What is Automatic Posting?

When you post documents in SAP, there are instances where the system also adds some more line items (such as tax, cash discount, gain/loss from foreign exchange transactions, etc.) besides the ones you have entered in the document. This helps to reduce your work as the system calculates these automatically. However, you need to define accounts you want the system to automatically post to; this will ensure that no manual posting is allowed to any of these accounts.

POSTING AUTHORISATION

IMG: FI.A/cing> F.A.Global settings>Document>Doc Item> Define tolerance groups for Employees.

1) The maximum amounts are defined per company code in “TOLERANCE GROUP”. (This is also where the payment processing of payment differences is controlled)

2) In the tolerance groups you can enter Upper limits for the following :

i) Total amount per document. (The posting amount is the total of all debit items or, similarly, the total of all credit items.)

ii) Amount per customer/vendor item. (Limit is per customer, one document with more than one customer/vendors can be entered) The restriction does not apply to automatically created line items, for example, during payment settlements.

iii) Cash discount – which user with this tolerance group is able to grant.

3) If a user is not assigned to any special tolerance group, then entries in the tolerance group “___” (blank) are valid for them. (This is default tolerance group)

POSTING PERIODS

IMG: FI.A/cing> F.A.Global settings>Document>Posting Periods> Open and close posting periods.

1) Several Company codes can use same posting period variant.
2) The SAP system automatically determines the posting period and fiscal year based on the posting date entered. (Only special period needs to be manually changed)
3) The posting period variant is assigned to the company code.
4) Posting periods are defined in the fiscal year variant, Closing/opening posting period are carried out in posting period variant.
5) The posting period variant must contain at least the account type “+”.
6) During year closing, two period intervals (Normal and special periods) must be open at the same time.
7) In the document header, the periods assigned to the account type “+” are checked with posting date, whether posting period is open for that date or closed. At the line item level, the system checks the account type of the posting key to ensure that the period is open for the assigned account type.

DOCUMENT STRUCTURE / CONTROL

1) A document is saved for every posting. Every Document is uniquely identified by the Document Number, Company Code and Fiscal Year.

2) A Document contains Document header + 2 to 999 line items.

3) Document Type : Controls the Document header and classify the business transactions to be posted.

>> Posting Key : Controls the Line items.

4) Document types are defined at client level. Document types define the following:

a) Number ranges for Document number.

b) Account types permitted for postings. And also

c) The field status of “document header Text” and “Reference number” in the Document header.

d) Whether the invoices are posted with net procedure.

5) Standard Document types are :

KR – Vendor Invoice DR – Customer Invoice.

KG – Vendor Cr.Memo. DG – Customer Cr.Memo.

KZ – Vendor Payment DZ – Customer Payment.

AB – General Document SA – G/L a/c posting.

6) Document numbers can have internal or external number assignment.

7) Up to a future fiscal year – Number range will continue irrespective of year end.

For each fiscal year – At the start of a new year the system starts the number assignment again at the start of the number range. (You need to define number range for every new fiscal year)

8) The document number range must not over lap.

9) Document type AB allows postings to all account types.

10) One number range can be assigned to several document types.

11) Posting keys are defined at client level.

12) Posting keys control:

i) On which type of account the line item can be posted to

ii) The item is posted as a Debit or Credit.?

iii) The field status of additional fields.

In addition to this posting key specifies the following:

>> Whether line item is connected to payment transaction or not.

>> Whether posting is sales relevant.

13) Document line item fields are controlled by :

a) G/L Account specific field status group assigned to the G/L account while creating. (Account specific field status groups are summarized under field status variant which is assigned to company code) If the document is posted to a sub ledger a/c, the field status group of the reconciliation a/c is used.

b) Posting key specific field status group.

(The field status HIDE cannot be combined with the field status REQUIRED entry which causes an error.)

14) Document type does not have default posting key or vise versa. For each FI transaction (E.g. Invoice, Credit memo, Out going payment) you can define a document type and default posting key at:

IMG:FI A/cing>F.A.Global Settings>Document>Default values for document processing>Default values.

(E.g. When posting outgoing invoices, you use the document type “DR” and

posting key “01”. You can store these specifications in the system. They

are proposed by the system when you call up the corresponding

transaction).