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Journal Runs

Zuora

Journal Runs

With the 2023.11.R1 release, Zuora has enhanced the performance of Journal Run by processing financial data before a Journal Run is triggered at month-end. This design can significantly reduce the processing time. 
All new tenants on Performance Booster or Performance Booster Elite will have the enhanced Journal Run enabled by default. Existing Performance Booster and Performance Booster Elite customers will be upgraded to Journal Run with improved performance beginning 2023.11.R1. If you need enhanced Journal Run enabled in your tenant quickly, contact Zuora Global Support. For more information, see Performance Booster and Performance Booster Elite.

Because data is prepared in advance under the new design, in the case of subsequent changes to segmentation rules and currency conversion settings, the system has the following behaviors by design:

  • Segmentation rule change: Prepared data will be refreshed to use the new segmentation rule.  
  • Currency conversion setting change (depending on the type of the change):   
    • Set home currency: Prepared data will be refreshed to use the newly set home currency.  
    • Other changes: Prepared data will NOT be refreshed. Original settings will be used to create journal entries. 

Cancelling a journal run will take longer once the new design is enabled in your tenant.

Overview 

Journal runs auto-create summary journal entries that are suitable for importing into your General Ledger (GL) system. This article explains how to create, cancel, and delete journal runs.

A journal entry in Zuora is a summary of all Zuora transactions, such as account receivables, credit balance adjustment, and revenue. A journal run auto-creates journal entry objects from Zuora transactions. A journal run is similar to a Zuora billing run or payment run.

Finance permissions are required to manage journal runs. See Finance Roles for more information.

Manage Journal Runs

You can:

Navigation: Click Finance > Journal Runs.

Run status

The following table describes the Zuora statuses for journal runs.

Status Description
Pending The journal run in the queue for processing. This status appears upon starting a journal run.
Processing The journal run is processing all transactions and summary journal entries.
Completed The journal run completed successfully. Journal entries are auto-created and available for review and export.
Cancel in progress Canceling the journal run is in progress.
Cancelled The journal run is canceled. You can cancel a run when the status is either Pending or Completed.
Delete in progress Deleting a canceled journal run is in progress. You must cancel a journal run before you can delete it.
Error An exception happened during the journal run where some journal entries might be generated successfully. You can run a journal run for the same accounting period again to catch the failed transactions after the issue causing the error is resolved.

Create a Journal Run

The following is an example of a journal run configured to auto-create journal entries for Billing and Revenue transactions for the June 2014 accounting period. If created, the run process will factor in the GL Segmentation rule when auto-creating the journal entries.

You cannot create a new journal run if you have a pending journal run in your tenant.

  • If the summary journal entry feature was enabled on your Zuora tenant before March 1st, 2015:

    The earliest Target Date you can set for a Journal Run is two months before the month in which the summary journal entry feature was enabled. For example, if the feature was enabled on February 15th, 2015, the earliest Target Date of a Journal Run is December 1st, 2014.

  • If the summary journal entry feature was enabled on your Zuora tenant on or after March 1st, 2015:

    The earliest Target Date you can set for a Journal Run is January 1st, 2015.

Navigation:  Click Finance > Journal Runs and click NEW JOURNAL RUN.

Do the following:

  1. Select at least one transaction type to include in the run. By default, all transactions types are selected.
  2. Choose a Target Date(s) option by specifying the accounting period, date, or time period.
  3. Enter or select a date in the Journal Entry Date field. By default, the end date of the selected accounting period.
  4. Click create journal run to start the process.

Upon completion of the run, journal entries are auto-created and available to view and export.

  • Make sure to create a journal run after closing the accounting period to include all the transactions.
  • The following fields will not be updated when a Journal Entry ID or Journal Run ID is created:
    • Updated by ID
    • Updated Date

Journal Run options

Journal run gives you the flexibility to create journal entries by filtering on transaction type and date. Filtering lets you see different views of information to address many of your operational and financial reporting requirements. For example, monthly reconciliation of invoices or daily tracking of incoming cash and payments.

Transaction types

The table below describes the various transaction types that are used to generate journal entries. For more information on sample journal entries, see Sample Journal Entries.

Transaction Category Transaction Type

Billing

Transactions related to customer invoices, including taxes and adjustments. Select all billing transaction types or select specific transaction types:

  • Invoice Item
  • Taxation Item
  • Invoice Item Adjustment (Invoice)
  • Invoice Item Adjustment (Tax)
  • Invoice Adjustment (Invoice Adjustment transaction is deprecated on Production.)
  • Credit Balance Adjustment (Applied from Credit Balance)
  • Credit Balance Adjustment (Transferred to Credit Balance)

The following transaction types are only available if you enable the Invoice Settlement feature.

The Invoice Settlement feature is generally available as of Zuora Billing Release 296 (March 2021). This feature includes Unapplied Payments, Credit and Debit Memos, and Invoice Item Settlement. If you want to have access to the feature, see Invoice Settlement Enablement and Checklist Guide for more information. After Invoice Settlement is enabled, the Invoice Item Adjustment feature will be deprecated for your tenant.

  • Debit Memo Item (Charge)
  • Debit Memo Item (Tax)
  • Credit Memo Item (Charge)
  • Credit Memo Item (Tax)
  • Credit Memo Application Item

Cash

Transactions related to payments and refunds. Select all cash transactions or select specific transaction types:

  • Electronic Payment
  • External Payment
  • Electronic Refund
  • External Refund
  • Electronic Credit Balance Payment
  • External Credit Balance Payment
  • Electronic Credit Balance Refund
  • External Credit Balance Refund

If you enable the Invoice Settlement feature, the Electronic Payment, External Payment, Electronic Refund, and External Refund transaction types will be replaced by the following transaction types:

The Invoice Settlement feature is generally available as of Zuora Billing Release 296 (March 2021). This feature includes Unapplied Payments, Credit and Debit Memos, and Invoice Item Settlement. If you want to have access to the feature, see Invoice Settlement Enablement and Checklist Guide for more information. After Invoice Settlement is enabled, the Invoice Item Adjustment feature will be deprecated for your tenant.

  • Electronic Payment Application
  • External Payment Application
  • Electronic Refund Application
  • External Refund Application

If you enable both the Invoice Settlement feature and the Invoice Item Settlement feature, the Electronic Payment, External Payment, Electronic Refund, and External Refund transaction types will be replaced by the following transaction types:

The Invoice Item Settlement feature is only available if you have Invoice Settlement enabled. The Invoice Settlement feature is generally available as of Zuora Billing Release 296 (March 2021). This feature includes Unapplied Payments, Credit and Debit Memos, and Invoice Item Settlement. If you want to have access to the feature, see Invoice Settlement Enablement and Checklist Guide for more information.

  • Electronic Payment Application Item
  • External Payment Application Item
  • Electronic Refund Application Item
  • External Refund Application Item

Revenue

Transactions related to revenue schedules. 

  • Revenue Event Item
Unrealized FX Gain Loss 

Transactions related to unreleased FX gain loss.

  • Unrealized FX Gain Loss 

Note: Customers have to contact Zuora Global Support to enable it.

Date options

Filter transactions by target date or date range. Create journal entries on a specified Journal Entry Date:

Target date(s)

Date or date range for filtering the transactions included in the run:

Option Description Valid for Transaction Type
Billing Cash Credit Balance Revenue

in accounting period

Transactions posted to a specific open or closed accounting period. By default, the current, open accounting period is selected.

The open-ended accounting period is not supported.

Check Mark Check Mark Check Mark Check Mark

on specific date

Transactions posted on a specified date. Used when looking to reconcile specific transaction types on a daily basis. The date must be within an open or closed accounting period. Date cannot fall within an open-ended accounting period.

Check Mark Check Mark Check Mark File:Z_Media/xmark.png

in time period

Transactions posted within a specified date range. 

Start and end dates are required. Valid date range must be within one accounting period. End date cannot fall within an open-ended accounting period.

Check Mark Check Mark Check Mark File:Z_Media/xmark.png
Journal Entry date

Required. The date associated with the summary journal entry. By default, the end date of the selected accounting period.

Types of transactions picked up during a Journal Run

Transaction types not yet associated with a journal entry and that meets the following criteria are included in a journal run:

Transaction Type Date Type on or within the Period Transaction Has Status
Invoice Item Invoice Date Posted
Taxation Item Invoice Date Posted

Invoice Adjustment

Note: Invoice Adjustment transaction is deprecated on Production.

Adjustment Date Processed
Invoice Item Adjustment Adjustment Date Processed
Payment Payment Date Processed
Refund Refund Date Processed
Credit Balance Adjustment CBA Date Processed
Revenue Event Item Accounting Period N/A

The following transaction types are only available if you enable the Invoice Settlement feature.

The Invoice Settlement feature is generally available as of Zuora Billing Release 296 (March 2021). This feature includes Unapplied Payments, Credit and Debit Memos, and Invoice Item Settlement. If you want to have access to the feature, see Invoice Settlement Enablement and Checklist Guide for more information. After Invoice Settlement is enabled, the Invoice Item Adjustment feature will be deprecated for your tenant.

Credit Memo Item Credit Memo Date Posted
Debit Memo Item Debit Memo Date Posted

Credit Memo Application Item

Note that the Credit Memo Application Item transaction type of unapplied Credit Memo will not reflect in JE.

Credit Memo Application Date Posted

Payment Application

Note that this field will be replaced by Payment Application Item if you enable both the Invoice Settlement and Invoice Item Settlement features.

Payment Application Date Processed

Refund Application

Note that this field will be replaced by Refund Application Item if you enable both the Invoice Settlement and Invoice Item Settlement features.

Refund Application Date Processed

If you enable both the Invoice Settlement and Invoice Item Settlement features, Payment Application Item will replace Payment Application, and Refund Application Item will replace Refund Application.

The Invoice Item Settlement feature is only available if you have Invoice Settlement enabled. The Invoice Settlement feature is generally available as of Zuora Billing Release 296 (March 2021). This feature includes Unapplied Payments, Credit and Debit Memos, and Invoice Item Settlement. If you want to have access to the feature, see Invoice Settlement Enablement and Checklist Guide for more information.

Payment Application Item Payment Application Date Processed
Refund Application Item Refund Application Date Processed

Cancel and Delete a Journal Run

Occasionally, you may want to cancel a journal run, such as to rerun an entire batch of summary journal entries. Once canceled, the transactions in all journal entries associated with the run are released and available for update. Alternately, you can cancel a single journal entry. See Cancel and Delete a Journal Entry.

You can cancel a journal run when the run status is "pending" or "completed". You can only delete canceled journal runs.
After you cancel a journal run, the status changes to Cancel in progress and to Cancelled after the cancellation is complete. If an error occurs, the cancellation process status returns to its original state (pending or completed).

Cancel a Run from the Journal Run List View

Click cancel from the view list when the journal run has a "pending" or "completed" status.

Delete a Run from the Journal Run List View

Click delete from the view list when the journal run has a "cancelled" status.

You can also cancel a completed journal run or delete a canceled run from the journal entry page.