[GNC] Where would enter revenue that could be paid to shareholders?

[Michael Hendry]

On 5 Dec 2021, at 11:39, Dr. David Kirkby <drkirkby at kirkbymicrowave.co.uk> wrote:

> 
> If a company can potentially pay out X pounds, but has not paid out any at
> all, where would that be entered in GnuCash? I assume its a liability, but
> should it be entered into liabilities, or perhaps retained earnings?

I’m not an accountant.

I keep the books for a couple of charities, one of which receives donations which the donor has ear-marked for a particular purpose which might not come up in the same financial year.

I thought it would be a good idea to record this as a liability, which would survive the year-end and remind the trustees that there was a sum which  could only be spent for that purpose, but I was hauled up by the accountant who examines our records for the charities register, and had to abandon that method. 

I don’t know if this restriction applies to a company’s books, but if it does you might consider creating a budget, which would include run-of-the-mill income and expenditure but could also include predicted dividend payments without interfering with the books.

You should probably get professional advice…

Regards,

Michael