Wrong date when importing OFX file from HSBC

Mike or Penny Novack stepbystepfarm at mtdata.com
Wed Feb 4 08:21:59 EST 2015



All the dates match at the moment because; 1) the bank has to be right as it is the source of information I am relying on, and 2) I imported and reconciled all transactions from money to gnucash so that they are all correct and match with the bank.

May not be relevant to THIS problem, but a misunderstanding.

The dates need not necessarily match and the bank isn't "right" (typical 
transaction involving a check).

1) You write a check (that has an associated date) and you then put the 
check in the mail. In the legal sense, you have made what is called 
"constructive delivery" which is why a postmark has legal importance.

2) The check arrives at the recipient and may sit there an unknown 
number of days before the recipient deposits it at his or her bank.

3) The check returns to your bank at some time after that and is charged 
against your account on or perhaps a day after that date. THIS is that 
date that the bank will show for the transaction. It will NOT be the 
same as the date from #1.

Now this means that when you get your bank statement will in general NOT 
match what you have recorded in your checkbook, not match what what is 
in your gnucash account "checking account". That is what 
"reconciliation" is all about. Back in the old days, before you did 
accounting on a computer, you DID reconcile your checkbook every month, 
right?

If what you are doing is relying on the bank transactions to be later, 
you are using what is called "float". If there isn't enough in the 
checking account to cover the checks you just wrote BUT you make a 
sufficient cash deposit/transfer into the account before those checks 
get back to your bank you probably will get away with something that at 
least in my jurisdiction is technically illegal (if no "overdraft 
protection" arranged with the bank).  Using the bank dates will of 
course disguise what you did. But a full audit (one where the auditors 
check all or a sample of payments to see if justified by the paperwork 
and if the recipients actually received payment would disclose it (if 
the date on which they recorded "received" is before the date you have 
for "check written".

Michael D Novack


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