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Glossary

Booking entry (Buchungssatz)

In short

A booking entry states which accounts a business transaction affects: first the account on the debit side, then, after the word “to” (“an”), the account on the credit side, each with its amount. Total debits always equal total credits.

· General information, not tax advice.

In double-entry bookkeeping every account has two sides: debit on the left, credit on the right. On asset accounts such as bank or cash, increases are debits; on liability accounts, increases are credits; expenses are booked as debits and income as credits. Every transaction is therefore recorded on at least two accounts.

Example: office supplies for EUR 120 gross (EUR 100 net plus 20 % VAT), paid in cash. The entry reads: 7600 Office supplies 100.00 and 2500 Input VAT 20.00 to 2700 Cash 120.00. The account numbers follow the Austrian EKR, where office supplies belong to group 76, input VAT to group 25 and cash to group 27. Small businesses under the Kleinunternehmer rule have no input VAT deduction and book the full EUR 120 as an expense.

Pre-coding (Vorkontierung) means marking a document with account, contra account and tax code before it is entered — once with a stamp on paper, today also directly in software. It is a proposal: only what has been entered and approved is booked.

Document capture (Belegerfassung) means entering invoices, receipts and bank statements into the books with date, amount, business partner and tax details. Under § 131 of the Austrian Federal Tax Code (BAO), entries should be made in chronological order, completely, correctly and on time, with cash receipts and payments recorded daily. Documents must be kept in order so that every entry can be checked — generally for seven years (§ 132 BAO).

Debit and credit belong to double-entry bookkeeping. It is mandatory for corporations, for example, and for other businesses whose revenue exceeds EUR 700,000 in two consecutive years (§ 189 UGB); liberal professions are exempt from this threshold. Businesses using cash-basis accounting (Einnahmen-Ausgaben-Rechnung) record income and expenses as a rule when paid, without debit and credit.

In Saldek

Saldek reads documents and proposes the booking entry with account, contra account and tax code. Nothing is booked until you approve it.

Questions about this term

What does “an” (“to”) mean in a booking entry?

It separates the debit side from the credit side. Accounts before it are debited, accounts after it are credited: “Bank an Erlöse” (bank to revenue) means the bank balance increases on the debit side and revenue increases on the credit side.

What is a compound booking entry?

An entry with more than one debit or credit account, such as expense and input VAT to cash. Both sides must still add up to the same total.

Is pre-coding mandatory?

No, it is a working method. The law requires entries to be complete, correct and timely and verifiable against documents kept in order (§ 131 BAO).

Do I need booking entries for cash-basis accounting?

No. There, income is generally recorded when money comes in and expenses when it goes out; fixed assets are spread over their useful life through depreciation. Debit and credit only exist in double-entry bookkeeping.

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