Just wanted to say that Jim's reply below was just perfect. Other than gnucash *requires *double-entry accounting, what you do from there is up to you, and asking those questions Jim suggests you ask of yourself is what all of us should do before using any tool or committing to any system one might be using for years/decades. Will I need this info again? What might future-me want/need to track/look up? There are things I *stopped *tracking in gnucash because I know I'm never going to look for that info again (or I can find it elsewhere). And then there are things I track in gc that perhaps none of you do because it helps me plan or think about my finances in a way that just works for me.
I even set aside an hour every year to re-think my processes. Am I tracking too little, too much? How might I save future-me time or add value to future-me by investing additional time this year? What can I stop doing that's of little value? Anyway, thanks Jim. On Tue, Sep 3, 2024 at 7:28 PM Jim DeLaHunt <list+gnuc...@jdlh.com> wrote: > On 2024-09-03 14:54, Kalpesh Patel wrote: > > > Couldn't one can elect to track paycheck by net rather than gross? > > This is a worthwhile question. You have already received two correct > answers. Let me try to rise up a level, then say the same thing a > different way. > > You should answer the question, what are you trying to track? GnuCash is > a tool for doing accounting. Accounting is the tracking of value. What > value do you want to track? What information do you want to have? > > Do you want to be able to catch errors in your bank statement more > easily? That is one possible goal. > > Do you want to be able to match your paycheque and tax withholdings to > your tax slips when you prepare your income tax return for the year? > That is a second possible goal. > > Do the laws in your area require you to report the financial performance > of your business according to certain accounting standards? That is a > third possible goal. > > It is good to be clear about your goals, because it will frequently help > you answer questions like, how do I enter this transaction in my books? > > If you only want to catch errors in bank statements, then maybe tracking > paycheque by net is sufficient. If you want to match total pay, and > total withheld taxes of various kinds, to your tax slips at the end of > the year, then maybe you should track your paycheque by gross with > splits to reflect the various withholdings. If you want to comply with > financial reporting rules, then that makes further requirements on your > bookkeeping. > > You might find that you would benefit from advice which is based on a > solid knowledge of your situation, the regulations to which you are > subject, and the principles of accounting. Accountants can be a good > source of that advice. Maybe you will have to pay them for that advice. > Accounting textbooks can also help you understand principles, which you > can then apply to your own situation. > > So: > > 1. What are your goals for the information tracking you do? That is for > you to answer. > 2. Have you done enough self-study of accounting to understand what > accounting principles will help you achieve your goals? That is for > you to study. > 3. Are accurate, customised answers valuable to you? Pay an accountant > to answer some questions. > 4. Are you unclear about how to use GnuCash to apply those accounting > principles? Ask this list, perhaps we can help. > > Does that answer your question? > > Best regards, > —Jim DeLaHunt > > > > -----Original Message----- > > From: Gyle McCollam<gmccol...@live.com> > > Sent: Tuesday, September 03, 2024 3:27 PM > > To: David Warren<da...@warren1.net>; Boniforti Flavio< > bonifort...@gmail.com> > > Cc:gnucash-user@gnucash.org > > Subject: Re: [GNC] [newbie] how to treat a gift? > > > > Don't forget on the paycheck, you also have to debit all the withholding > accounts as well. Your salary is more than what cited to your checking out > savings account. > > > > > > > > Sent from Samsung Galaxy smartphone. > > > > > > > > -------- Original message -------- > > From: David Warren<da...@warren1.net> > > Date: 9/3/24 3:21 PM (GMT-05:00) > > To: Boniforti Flavio<bonifort...@gmail.com> > > Cc:gnucash-user@gnucash.org > > Subject: Re: [GNC] [newbie] how to treat a gift? > > > > Hi. EVERY Gnucash entry is DOUBLE ENTRY. > > > > But you've answered your own question. > > > > Debit Assets:Current Assets:Checking Account for $100 Credit the income > account of your choice but Income:Gifts Received is exactly what I would > use too! > > > > For Salary, Debit Checking Account, Credit Income:Salary Received. > > > > On Tue, Sep 3, 2024 at 2:22 PM Boniforti Flavio<bonifort...@gmail.com> > > wrote: > > > >> Hi all. > >> I've received 100 bucks from a relative as a gift, which he sent to me > >> via bank wire transfer. > >> In my GnuCash accounts I do have one called "Income:Gifts Received" > >> and I also of course have the "Assets:Current Assets:Checking > >> Account", where the money from the gift finally landed. > >> > >> How should I proceed to register this gift I received? I don't see any > >> reason to do a "double-entry", because the money is not coming from > >> one of my accounts - it's just getting INTO one of my accounts from > external... > >> Same question for my salary, of course. > >> > >> Thanks for your help, > >> F. > >> > >> https://www.instagram.com/boniforti_music > >> https://soundcloud.com/boniforti_music > >> https://bonny-j.bandcamp.com > >> _______________________________________________ > >> gnucash-user mailing list > >> gnucash-user@gnucash.org > >> To update your subscription preferences or to unsubscribe: > >> https://lists.gnucash.org/mailman/listinfo/gnucash-user > >> ----- > >> Please remember to CC this list on all your replies. > >> You can do this by using Reply-To-List or Reply-All. > >> > > _______________________________________________ > > gnucash-user mailing list > > gnucash-user@gnucash.org > > To update your subscription preferences or to unsubscribe: > > https://lists.gnucash.org/mailman/listinfo/gnucash-user > > ----- > > Please remember to CC this list on all your replies. > > You can do this by using Reply-To-List or Reply-All. > > > > _______________________________________________ > > gnucash-user mailing list > > gnucash-user@gnucash.org > > To update your subscription preferences or to unsubscribe: > > https://lists.gnucash.org/mailman/listinfo/gnucash-user > > ----- > > Please remember to CC this list on all your replies. > > You can do this by using Reply-To-List or Reply-All. > _______________________________________________ > gnucash-user mailing list > gnucash-user@gnucash.org > To update your subscription preferences or to unsubscribe: > https://lists.gnucash.org/mailman/listinfo/gnucash-user > ----- > Please remember to CC this list on all your replies. > You can do this by using Reply-To-List or Reply-All. > _______________________________________________ gnucash-user mailing list gnucash-user@gnucash.org To update your subscription preferences or to unsubscribe: https://lists.gnucash.org/mailman/listinfo/gnucash-user ----- Please remember to CC this list on all your replies. 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