Period Close Checklist
Complete walkthrough of the NetSuite Period Close Checklist including GL Audit Numbering and Date/Period Mismatch resolution.
Overview
PERIOD CLOSE CHECKLIST LOCATION
═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
Navigation: Setup > Accounting > Manage GL > Manage Accounting Periods
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Manage Accounting Periods │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Period Start End Status Checklist │
│ ────── ───── ─── ────── ───────── │
│ Jan 2026 01/01/26 01/31/26 Open [📋] │
│ Dec 2025 12/01/25 12/31/25 Closed [✓] │
│ Nov 2025 11/01/25 11/30/25 Closed [✓] │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
Click [📋] to open Period Close Checklist for that period
Checklist Tasks Overview
Complete Task List
| # | Task | Required | Prerequisites |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lock A/R | Yes | - |
| 2 | Lock A/P | Yes | - |
| 3 | Lock Payroll | If enabled | - |
| 4 | Lock All | Yes | 1, 2, 3 |
| 5 | Resolve Date/Period Mismatches | Yes | 4 |
| 6 | Review Negative Inventory | If inventory | 4 |
| 7 | Inventory Cost Accounting | If inventory | 6 |
| 8 | Create IC Adjustments | If OneWorld | 4 |
| 9 | Revalue Open FX Balances | If multi-currency | 4 |
| 10 | Calculate Consolidated Rates | If OneWorld | 9 |
| 11 | Eliminate IC Transactions | If OneWorld | 8, 10 |
| 12 | Create Period End Journals | If enabled | All above |
| 13 | GL Audit Numbering | If enabled | All above |
| 14 | Close Period | Yes | All above |
Task Details
1-4: Module Locking
See Module Locking for detailed procedures.
LOCKING SEQUENCE
───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
□ Lock A/R → Prevents AR transactions
□ Lock A/P → Prevents AP transactions
□ Lock Payroll → Prevents payroll transactions
□ Lock All → Prevents ALL GL posting
5: Resolve Date/Period Mismatches
[!IMPORTANT] This task identifies transactions where the transaction date doesn't match the posting period.
RESOLVE DATE/PERIOD MISMATCHES
═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
Navigation: Period Close Checklist > Go To Task
What It Shows:
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Transactions with Date/Period Mismatch - January 2026 │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Type Number Tran Date Period Period Range │
│ ──── ────── ───────── ────── ──────────── │
│ Invoice INV-1205 12/28/2025 Jan 2026 01/01-01/31 │
│ Bill BILL-890 02/03/2026 Jan 2026 01/01-01/31 │
│ JE JE-456 01/15/2026 Dec 2025 12/01-12/31 │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
Why It Matters:
• Inaccurate period reporting
• Audit trail issues
• Inventory costing problems
• Revenue recognition errors
Resolving Mismatches
RESOLUTION PROCESS
───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
For Each Mismatch:
1. Click "Edit" on the transaction
2. Choose resolution:
Option A: Change Transaction Date
┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Current Date: 12/28/2025 │
│ Current Period: Jan 2026 │
│ │
│ Change To: 01/02/2026 (within period) │
└────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
Option B: Change Posting Period
┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Current Date: 12/28/2025 │
│ Current Period: Jan 2026 │
│ │
│ Change To: Dec 2025 (matches date) │
└────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
3. Save transaction
4. Return to checklist - mismatch cleared
Best Practice:
• Transaction date should match period
• Only use period override when necessary
• Document reason for any overrides
6: Review Negative Inventory
REVIEW NEGATIVE INVENTORY
═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
Navigation: Period Close Checklist > Go To Task
OR: Transactions > Inventory > Review Negative Inventory
What It Shows:
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Items with Negative Quantity - January 2026 │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Item Location On Hand Committed Available │
│ ──── ──────── ─────── ───────── ───────── │
│ WIDGET-100 Warehouse 1 -5 0 -5 │
│ PART-ABC Warehouse 2 -12 3 -15 │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
Impact of Negative Inventory:
• COGS calculated at wrong cost
• Inventory valuation incorrect
• Financial statement errors
Resolving Negative Inventory
RESOLUTION STEPS
───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
1. IDENTIFY SOURCE
Click item to see transaction history
Find where negative occurred
2. COMMON CAUSES & FIXES
Cause: Fulfilled before received
Fix: Find pending receipt, complete it
Cause: Receipt deleted
Fix: Re-enter the receipt
Cause: Wrong date on fulfillment
Fix: Correct transaction date
Cause: Data import error
Fix: Inventory adjustment
3. INVENTORY ADJUSTMENT (Last Resort)
Transactions > Inventory > Adjust Inventory
┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Item: WIDGET-100 │
│ Location: Warehouse 1 │
│ Adjust By: 5 (to bring to 0) │
│ Account: Inventory Adjustment │
│ Memo: Correction - negative balance │
└────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
⚠️ Note: Adjustments affect financial statements
Get approval before adjusting
7: Inventory Cost Accounting
INVENTORY COST ACCOUNTING
═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
Purpose: Recalculate inventory costs after resolving negative inventory
Navigation: Period Close Checklist > Go To Task
Process:
┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Run Inventory Cost Accounting │
│ │
│ Period: January 2026 │
│ Items: All inventory items │
│ │
│ This will: │
│ • Recalculate COGS on sales transactions │
│ • Update inventory valuation │
│ • Adjust landed cost allocations │
│ │
│ [Cancel] [Run Cost Accounting] │
└────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
Result:
Items Processed: 1,542
COGS Adjustments: $3,200
Valuation Changes: $1,850
Status: Complete ✓
8-11: Intercompany & Consolidation Tasks
See Intercompany and Consolidation for details.
IC & CONSOLIDATION SEQUENCE
───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
□ Create IC Adjustments
Balance intercompany positions
□ Revalue Open FX Balances
Revalue IC receivables/payables in foreign currency
□ Calculate Consolidated Rates
Period-end and average rates for all currencies
□ Eliminate IC Transactions
Remove IC revenue, expense, and balances
12: Create Period End Journals
CREATE PERIOD END JOURNALS
═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
Purpose: System-generated journals for period-end activities
Types of Period End Journals:
┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ 1. FX Revaluation Journal │
│ Unrealized FX gains/losses │
│ │
│ 2. IC Elimination Journal │
│ Intercompany eliminations │
│ │
│ 3. Translation Adjustment Journal │
│ CTA for foreign subsidiaries │
│ │
│ 4. Cost Accounting Adjustment │
│ COGS/inventory corrections │
└────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
Navigation: Period Close Checklist > Go To Task
Review generated journals before proceeding
13: GL Audit Numbering
[!IMPORTANT] GL Audit Numbering assigns gapless, sequential numbers to GL-posting transactions. This is required for compliance in many countries.
GL AUDIT NUMBERING
═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
Purpose: Assign sequential, gapless numbers for audit compliance
Prerequisites:
✓ All period close tasks complete
✓ No transactions pending approval
✓ Period locked
Navigation: Period Close Checklist > Go To Task
Process:
┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ GL Audit Numbering - January 2026 │
│ │
│ Transactions to Number: 1,245 │
│ Sequence: GLSEQ-2026 │
│ Starting Number: 2025001 │
│ │
│ ⚠️ This action cannot be undone! │
│ │
│ [Cancel] [Assign Audit Numbers] │
└────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
Result:
Transactions Numbered: 1,245
Number Range: 2025001 - 2026245
Status: Complete ✓
GL Audit Numbering Setup
AUDIT NUMBERING CONFIGURATION
───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
Navigation: Setup > Company > GL Audit Numbering
Settings:
┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Enable GL Audit Numbering: ☑ │
│ │
│ Sequence Name: GLSEQ-2026 │
│ Prefix: GL- │
│ Starting Number: 1 │
│ Increment: 1 │
│ │
│ Assign Numbers: │
│ ● At Period Close │
│ ○ At Transaction Save │
│ │
│ Include Transaction Types: │
│ ☑ Journal Entry │
│ ☑ Invoice │
│ ☑ Vendor Bill │
│ ☑ [All GL-posting types] │
└────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
14: Close Period
CLOSE PERIOD (Final Step)
═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
Prerequisites:
✓ All checklist tasks complete OR marked N/A
Navigation: Period Close Checklist > Close Period
Confirmation:
┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Close Period - January 2026 │
│ │
│ Checklist Status: │
│ ✓ Lock A/R Complete │
│ ✓ Lock A/P Complete │
│ ✓ Lock All Complete │
│ ✓ Date/Period Mismatches Complete │
│ ✓ Negative Inventory Complete │
│ ✓ Cost Accounting Complete │
│ ✓ IC Adjustments Complete │
│ ✓ FX Revaluation Complete │
│ ✓ IC Eliminations Complete │
│ ✓ Period End Journals Complete │
│ ✓ GL Audit Numbering Complete │
│ │
│ ⚠️ Once closed, no transactions can post to this │
│ period without reopening. │
│ │
│ [Cancel] [Close Period] │
└────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
After Close:
Period Status: Closed
Checklist Icon: ✓
Checklist Status Indicators
STATUS ICONS
───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
○ Not Started Task available but not begun
● In Progress Task started, not complete
✓ Complete Task finished successfully
⊘ Not Applicable Task doesn't apply to this period
! Error Issue found, needs resolution
Saved Search for Mismatches
Create a saved search to proactively find date/period mismatches:
// Date/Period Mismatch Finder
Type: Transaction
Criteria:
Main Line = true
Posting = true
Formula (Numeric) = 1
WHERE: CASE
WHEN TO_CHAR({trandate}, 'Mon YYYY') != {postingperiod}
THEN 1 ELSE 0 END
Results:
Date
Type
Document Number
Posting Period
Amount
Best Practices
Checklist Management
| Practice | Recommendation |
|---|---|
| Order | Follow sequence as listed |
| Daily review | Check for mismatches daily |
| Documentation | Note any manual overrides |
| Timing | Complete within 5 business days |
| Review | Second person verifies completion |
Common Issues
| Issue | Cause | Resolution |
|---|---|---|
| Task grayed out | Prerequisites incomplete | Complete required tasks |
| Mismatch won't clear | Transaction unapproved | Approve or void |
| Negative inventory stuck | Pending transactions | Complete all transactions |
| Audit numbers gap | Manual transaction void | Document gap reason |
Related Topics
- Module Locking - Lock procedures
- Reconciliation - Including negative inventory
- Month-End Close - Complete close process