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Nominal Codes

xAssets Fixed Asset Management User Guide
Section 3 – Financial Setup

Nominal Codes

Nominal codes are accounting reference codes that map xAssets financial transactions to the correct accounts in your general ledger. When the system produces depreciation journals and other financial output, it uses nominal codes to classify each entry. Getting nominal codes right is essential — incorrect mappings will cause journal entries to post to the wrong accounts in your accounting system.

Prerequisites

  • You must be in the Fixed Asset Management profile (see Fixed Asset Management Profile).
  • You should have your organisation's chart of accounts available, as nominal codes must match the account references used by your accounting system.

Nominal Code Structure

Nominal codes are organised into groups:

Level Description Example
Nominal Group A category of related codes "Capital Expenditure", "Depreciation"
Nominal Code An individual account reference "4100 - IT Equipment Depreciation"

Each nominal code has the following fields:

Field Description
Nominal Code The account reference number — this must match your accounting system exactly
Description A descriptive name for the code
Short Description An abbreviated label used in compact views
Nominal Group The parent group for categorisation

Accessing Nominal Codes

In the Fixed Asset Management profile, navigate to Financial Setup > Nominal Codes to view and manage all nominal codes. Use Financial Setup > Nominal Groups to manage the grouping structure.

Creating Nominal Codes

To create a new nominal code:

  1. Navigate to the Nominal Codes list.
  2. Select New Nominal Code from the page-level menu.
  3. Enter the account reference that matches your accounting system.
  4. Enter a description.
  5. Assign the code to the appropriate nominal group.
  6. Click Save.

Tip: Use the same code format as your accounting system. If your GL uses 4-digit codes like "4100", use "4100" in xAssets — not "04100" or "Dep-IT". Mismatched formats will cause journal import failures.

Typical Nominal Code Mappings

The following table shows common nominal code categories and how they map to accounting entries:

Transaction Type Debit Account Credit Account
Asset acquisition Fixed Asset Cost (Balance Sheet) Bank / Creditors
Depreciation charge Depreciation Expense (P&L) Accumulated Depreciation (Balance Sheet)
Asset disposal Accumulated Depreciation (Balance Sheet) Fixed Asset Cost (Balance Sheet)
Disposal proceeds Bank / Debtors Disposal Gain/Loss (P&L)
Revaluation Fixed Asset Cost (Balance Sheet) Revaluation Reserve (Balance Sheet)

Example: Nominal Codes for IT Equipment

Code Description Type
1100 IT Equipment — Cost Balance Sheet asset
1101 IT Equipment — Accumulated Depreciation Balance Sheet contra-asset
4100 IT Equipment — Depreciation Expense P&L expense
4200 IT Equipment — Disposal Gain/Loss P&L

How Nominal Codes Are Used

Nominal codes are referenced at several points in the system:

  1. Depreciation types — Each depreciation type can specify which nominal codes to use when posting depreciation entries.
  2. Journal production — During period-end processing, the system uses nominal codes to produce journal entries that can be exported to your general ledger.
  3. Transaction records — Each financial transaction stores the nominal code it was posted against, creating an audit trail.

Nominal Code Groups and Multi-Company

Each company can have its own set of nominal codes (a nominal code group), or share a group with other companies. This is configured on the company record (see Multi Company Environments).

Use separate nominal code groups when:

  • Companies use different charts of accounts
  • Companies report to different general ledger systems
  • Legal or regulatory requirements mandate separate account structures

Use shared nominal code groups when:

  • All companies use the same chart of accounts
  • You want consistent journal formatting across the group

Editing and Deleting Nominal Codes

  • Editing — Click a nominal code in the list to open it for editing. Changes to the description or group do not affect existing transactions.
  • Deleting — Use Delete Nominal Code from the list. You can only delete a code that is not referenced by any transactions or depreciation types.

Warning: Before deleting a nominal code, ensure no depreciation types or journal transformations reference it. Deleting a code that is still in use will cause errors during period-end processing.

Verifying Nominal Code Setup

Before running period-end processing for the first time, verify that:

  1. Every depreciation type has the correct nominal codes assigned.
  2. Your nominal codes match your accounting system's chart of accounts exactly.
  3. If you have multiple companies, each company's nominal code group contains the required codes.

Tip: Produce a test journal (by running a trial depreciation calculation) and review the output before posting to your general ledger. This catches nominal code mapping errors before they create real accounting entries.