Non-profit organization | Double-Entry Accounting

The model was created on the basis of the information on www.veb.ch. The chart of accounts is structured according to the ideas of Herbert Mattle and Dieter Pfaff.

On the following web page https://www.veb.coach/rechungswesen (in German) you will find the PDF document, useful information for optimal financial and accounting management, compliance with legal and insurance regulations.

Information on associations can also be found on the Confederation's website at the following link: https://www.kmu.admin.ch/kmu/en/home/concrete-know-how/setting-up-sme/starting-business/choosing-legal-structure/associations.html

Set up your file

• Create a new file from this template (Template ID +10943) using one of the methods explained.
• From the menu File > File properties, set the period and company name.
• From the menu File > Save As, save the file. It is useful to indicate in the file name, the name of the association and the year. For example 'Association XX-2022.ac2'.

See also Organise your accounting files locally, online or in cloud.

Accounts table

In the Accounts table, when you open the template we propose, you will find the balance sheet and profit and loss accounts already set up. For more interesting intermediate totals and details, the main groups are divided into various subgroups. You can customise the whole plan according to your needs.

The balance sheet accounts are divided into groups and subgroups: Current Assets, Fixed Assets, Total Assets; Short-Term Debts, Long-Term Debts, Funds and Equity. The Profit and Loss Account is in scalar form. There are cost and profit centres to manage members and projects and segments to manage the various sectors.

Assets

Assets are divided into the following main groups:

• Current assets.
• Fixed assets.

Liabilities

Liabilities are divided into three main groups:

• Short-term debt capital.
• Long-term debt capital.
• Equity capital.

In the Accounts table, Opening column, enter the opening balance for each account.
With the transition to the new year, the opening balance is reported automatically, from the menu Actions > Create New Year.

After each entry, the columns of the Accounts table are updated immediately, so you have a clear and immediate overview of the financial situation.

Profit and Loss Account

The profit and loss account is divided into Revenue and Expenses with the following subgroups:

Revenues

• Membership fees
• Income from contributions
• Revenues from activities and services
• Other income

Costs

• Costs for activities and services
• Personnel costs
• Administrative costs
• Depreciation and value adjustments
• Financial costs and revenues
• Direct Taxes

Other Elements of the Chart of Accounts

Profit centres are set up at the end of the Chart of Accounts in order to have all the details for the following groups:

• Membership list, managed with CC3 (;) - Allows you to have details for each member, as well as print out subscriptions and donation certificates.
• Projects, managed with in CC1 (.) - Allows you to have the details for each project.
• Business Sectors, managed with Segments - To know which segment sector was most interesting and generated the most profit.

Liquidity Planning

Liquidity is the main pillar of the Association: it allows you to carry out your activities in order to reach the set objectives; to foresee in advance how much liquidity there will be, minimising risks; and to constantly check if you are in line with the budget approved by the members' assembly.

Banana Accounting gives you the possibility to create both the liquidity planning and the economic budget.

You can discover the various functions of the Forecast in our Documentation:

• Budget and Forecast
• Financial Planning Template

Enter the Budget transactions

The budget is to be inserted in the Budget table, based on the double-entry accounting methodology. You use the same chart of accounts already available for general accounting. All you have to do is to start recording the operations that usually follow one another over the months, by entering only one entry. You must also record those transactions that you will have once a year or that repeat in quarters. There is a Repeat column in the table which, depending on the period option you enter, allows the programme to automatically calculate the total with all the details.

When you enter the transactions, it also records the accounts, in debit and in credit, as if you were entering the actual accounts. In this way, using all the accounts available in the chart of accounts, you will have all the movements in the cash accounts, other asset accounts and the profit and loss account.

We advise you to start with the following entries to get an overview:

For revenues it is more difficult to make forecasts. We advise you to enter the amounts based on the revenues of the same period of the previous year, evaluating the events that will take place or focusing on other special events, such as the purchase of new equipment or other investments.

You will always have to record in the budget table, using the profit and loss and cash accounts.

Budget Account Tab

If you enter your Budget you can have all the data grouped for each cost or revenue item in the relevant tabs, just like the actual data recorded.

You will thus be able to see all the details of each account sheet or group and constantly check whether the budgeted data are in line with the booked data, thanks also to the graph which provides you with an immediate view for making comparisons.

To activate one or more cards in the Budget, proceed as follows:

• Menu Reports > Account cards > activate Budget transactions

Cost and revenue forecast

As soon as you have finished your forecast transactions, by viewing the budget and profit and loss account you will know what the impact on liquidity will be. You can always go back to the forecast table and change the amounts for the positions you consider appropriate.

Cash flow planning is a very valid and successful strategy that allows you to more wisely evaluate your decisions regarding the association's activities.

To get the Financial Planning Budget, click onto:

Reports Menu > Enhanced balance sheet with groups > column section, activate in the Budget Balance.

Cost and revenue forecast

In the Profit and Loss Account you can see the impact of your forecast on costs and revenues and whether with the budgeted revenues you will be able to cover your costs.

To get the financial planning budget, click onto:

Reports Menu  > Enhanced Balance sheet with Groups > column section, activate in the Estimated Profit and Loss Account.

Register final movements

In the Transactions table you enter all daily transactions. If you want to speed up the entry process, we recommend using the various Banana functions:

• The Auto-Complete Fast Entry function allows you to automatically retrieve previously entered data
• The Recurring Transactions function (Actions menu) allows you to store repetitive transactions in a special table
• Importing data from bank statements allows you to automatically resume all bank movements.
• You can link each entry with the corresponding justification in digital format, and with a simple click you can view the document.
• See also Accounting documents files and digital receipts to better organise your documents.
• Use the Sort Transactions by Date command to sort the rows in date order.
• Use the Print/Preview command to print or export the journal in PDF format.

Enhanced Balance sheet

To view the Balance sheet click on the Report menu and then click on the Enhanced Balance sheet or the Enhanced Balance sheet with Groups command. You can customise the report with the columns you wish to see, such as having the column for your budget or having reports by period.

• The Enhanced Balance sheet report displays all accounts without any subgroups.
• The Enhanced Balance sheet with groups displays all accounts even with subgroups.

Check balances against the budget

When the final figures have been recorded, you can view the Balance Sheet and Income Statement and compare them with the budget. Keeping an eye on the comparison is a great way to check whether everything is proceeding as you have budgeted, or whether you need to adjust some amounts to get closer to the book values and not compromise the forecast in the following months.

To get the final and budgeted balance sheet with comparison, click onto:

Report Menu > Enhanced Balance Sheet with Groups > Columns section, activate in the Balance Sheet and Income Statement Current, Budget and Difference.