A chart of accounts is a directory of all accounts for bookkeeping. In the Chart of Accounts module in Xentral, you can either create a chart of accounts manually or import it from another accounting software such as DATEV. You can also customize the chart of accounts in the Chart of accounts module in Xentral. The chart of accounts is primarily relevant for accounting and is mainly used for managing liabilities.
A chart of accounts forms the systematic foundation of the entire company accounting. It represents a standardized directory of all potential booking accounts (such as assets, expenses, or revenue) from which companies derive their individual account plan. For ERP users, the correct storage of the chart of accounts is of central importance, as the system automatically pre-assigns business transactions on this basis.
Whether it’s invoicing, purchasing goods, or reconciling bank transactions: Every booking is linked to a specific account number in the background with the help of charts of accounts. A cleanly configured chart of accounts in Xentral ensures that the regular financial accounting export to external systems runs error-free. Instead of manually assigning receipts, the module enables an automated transfer to the tax office or accounting tools like DATEV.
Tip
You can find the default accounts for the financial accounting export of receipts in the Settings >Accounting > Tax and Currency > Tax/Currency menu.
The settings in this menu can be overridden for each project under Settings > General settings > Project > [Open project] > Settings > Tax / Currency. There you can store a separate chart of accounts for each project, which is then used for the accounting of this project.
A chart of accounts is a systematic structure used for the uniform representation and organization of a company’s accounts. It contains a list of accounts divided into different account groups, such as assets, liabilities, income, and expenses. The chart of accounts forms the basis for the company’s account plan, which contains the accounts actually used, and ensures that bookkeeping is clear and structured. In Germany, there are several standardized charts of accounts, which are often industry-specific.
The best-known and most common charts of accounts are SKR04 and SKR03:
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SKR04 (Standard chart of accounts 04): This chart of accounts is process-oriented and is frequently used by companies that book according to the closing structure principle (as in the balance sheet). Accounts for assets, liabilities, equity, income, and expenses are structured in a way that is closely oriented to the balance sheet structure. This is well suited for a financial statement presentation according to the German Commercial Code (HGB).
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SKR03 (Standard chart of accounts 03): SKR03 is business-oriented and structured according to the closing structure principle of the total cost method. The accounts are sorted by functional aspects, which is advantageous for companies that use functional cost accounting, e.g., by cost centers.
Both charts of accounts are standards developed by DATEV and are widely used in Germany. The choice of the chart of accounts often depends on which accounting structure your company prefers and what requirements the annual financial statements must fulfill.
In the following, accounts from the SKR04 chart of accounts are used as an example. However, you can also easily use other charts of accounts in Xentral.
Note
These examples are exemplary. For your bookkeeping, you must coordinate the use of the chart of accounts and the accounts with your tax consultant.
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Bank charges: Account 6855. This account records fees and costs in connection with payment transactions, such as bank fees.
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Money in transit: Account 1460. This account is used to post amounts that are in transfer between different means of payment or accounts, for example, for deposits or transfers that have not yet been completed.
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Transitory items: Account 1370. This account is used for amounts received or spent in the name and for the account of a third party that do not affect the company’s own assets.
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VAT prepayments: Account 3820. This account records the VAT prepayments made to the tax office for the current year.
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Domestic revenue: Account 4400. This records the revenue from domestic sales of goods and services without a separate tax key for 19% VAT, as it is an automatic account.
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Purchase of goods: Account 5400. This account is used to record the expenses for the purchase of merchandise. As an automatic account, it also does not require a separate tax key for 19% VAT.
You can call up the overview of the chart of accounts by opening the Chart of accounts module via the Smart Search. You are in the Overview tab of the module, where you can find a list of all existing accounts and add new accounts if necessary.
In the table, you can edit individual accounts in the Menu column by clicking on the pencil icon or delete them by clicking on the X icon. You can also copy the table to the clipboard or, by clicking on Tools on the right above the table, have a list of all accounts output as a CSV, Excel, or PDF file or optionally print the table.
Struck-through entries mean that the respective account has been deactivated and is no longer being used.
Note
Automatic accounts in DATEV (e.g., 5400) are treated in Xentral in the same way as all other accounts. The automatic account is only automatically recognized and evaluated by DATEV when the data is transferred to DATEV.
For example, you book goods receipt 19% to account 5400 without a tax key. Another account, e.g., office supplies, requires a tax key and is specified with 906815.
Tip
If you use a chart of accounts, you have the option of either entering the accounts you use individually or importing an existing chart of accounts. In practice, companies often only use a small part of the accounts of a standard chart of accounts.
To keep an overview and make it easier for your team, we recommend storing the 40 to 150 most important accounts in Xentral that you have previously coordinated with your tax office or auditor.
In Xentral, you can either create a new chart of accounts manually in the Chart of accounts module or import an account file via the CSV tab. Both options are described below.
Proceed as follows to create a chart of accounts manually.
Important
You can freely assign accounts in Xentral. However, keep in mind that these must match the accounts there later during export (e.g., to DATEV). Otherwise, errors and problems may occur.
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Use the Smart Search to open the Chart of accounts module.
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Click on Add booking account.
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Enter the Account of the chart of accounts, e.g. 5400.
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Assign a Labelling for the account, e.g. Goods receipt 19% input tax.
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Optional: Select the Type of costs, e.g. Expenses. This is only used within Xentral.
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Add an additional comment on the account use, e.g. Purchase of merchandise. You can view these notes in the overview or also provide them as an export.
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Optional: Select a Project to display or assign the account only in a specific project. If you do not select a project, the account is displayed in all projects and can be used there.
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Click on Save.
Tip
Activate the option Not visible to deactivate an account that is no longer needed or used. Deactivated accounts appear struck through in the overview. They are no longer displayed for bookings, e.g., in the bank account.
In the CSV tab of the Chart of accounts module, you can import an account file in CSV format. This saves you having to manually enter all accounts if you already have a file with the required accounts. Proceed as follows to import a chart of accounts.
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Use the Smart Search to open the Chart of accounts module.
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Open the CSV tab.
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Click on Select file to select and upload a file from your computer.
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Click on Import.
After the import, you will find the imported accounts in the overview of the Chart of accounts module. There you can edit the accounts later if necessary.
If you do not want to import all accounts from your original file, you can either edit your file before the import or delete the accounts manually in the Overview tab of the Chart of accounts module after the import.
Caution
Pay attention to the following points during the import to ensure that the import works smoothly:
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UTF-8 encoding
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The correct format. Use the fields Account, Labelling, Note, Type, Active, Project.
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A file with the extension .csv with the separator semicolon and the masking double quotes.
Example: "5400";"Goods receipt 19%";"all domestic purchases of goods 19%";"Expenses";"Standard"
The following table contains the available fields for the CSV import of a chart of accounts in Xentral. All fields must be present in the CSV file for the import to work. The Account and Labelling fields are mandatory, the other fields are optional.
Field name |
Description |
|---|---|
|
konto |
Bookkeeping account e.g., 5400 or 906815 |
|
beschriftung |
Account labelling (name of the account) e.g., Goods receipt 19% or Office supplies 19% |
|
bemerkung |
Internal note or notes on account use |
|
art |
Account type (possible values: empty, Expenses, Revenue, Money in transit, Balance) |
|
aktiv |
Account status (possible values 0 for deactivated, 1 for active) |
You can either create your account plan yourself or have it provided by your tax office. Below you will find an example of an account plan that you can import as a CSV file. In this example, the fields konto, beschriftung, bemerkung, art, and aktiv are used. One account is defined per line in the CSV file and each field is separated by a semicolon. The fields are specified in the order konto, beschriftung, bemerkung, art, and aktiv. All fields must be present in the CSV file for the import to work.
konto |
beschriftung |
bemerkung |
art |
aktiv |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
1370 |
Transitory items |
Transitory items internal |
0 |
|
|
1371 |
Transitory items tax office |
Check for tax office monthly closing |
0 |
|
|
1460 |
Money in transit |
All accounts |
Money in transit |
0 |
|
3820 |
VAT prepayments (current year) |
0 |
||
|
5300 |
Goods receipt 7% AM |
Domestic suppliers |
Expenses |
0 |
|
5400 |
Goods receipt 19% AM |
Domestic suppliers |
Expenses |
0 |
|
905900 |
External services 19% |
Freelancers (excluding KSK and small businesses) |
Expenses |
0 |
|
906318 |
Ancillary costs rent |
Operating cost statements |
0 |
|
|
906805 |
Telephone, fax, internet 19% input tax |
0 |
The chart of accounts is used primarily in incoming payments and in the cash book, as you book to the accounts of the chart of accounts here and export them from there directly (e.g., to DATEV). You can find more information on the accounting export in the article Financial accounting export (DATEV export settings).
When using the chart of accounts with DATEV, make sure that the account length is 4 (6805 - Telephone, Fax, Internet) or 6 (906805 - Telephone, Fax, Internet 19% input tax) when specifying tax keys.
In Xentral, there are several places where charts of accounts can be stored:
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In the Accounting > Tax and Currency > Tax/Currency menu
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In the project settings under Settings > General settings > Project > [Open project] > Settings > Tax / currency
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Directly in the individual product under Sell > Products > [Open product] > Sub-tab: Financial accounting
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In the settings of the product categories under Settings > Master data > Article > Product categories > [Open product category] > Section: Export chart of accounts