Inter-warehouse transfers and adjustments
Goods moved from the storeroom to the shop, got damaged, or turned up extra on the shelf. Two documents record that at the right cost and keep the effect in the books.
Inter-warehouse transfers
Under Items, then Inter-warehouse transfers. The document has two stages because goods really travel:
- Create the document: From warehouse, To warehouse, date and lines (item and quantity). It is saved as an editable draft.
- Post: the quantity leaves the source at its current average cost and that cost is fixed on the line. Status becomes Posted and the goods are now in transit: in neither warehouse.
- Receive at destination: whoever receives records the received quantity. Partial receipt is supported when a shipment arrives in batches. Goods enter the destination at the same fixed cost.
The warehouse keeper in the default template creates and posts transfers. Cancel (reverse) is available to users with the cancel permission and needs a reason saved on the document.
What happens in the books
No entry at posting. At receipt an entry is written only if the inventory account differs between the two warehouses (a warehouse with a "specific inventory account"): debit the destination's inventory account, credit the source's. In the common case, two warehouses on the same account, there is no entry at all because total inventory value did not change. Fixing the cost at exit is deliberate: valuing the inbound at the destination's average would change your stock value from a mere move.
Warning
A transfer posted but not received means goods that appear in no warehouse and cannot be sold. Review the transfers list weekly, filtered by status Posted, to find what was forgotten.
Stock adjustments
Under Items, then Adjustments. An adjustment brings goods in or out without a trading party: no supplier and no customer. Its fields:
- Warehouse and Date.
- Reason: damage, expiry, loss, found, correction, or opening stock for the opening balance when you start on the system.
- Contra account (optional): a ledger account that absorbs the difference instead of the default adjustments account, such as a "gifts and samples" account.
- Lines: item, Quantity (±) positive for increase and negative for decrease, and Unit cost for increases only (default: current average). Decreases are always valued at the average.
After saving as a draft click Post. One document can hold increases and decreases together.
What happens in the books
Increase: debit Inventory (1500), credit Inventory adjustments (5110). Decrease: debit Inventory adjustments, credit Inventory. The reason Opening stock routes the counterpart to the opening balances account instead of adjustments. A chosen contra account replaces 5110. Inventory adjustments are classified within cost of goods on the income statement, so every decrease lowers gross profit directly, not general expenses. Details in Financial statements.
When an adjustment and when something else
| Case | The right document |
|---|---|
| Goods damaged or expired | Adjustment with reason damage or expiry |
| A difference between shelf and system found during a full count | A stocktake, which generates the adjustment from the differences |
| Goods returned to the supplier | A purchase return, not an adjustment |
| Goods given to a customer as a gift | A decrease with a "gifts" contra account, or an invoice at 100% discount |
| First balances when starting the system | Adjustment with reason opening stock, or opening balances in advanced accounting |
Tip
Always write the note: "carton dropped during unloading" is far more useful six months later than the reason "damage" alone, when you review why that month's profit fell.
Frequently asked questions
Can a transfer be edited after posting?
No. You can receive less than was sent (partial receipt) or cancel the document by reversing it and create another.
Why is there no journal entry for the transfer?
Because both warehouses are on the same inventory account, so stock value did not change. An entry is written only when one has a specific inventory account, and only at receipt.
How do I enter opening balances when moving to Sahl?
An adjustment with reason Opening stock and a unit cost per item. The counterpart goes to the opening balances account automatically.