See Classifications.
`customer_id`	string	No	None	Links this line to a specific customer for sub-ledger reporting in Accounts Receivable.
`vendor_id`	string	No	None	Links this line to a specific vendor for sub-ledger reporting in Accounts Payable.
`currency`	string	No	Header currency	Line-level currency override.

Linking a line to a customer_id or vendor_id makes the entry appear in that customer’s or vendor’s sub-ledger, which feeds into aging reports and reconciliation.

Exclude a journal entry from AR or AP aging

Some journal entries touch a customer or vendor sub-ledger for reconciliation or reclassification purposes but shouldn’t be treated as an open receivable or payable. Examples include a reclass between AR accounts, a bad debt write-off, or a correcting entry that offsets an existing invoice outside the normal payment flow. In these cases, keep the customer_id or vendor_id on the line so the entry still shows in the sub-ledger and reconciles cleanly, but remove it from the aging report. The Exclude from AR aging (or Exclude from AP aging) flag controls this. On, it keeps the entry visible on the customer or vendor sub-ledger and in the General Ledger, but removes it from the AR aging and AP aging buckets and from the allowance-for-doubtful-accounts calculation. Off, the entry counts toward aging as normal. Toggling it doesn’t change the underlying entry, only whether aging reports count it, so it can be switched at any time.

Create, post, and list entries

POST /public/v2/journal-entries/ creates an entry from header and line data. Set record_status to draft to save without affecting balances, or posted to apply immediately. The following example creates a posted entry with an automatic reversal, by setting reversal_date:

{
  "date": "2026-04-30",
  "company_id": "comp_abc123",
  "memo": "April rent accrual",
  "record_status": "posted",
  "reversal_date": "2026-05-01",
  "lines": [
    { "account_number": "6200", "debit": 5000.00, "memo": "Rent expense" },
    { "account_number": "2100", "credit": 5000.00, "memo": "Accrued liabilities" }
  ]
}

DualEntry creates a mirror entry on the reversal_date, with debits and credits swapped. This is the standard pattern for month-end accruals that reverse on the first day of the next period; see How to Post and Reverse Month-End Accruals for the full workflow. GET /public/v2/journal-entries/ retrieves entries and supports the following filters:

Parameter	Description
`company_id`	Filter by legal entity.
`account_id`	Filter to entries containing a specific account.
`customer_id`	Filter to entries tagged with a specific customer.
`vendor_id`	Filter to entries tagged with a specific vendor.
`date_from`, `date_to`	Filter by accounting date range.
`record_status`	Filter by `draft`, `posted`, or `archived`.
`approval_status`	Filter by approval workflow state.
`amount`	Filter by line amount (exact match or range).

Combine filters to narrow results, such as all posted entries for a single vendor within a date range. Pagination defaults to 100 entries per page; use page and page_size parameters to navigate larger result sets.

Record numbering

DualEntry assigns each journal entry a record number that is unique and monotonically increasing per organization, starting at 1. Numbers are not guaranteed to be strictly consecutive. Gaps in the sequence are expected and do not indicate missing or deleted entries. Gaps appear because the number is drawn from a per-organization counter on a dedicated connection that commits immediately, before the surrounding save transaction. A number is consumed the moment it is allocated, so any of the following produces a gap:

A journal entry save that fails validation, hits a lock, or is otherwise rolled back after the number was allocated.
An import batch that aborts partway through after allocating numbers for the remaining rows.
A draft that is created and then discarded. Drafts consume record numbers at creation time, the same as posted entries.

If your auditors ask about skipped journal entry numbers, the gaps are a byproduct of how identifiers are allocated, not evidence of removed records. Every posted entry is retained and fully traceable: use the audit trail to demonstrate completeness, and GET /public/v2/journal-entries/ or the journal entry list view to enumerate all entries for a period.

Classifications

Classifications are multi-dimensional tags you apply to journal entry lines for segmented reporting. Common classifications include Department, Location, Project, and Class. Manage classifications through Configuration → Accounting Setup → Classifications or via GET /public/v2/classifications/. When you assign a classification to a line, the balance for that line rolls up into dimension-specific reports. This enables analysis like revenue by department or expenses by project without maintaining separate accounts. A classification can be made mandatory on specific record types, on specific companies, or both. The two axes are independent and cumulative, so a journal entry must carry every classification required for journal entries plus every classification required for its company. DualEntry enforces the requirement when the entry is posted, not when it is saved, so a draft saves without classification values and posting fails with an error naming the missing ones. See How to Set Up Classifications for the setup steps. Classifications are also available as filters in the flux analysis and financial statements modules, so the tags you apply at the line level carry through to period-end reporting. Manage classification values through Configuration → Accounting Setup → Classifications or the API. Adding, renaming, and deactivating values does not affect historical entries: deactivated values remain on the entries that already carry them, and simply stop appearing in selection dropdowns for new ones.

Recurring entries

For entries that repeat on a schedule (monthly rent, depreciation, insurance amortization), use recurring journal entries. Create a template via POST /public/v2/recurring/journal-entries/ with the same header and line structure, plus a recurrence schedule (frequency, start date, end date). DualEntry generates a draft journal entry from each template on the scheduled date. Review and post the drafts, or configure auto-posting if the amounts are fixed and don’t require review. For month-end accruals you run on demand (vacation, utilities, unbilled revenue), use accrual templates instead of a recurring journal entry. An accrual template does not generate on a calendar. You choose Run each period, set the dates, and post.

Recurring entries generate drafts by default. Auto-posting posts each generated entry on the scheduled date without a review step.

Intercompany entries

Intercompany journal entries record transactions that span two or more legal entities. Use POST /public/v2/intercompany-journal-entries/ to create them. Lines on an intercompany entry reference accounts across different companies, and the entry must balance in aggregate: total debits across all entities equal total credits. DualEntry automatically creates the corresponding intercompany receivable and payable on each entity’s books so that individual company trial balances remain in balance. Intercompany eliminations are handled during consolidation.

Attachments

You can attach supporting documents (scanned invoices, contracts, approvals) to any journal entry. Attachments are stored at the header level and accessible from the entry detail view. Use attachments to maintain the audit trail without relying on external file storage. Supported file types include PDF, PNG, JPEG, and CSV. Each entry supports up to 25 attachments with a maximum file size of 10 MB per attachment.

Locked-period behavior

Period locks apply to the date field on the entry. Changing the date on a draft entry to an open period lets you post it even when the original date’s period is locked.

Entries posted to a locked period cannot be edited or voided. If you need to correct an entry in a locked period, unlock the period (requires admin or controller permission) or post an adjusting entry in the current open period.

For step-by-step account setup, see How to Create and Manage Chart of Accounts. To protect closed periods from unintended changes, see Period Locking. For anomaly detection on posted entries, see Anomaly Detection.

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Header fields

Line fields

Exclude a journal entry from AR or AP aging

Create, post, and list entries

Record numbering

Classifications

Recurring entries

Intercompany entries

Attachments

Locked-period behavior

​Header fields

​Line fields

​Exclude a journal entry from AR or AP aging

​Create, post, and list entries

​Record numbering

​Classifications

​Recurring entries

​Intercompany entries

​Attachments

​Locked-period behavior

Header fields

Line fields

Exclude a journal entry from AR or AP aging

Create, post, and list entries

Record numbering

Classifications

Recurring entries

Intercompany entries

Attachments

Locked-period behavior