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Definition

A journal is a logical book that groups accounting transactions by type, in chronological order, before they reach the general ledger. The general ledger is the consolidated record of all accounts and their balances. In some European countries (e.g., France, Belgium, Spain), every transaction must be recorded in a journal (sales, purchases, bank, etc.). In other systems (e.g. Anglo-Saxon (UK/US-style) accounting), the concept is less explicit, but similar functionality exists under batch posting (grouped transaction processing), templates, or sub-ledgers (subsidiary record books).

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Purpose

  • Ensures traceability and compliance in jurisdictions where journals are legally required.
  • Simplifies reconciliation and reporting, with one journal per type of transaction.

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Structure

Each journal has:
  • An identifier (id) and a short code (code)
  • A name (name)
  • A type (journal_type):
    • customer_invoice, customer_refund: sales journal, with customer invoices and credit notes
    • supplier_invoice, supplier_refund: purchase journal, with supplier invoices and credit notes
    • financial_operation: bank or cash journal. Each bank account has its own journal, usually with an iban. The values bank and cash exist only when you create a journal
    • miscellaneous_operation: general journal, with adjustments, opening balances and miscellaneous transactions
    • unknown: the type could not be determined
  • A currency (currency). Empty means the currency of the folder
  • For a bank or cash journal: the bank or cash account (counterpart_account) and the IBAN (iban)
  • A blocked flag (blocked): a blocked journal accepts no new entries

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Relationships

  • Journals are defined at the level of a folder (company/entity).
  • Transactions recorded in a journal are tied to a book year through their dates.
  • Journal entries and invoices reference their journal with journal_id. Use journal_id to filter journal entries and journal_ids to filter invoices. When you create an invoice without journal_id, Chift selects the journal automatically only if there is exactly one. Otherwise, it returns an error.
  • Journal entries posted in journals feed into the ledger accounts.

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API endpoints

Not every accounting software exposes journals. Check the coverage matrix.