• Do not close the fiscal year at the end of the calendar year unless it is also the end of your fiscal year. Typically, General Ledger will be the last application you close.
• Do not proceed with closing the current fiscal year if you have not completed the closing of the prior fiscal year or anticipate receiving adjusting entries for the prior fiscal year. You will not be able to post entries to a fiscal year that is 2 years prior.
• Create a backup of your company database before closing the fiscal year.
• The General Ledger files cannot be used by other applications while you close the year in General Ledger.

Close the Fiscal Year:

1. Verify the suspense account does not have a balance. Entries in suspense will not close to retained earnings at year-end. Refer to Error: "The suspense account has a current balance" if you have a balance in suspense.
2. Back up your company data files. Refer to How do I use File Tools to back up data files? Retain this backup to use for historical reporting for prior years and periods that will roll off after closing the year.
3. In General Ledger, from the Tasks menu, select Close Fiscal Year.
4. If you have made your back up, select Yes on the backup message.
5. If you have multiple prefixes, select the appropriate prefix to close. Only one fiscal entity prefix can be closed at a time.
6. If you receive a message that prior year adjustments were found, refer to I need to close the fiscal year in General Ledger but there are prior year adjustments.
7. Verify the amount in the Close Fiscal Year - Earnings Distribution window matches the net income on your financial statements.
   • If the amounts agree, verify the Account is the correct retained earnings account then click Accept to proceed.
   • If the amounts disagree, click Cancel and determine the problem before you proceed.
8. Click OK on the calendar message.
9. The Setup New Calendar window will show the new current year and the new future year. You will be able to modify the period end dates for the new future year if needed. You will only need to adjust these dates if your period end dates are something other than the last day of the calendar month.
10. Click OK.
11. On the Close Fiscal Year – Print Selection window, choose whether to print to file or select your printer using Printer Setup button. Click Start.
12. Repeat for any additional prefixes you need to close.

Refer to the General Ledger section of the Year-End Procedures Guide for more detailed instructions and considerations. See Where can I find the Year-End Procedures Guides (YEPG)?

Refer to What happens when I use the Close Fiscal Year task in General Ledger?, for more information about what is updated during Close Fiscal Year. 

U.S. General Ledger Year-end Checklist