About default nominal accounts
The default nominal accounts are used to post transactions from all the modules in Sage 200 using the appropriate nominal accounts used for the Profit and Loss and Balance Sheet.
When you first set up Sage 200, you will have created the majority of your nominal accounts and specified the defaults as part of the configuration process. However as your business grows, you may need to change these accounts.
We recommend that you create all your nominal accounts and specify the defaults before processing any transactions in Sage 200.
When you choose your default nominal accounts, the accounts you choose for the Profit and Loss must have a report category Type of Profit and Loss, and the Balance sheet accounts must have a report category Type of Balance Sheet.
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If you do not enter valid nominal accounts for each default nominal account, this can result in transactions being posted to the Suspense account.
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You cannot process any transactions until you have set the default Suspense account.
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If you do not expect to post transactions to a particular default nominal account (such as Discount allowed), we recommend that you enter the Suspense account nominal account code in these boxes so that each box is filled.
How default nominal accounts are applied
The nominal accounts are used as the default accounts for various accounts and transactions.
The default nominal accounts are used in the following ways in Sage 200:
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To post transactions automatically for some Sage 200 processes.
You must set defaults for these accounts.
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Are displayed by default when entering some transactions.
Setting defaults for these processes is recommended. This ensures that the correct nominal account is used.
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To specify which account is used by specific customers, suppliers, stock items and bank accounts.
Setting defaults for these accounts is optional. This can be useful if the majority of transactions of the same type are posted to the same nominal account.
Changing your default nominal accounts
Once you've set up your default nominal accounts, it's unlikely that you'll need to change them. If you didn't set them up correctly in the configuration then you can make the necessary changes. You can also add defaults if you start using a new process.
Once you've saved your changes, the next time any transactions are entered they are posted using the new defaults you've specified. Be careful when you change the default nominal accounts as this will change how your transactions are reported on your financial statements.
About report categories
The accounts you choose here must have the correct Report Category as this determines whether the are Profit and Loss Accounts or Balance Sheet accounts.
Report categories are used to create your financial statements. They divide your nominal accounts into Profit and Loss or Balance Sheet and then into groups for reporting on the correct section of each financial statement.
It is very important that you make sure your report categories have the correct Report Type (Profit and Loss or Balance Sheet), and correct Category Type (Asset, Liability, Income or Expense). This is because these determine how the value from your nominal accounts are reported on your financial statements. In addition, the values in all Profit and Loss nominal accounts are set to zero, when you move Sage 200 into a new financial year (Year End).