What is a special journal?

My Accounting Course  is a world-class educational resource developed by experts to simplify accounting, finance, & investment analysis topics, so students and professionals can learn and propel their careers. Depending on the size and the complexity of the accounting department, a total separation of duties may not be possible. However, not all accounting personnel should have access to the general journal.

General ledger entries are permanent and represent the final financial position of the company. To record a general journal, you first need to know the account titles and numbers for the accounts that will be affected by the transaction. Next, you need to know the amount of the transaction in terms of debits and credits. Finally, you need to record the information in the journal in the appropriate columns. Subsidiary ledger totals is what’s typically recorded in the general
ledger in control accounts.

Definition of Special Journal

In light of the adage “Cash Is King,” we give preference to deals that can be settled in hard currency. The cash receipts notebook is where you record any and all cash transactions, regardless of their nature or size. Because cash was received, even if only a portion of a transaction, the entire sale would be recorded in the cash receipts log if it was for $1,000. The client would pay $300 in cash and agree to pay the rest $700 at a later date. There is no way to split this journal entry over two journals because the debits and credits of each transaction must add up to the same amount.

For example, companies sometimes choose to include separate debit columns for regularly used accounts such as salaries expense, sales commissions expense, or other specific accounts affected by cash disbursements. Special Journals (also known as subsidiary journals) are chronological records of frequently occurring transactions such as sales, purchases and cash receipts/payments. Accounts receivable subsidiary ledger is a record of all transaction
data of individual customers. A control account for this type of subsidiary
ledgers is Trade Accounts Receivable. Special Journals also known as subsidiary journals are chronological records of frequently occurring transactions such as sales, purchases and cash receipts/payments.

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We would use the cash
receipts journal because we are receiving cash, but the credit
would be to our Utility Expense account. If you look at the example
in
Figure 7.23, you see that there is no column for Utility
Expense, so how would it be recorded? We would use some generic
column title such as “other” to represent those cash transactions
in the subsidiary ledger though the specific accounts would
actually be identified by account number in the special journal. We
would look up the account number for Utility Expense and credit the
account for the amount of the check.

Purchases of inventory on credit would be recorded in the purchases journal (Figure 7.10) with a debit to Merchandise Inventory and a credit to Accounts Payable. The special journals that we will illustrate are examples of those found in many manually kept books, but they are not the only types used. Many firms design their specialized journals to meet their particular needs. The main difference between entries in a general journal and a general ledger is that journal entries are not permanent. They are used to record the initial transaction, and then they are transferred to the general ledger.

Which Journal Do You Use?

The purchases journal usually contains debit transactions while it is credited for debit purchases. Transactions that decrease cash are recorded in the cash disbursements journal. The cash disbursements journal to the right has one debit column for accounts payable and another debit column for all other types of cash payment transactions. Since each entry debits a control account (accounts payable) or an account listed in the column named Other, the specific account being debited must be identified on every line. However, most firms enter those transactions
in the general journal, along with other transactions that do not
fit the description of the specific types of transactions contained
in the four special journals.

The general journal is also necessary
for adjusting entries (such as to recognize depreciation, prepaid
rent, and supplies that we have consumed) and closing entries. The use of a reference code in any of the special journals is
very Accounting Special Journals important. Remember, after a sale is recorded in the sales
journal, it is posted to the accounts receivable subsidiary ledger,
and the use of a reference code helps link the transactions between
the journals and ledgers.

You could split this sale into two sales, one for $300 in cash and one for $700 on account, but that would also be incorrect. Now, ABC Ltd. will debit the accounts receivable account and credit the sales journal to account for this transaction. When the company receives the payment for this sale in future, the accounts receivable account will be credited, and the company will debit the cash receipts journal.

• Records are entered in the general journal in chronological order and are available all in one place so that the management and accountants can easily analyze the data.
• Note there is
  a single column for both the debit to Accounts Receivable and the
  credit to Sales, although we need to post to both Accounts
  Receivable and Sales at the end of each month.
• Special journals allow the recoding of numerous repetitive transactions in one journal in one line.