The journal entry is not balanced
Symptom
When you click Post or the save icon, the Invalid Operation window opens and the journal entry is not saved with what you entered. Before that, above the lines and at the bottom of them, the red Difference of … label already showed that the two sides do not match.
Message
With 6241 Eletricidade on the debit side for €100.00 and 2722 Credores por acréscimos de gastos on the credit side for €90.00 (Accountant profile):
“The journal entry is not balanced, so it cannot be confirmed: (new journal entry): Debit €100.00 ≠ Credit €90.00 — difference €10.00. Correct a line (an amount, or add the missing line) so that the total debit equals the total credit. The difference is not rounded: one cent is enough to block the journal entry.”
The same sentence appears in these situations:
- When saving, not only when posting. So an unbalanced journal entry is not saved, not even as Draft. The text says “cannot be confirmed”, but what failed was saving.
- On a draft that had already been saved, after changing an amount. The text still says “(new journal entry)”.
- When leaving the journal entry with the difference (through the breadcrumb at the top, for example). The window is called Oops! and has two buttons: Stay here and Discard changes.
In an entry template, the message is different. It comes in the Validation Error window, when saving a template with 100 % on the debit side and 90 % on the credit side:
“Template “Teste desequilibrado” is not balanced: debit 100.00% against credit 90.00%. Make both sides equal or turn one line into “Rest”.”
Verified causes
- A line is missing. With a single line of €150.00 on the debit side, the difference is €150.00.
- An amount is wrong, on any line. The difference is not rounded: €100.00 against €99.99 is refused with Difference of €0.01.
- You changed an amount on a draft already saved and did not adjust the other line.
- In a template, the percentages on the two sides do not add up to the same and no line is Rest.
What to check
- The label at the bottom of the lines: the amount of Difference of … is what still needs to be balanced.
- Whether that amount equals one extra line or one missing line (the VAT of an invoice, for example).
- Whether two numbers have swapped digits or an extra decimal place. Pending validation by a certified accountant: which account takes the difference, when the supporting document does not explain it.
How to fix it
On the journal entry (Accountant or Certified Accountant / Fiscal Manager profile)
- In the Invalid Operation window, click Close. What you entered stays on the screen.
- Correct the amount on the wrong line or click Add a line. The new line already carries the difference on the missing side: with €100.00 on the debit side, the new line carries €100.00 on the credit side. You still need to choose the Account and confirm the amount.
- Check that the label has changed to Balanced.
- Click Post.
If you want to give up the changes, click the discard icon (the × next to the save icon) or, in the Oops! window, Discard changes. A new journal entry is lost; a draft already saved goes back to the amounts it had.
The Balanced label only says that the totals are equal. It does not say that the accounts are right. A negative amount, for example, changes side without warning: entering −50.00 in the debit of 6241 and −50.00 in the credit of 2722 saves 6241 with €50.00 on the credit side and 2722 with €50.00 on the debit side, with the Balanced label. Check the sides before posting.
In the entry template
Make the percentages on both sides equal or change one line to Rest, as the message asks. The step-by-step is in entry templates.
The journal entry is already posted
A posted journal entry is always balanced. If the amount is wrong on both sides, follow the posted journal entry cannot be changed.
Expected result
With the two lines equal, the label says Balanced and Post gives the journal entry a number. In the example, with both sides at €100.00, the journal entry became Posted as OD/2026/00104, with these lines:
| Account | Debit | Credit |
|---|---|---|
| 6241 Eletricidade | €100.00 | — |
| 2722 Credores por acréscimos de gastos | — | €100.00 |
To look for unbalanced journal entries and unusual balances in a period, use the unbalanced journal entries diagnosis, which only reports and does not correct. If the journal entry comes from a file, the message is different and is in import journal entries.
When to contact support
- The label says Balanced and the message appears all the same.
- The diagnosis shows an unbalanced posted journal entry: the product does not let you create them on screen.
Information to send
- The company, the journal and the date of the journal entry.
- The full text of the message, copied from the screen.
- The accounts and amounts of all the lines (a screenshot will do).
- The profile you logged in with.