05 - Accounts and Categories¶

This page explains the account structure used in the ledgers.

Naming language¶

The account names are German. Keep using the existing account names to keep reports consistent.

German	English meaning
`Vermoegen`	Assets
`Verbindlichkeiten`	Liabilities
`Einnahmen`	Income
`Ausgaben`	Expenses
`Buero`	Office
`Verein`	Association/general association activity
`Projekt`	Project
`Barkasse`	Cash box
`Freies-Geld`	Free/unrestricted funds

Asset accounts¶

NICA examples:

Vermoegen:Bank:Sparkasse-NICA
Vermoegen:Bank:Sparkasse-NICA:Freies-Geld
Vermoegen:PayPal
Vermoegen:NICA:Barkasse
Vermoegen:Inventar

Tohuwabohu examples:

Vermoegen:Bank:Sparkasse-Tohuwabohu
Vermoegen:Bank:Sparkasse-Tohuwabohu:Freies-Geld
Vermoegen:PayPal
Vermoegen:Tohuwabohu:Barkasse

General income accounts¶

Account	Use for
`Einnahmen:Vereinsbeitrag`	Membership fees.
`Einnahmen:Spende`	Donations.
`Einnahmen:Verleih`	Rental or lending income.
`Einnahmen:Sonstiges`	Other income that does not fit elsewhere.

General expense accounts¶

Account	Use for
`Ausgaben:Buero:Miete`	Office or room rent.
`Ausgaben:Buero:Internet`	Internet and digital services.
`Ausgaben:Buero:Sonstiges`	Other office expenses.
`Ausgaben:Verein:Versicherung`	Association insurance.
`Ausgaben:Verein:Ehrenamt`	Volunteer allowances or association volunteer costs.
`Ausgaben:Essen`	Food expenses outside a specific project.
`Ausgaben:Sonstiges`	Temporary fallback for unclear expenses.

Ausgaben:Sonstiges and Einnahmen:Sonstiges are useful during import, but should not become the final category if a more precise category exists.

Project accounts¶

Project accounts follow this pattern:

Vermoegen:Bank:Sparkasse-ASSOCIATION:PROJECT
Ausgaben:Projekt:PROJECT
Einnahmen:Projekt:PROJECT

Examples:

Vermoegen:Bank:Sparkasse-NICA:25-ZGV
Ausgaben:Projekt:25-ZGV:Honorar
Einnahmen:Projekt:25-ZGV:Sachmittel
Vermoegen:Bank:Sparkasse-Tohuwabohu:TOHUCON-25
Ausgaben:Projekt:TOHUCON-25:Essen
Einnahmen:Projekt:TOHUCON-25:ConTickets

Typical project subcategories¶

Subcategory	Meaning
`Honorar`	Fees paid to people or received for work.
`Aufwand`	Effort or expense allowance.
`Sachmittel`	Materials and supplies.
`Sonstiges`	Other project costs or income.
`Pauschale` / `Pauschalen`	Lump sum or flat-rate project budget.

Liabilities to people¶

Liability accounts track money owed to people or paid back to people. Examples include Verbindlichkeiten:Person:Marc-Bielert, Verbindlichkeiten:Person:Peter-Huhndorf, and Verbindlichkeiten:Person:Charleen-Hoffmann.

Choosing the correct account¶

Is this association-level or project-level?
If project-level, which project owns the money?
Is it income, expense, asset movement, or liability repayment?
Is there a precise category already open?
If there is no good category, use Sonstiges temporarily and add a comment.