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Opening Balances

This guide explains what opening balances are, why they matter, and how to create and verify them in Fiskl.

What Are Opening Balances?​

An opening balance is the starting amount in a ledger account at the beginning of a financial period. It forms the foundation for recording all financial activity during that period — sales, purchases, expenses, and payments.

Opening balances serve several important purposes:

  • Ensuring your account balances are correct from day one
  • Maintaining continuity when starting a new accounting period
  • Preparing accurate financial statements
  • Supporting compliance with accounting standards

Opening balances for banking ledger accounts

When you import transactions for the current financial year, they may not add up to your actual bank balance. Your bank balance includes every transaction since the account was created, not just the imported ones.

An opening balance represents all activity before your imported data. This ensures your ledger matches your bank balance and confirms that all transactions are accurately recorded.

info

For connected bank accounts, Fiskl automatically adds the opening balance as a transaction. You do not need to create one manually.

Before You Begin​

Before creating opening balances, confirm the following:

  • You have access to your previous accounting records or bank statements
  • You know the date of your earliest imported transaction
  • You have identified which ledger accounts need opening balances

Creating an Opening Balance​

The steps differ slightly depending on whether the account is new or already has transactions.

New account with no transactions

If your bank account is not connected, use this when setting up a new ledger account that needs a starting balance:

  1. In the left menu, select Accounting > Transactions
  2. Select the account from the Select account dropdown
  3. Select + Debit or - Credit depending on the sign of your opening balance
  4. In the Name field, enter "Opening Balance"
  5. Enter the opening balance amount
  6. Select Opening Balance as the category
  7. Set the date to the start of your financial period
  8. Select Save

The account balance shown at the top of the screen updates immediately to reflect the amount entered.

Existing account with transactions

Use this when your account already has transactions recorded, for example when you are switching from a previous accounting system. The opening balance should reflect the closing balance from your previous system. Alternatively, use the balance on your last bank statement before your earliest transaction in Fiskl:

  1. In the left menu, select Accounting > Transactions
  2. Select the account from the Select account dropdown
  3. Find your earliest existing transaction and note its date
  4. Select + Debit or - Credit depending on the sign of your opening balance
  5. In the Name field, enter "Opening Balance"
  6. Enter the opening balance amount
  7. Select Opening Balance as the category
  8. Set the date to one day before your earliest transaction date
  9. Select Save
tip

If you are migrating from another accounting system, enter opening balances for every account before recording any new transactions. This keeps your records consistent from the start.

Viewing Opening Balances​

You can view opening balance transactions in several places:

In a specific ledger account: Go to the account and filter transactions by the Opening Balance category.

Across all accounts: In the left menu, select Accounting > Transactions and select the Opening Balance ledger account to see all entries together.

In reports: Opening balances appear in the Trial Balance, Transactions by Account, and General Ledger reports.

Opening Balances — Migrating from Another Accounting System​

When switching accounting software, you need to replicate your closing position from the old system as opening balances in Fiskl.

How to Do It

  1. Export the Trial Balance from your previous system (for example, Xero)
  2. In Fiskl, enter each account's opening balance to match the closing balance from the old system
  3. Once all balances are entered correctly, the Opening Balances ledger account in Fiskl should show zero — confirming the entries are balanced

If you are unsure which accounts need opening balances or why your Trial Balance isn't zeroing out, select Ask Fi in the top right of the screen to ask for guidance specific to your accounts.

caution

If the Opening Balance account does not show zero, review each entry for missing or incorrect amounts. An unbalanced opening can affect every report going forward.

Common Issues​

My opening balance does not match my bank statement

This usually means the date or amount is incorrect. Check the following:

  1. Confirm the opening balance date is set to one day before your earliest imported transaction
  2. Check your bank statement for the balance on that date
  3. Ensure no duplicate transactions exist around the cutover date
  4. If the discrepancy remains, review the transaction history in your bank's records and adjust the opening balance amount accordingly
The Opening Balance account does not show zero after migration

Each debit entry in your opening balances must have a matching credit entry. A non-zero balance means at least one account is missing or incorrectly entered.

  1. Go to Reporting > Trial Balance and identify accounts with unexpected balances
  2. Cross-reference each balance against your records from the previous system
  3. Add or correct opening balance entries until the Opening Balance account reaches zero
I cannot find the Opening Balance category when adding a transaction

The Opening Balance category is only available when you are adding a transaction directly inside a ledger account. Make sure you are in Accounting > Transactions, have selected a specific account, and are using the + Debit or - Credit button to create the transaction.