Before You Start
- You need settings.edit. Roles without it do not see Fiscal Year in Settings, and opening the page from a link shows Access Restricted with a Back to Settings button.
- Talk to your accountant before changing the fiscal year start on an entity that already has accounting periods.
Open Fiscal Year
- In the deck, open Settings.
- Under System, choose Fiscal Year.
Set The Fiscal Year Start
- Choose the Start month.
- Enter the Start day (1 to 28). The day stops at 28 so the year always starts on a day that exists in every month.
- Read the preview banner.
- Click Save fiscal year.
Set The Journal Entry Backdate Window
Days a journal entry may be backdated controls how old a manual journal entry’s date may be. The default is 180 days, and you can enter any whole number from 0 to 3650.- A manual journal entry dated further back than the window is refused.
- A person holding accounting.close_period can still post one outside the window by giving a reason. The reason is recorded on the entry’s audit trail.
- The override never reaches a closed period. A prior-period entry still has to land in a period that is open.
Messages You May See
Save fiscal year stays disabled until you change something.
What Changes Elsewhere
- Accounting periods: periods generated after the save follow the new fiscal year. Existing periods do not move.
- Journal entries: the backdate window applies to every manual journal entry from the moment you save.
- Audit trail: saving the fiscal year start or the backdate window is recorded in the Audit Log.
- Other open sessions: when another admin saves this page, your page refreshes to show it.
Related Articles
Period Close
Generate, close, and reopen accounting periods.
Journal Entries
Create manual journal entries and understand posting rules.
Month-End Checklist
Work through the month-end close in order.
Business Profile
Set the business time zone that decides the business date.

