A journal entry records a financial transaction in two or more accounts, with debits and credits that add up to the same total. The library above holds journal entry examples for more than 60 transactions that come up again and again in shops, restaurants and small companies in Saudi Arabia: sales, purchases and returns, payroll and GOSI, depreciation, custody, zakat and VAT. Pick a transaction and enter your amount; the entry is worked out to the halala, and you can download it as a journal voucher in PDF or as an Excel file, or download every example in a single PDF.
How the journal entry generator works
Each transaction in the library is tied to its accounts and to the way its amounts are calculated. If you enter the amount before VAT, VAT is added at the 15% rate that applies in the Kingdom; if you enter it VAT inclusive, it is divided by 1.15, and every figure is rounded to the nearest halala. The entry is then laid out with debits first and credits below, each credit line starting with "To", and under every account the reason it sits on that side.
Σ Debit = Σ Credit · VAT = Net × 15% · Net = Gross ÷ 1.15
Journal entries with VAT
VAT never appears in revenue or expenses. VAT you collect from a customer is credited to Output VAT because it is owed to the Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority, and VAT you pay a supplier is debited to Input VAT because you deduct it in your return. At the end of the period the two accounts are closed in one entry that leaves the net amount payable to ZATCA, or receivable from it when input VAT is higher; that is the "VAT accounts closed at the end of the period" example in the library.
Point of sale and restaurant entries
Sales on a mada terminal do not reach the bank on the same day, so they sit in a receivable until the money arrives, and a settlement entry then records the amount received and the bank's fee. Delivery app sales work in a similar way: sales are recorded in full with their VAT, and the app's commission is an expense whose VAT you deduct if a tax invoice is issued for it. In the kitchen, issuing raw materials is a separate entry that builds up food cost, and spoiled stock is recorded as a loss backed by a write-off report.
Worked journal entries for depreciation and asset sales
A fixed asset stays at cost in your books, and depreciation builds up in a contra account called accumulated depreciation. When the asset is sold, both accounts are closed together, and the difference between the sale price before VAT and the book value is a gain or a loss.
All journal entry examples in PDF
Download all examples in one PDF gives you the whole library sorted by category, each transaction with its example amount, entry and note, to print as a reference or to train a new accountant. For a single entry with your own amount, download the journal voucher as a PDF with the date, entry number, narration and signature boxes, or as an Excel file where both sides of the entry update when you change the amount.
Common journal entry mistakes
- Recording VAT collected from a customer as revenue, when it is a liability to ZATCA.
- Posting the VAT-inclusive amount of a sale to the sales account.
- Recognising a customer advance as revenue before the goods are delivered.
- Booking the owner's drawings or an employee advance as an expense.
- Charging freight on purchases to expenses instead of inventory.
- Deducting depreciation straight from the asset account instead of using accumulated depreciation.
What to do with the entry
Copy the entry with Copy entry and paste it into your software or spreadsheet, or download the journal voucher for the preparer and reviewer to sign. Account names in the library are generic, so match them to your own chart of accounts before posting.
When entries run into the hundreds each month
The library is enough to find the right entry or to check one. Once dozens of invoices and vouchers go out every day, writing entries by hand means VAT and account errors and a late month-end close. At Microtec we offer businesses in Saudi Arabia an ERP accounting system with sales, purchasing, inventory, finance and HR, so an invoice or voucher and its entry come from the same place, and our solutions are approved by the Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority.