Tips & Tricks: Document Date vs. Posting Date in AP Invoice Entry

    
Tips & Tricks: Document Date vs. Posting Date in AP Invoice Entry
Problem Details:

What is the difference between the Document Date and the Posting Date in AP Invoice Entry?

Solution:

The document date will be the date on the invoice. It is the date used for aging purposes, and used to calculate the due date (based on the terms) and the date used for calculating discounts.  The Posting Date is the date that will be used to post the transaction in the GL.  This is the date which determines which fiscal year and period that the transaction will be posted into.  This is also the date that would be used in any revaluation process, so that the fx entry will go into the same year and period as the original transaction. 

The posting date can be set to default to either the batch date, the document date, or the sign-on date.  This default setting is found in AP Setup / Options, on the Transactions tab.

The most common reason for having a Posting Date different from a Document Date is because the fiscal period that the Document Date falls into has already been locked.  But, since the invoice needs to be paid within terms, or perhaps qualify for a discount, it is important not to change the document date to suit an open fiscal period.  This is the reason the Posting Date field was created. 

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