Introducing the Fiscal Calendar

Objective

After completing this lesson, you will be able to explain the purpose of the Fiscal Calendar.

Basics of the Fiscal Calendar

The Fiscal Calendar tab is where you define your company’s accounting periods independently of the standard calendar year.

The image shows a screenshot of a Budget Configuration page under the Fiscal Calendar tab. It displays a table listing fiscal years from 2020 to 2024, all active with the exception of year 2020. Buttons for New, Modify, Activate, Deactivate, and Remove are present.

A fiscal calendar has one or more fiscal years, and fiscal years have one or more fiscal periods. Fiscal years have a start date and an end date.

Fiscal periods can vary within a fiscal year, but they typically represent months. In the background, a fiscal quarter is generated every three periods. Fiscal quarters and the fiscal year period are used when budget items are maintained on a quarterly or yearly basis.

Budget is designed to support up to 24 budget periods per year. These periods can be set as monthly, quarterly, or custom-defined. Budget supports projects within either a fiscal or calendar year. Additionally, it supports special projects that follow different calendars or span multiple years — including those that cross from one fiscal year to the next — through the Date Range option in Budget Items..

Caution

Fiscal years cannot overlap with prior fiscal years, and there must be no gaps between them.

References

Title	Link
Budget Admin Guide - Manage Fiscal Years	^{Budget Admin Guide - Manage Fiscal Years}

Summary

Use the Fiscal Calendar tab to define accounting periods separate from the standard calendar year.
Fiscal years contain one or more periods, typically months, which can be customized up to 24 periods per year.
Fiscal years cannot overlap or have gaps between them.
Budget supports projects with custom calendars or those spanning multiple fiscal years using the Date Range option.

Next lesson