Rekeningbalans

Rekeningbalans is a listing of all general ledger accounts and their balances at a specific date, showing the debit or credit for each account. It is used in double-entry bookkeeping to verify that the sum of debits equals the sum of credits and to provide a basis for preparing financial statements. The rekeningbalans is typically generated at period end and may be called an unadjusted trial balance or adjusted trial balance, depending on whether adjusting entries have been posted.

The items in a rekeningbalans include account number, account name, and the balance on the appropriate side (debit or credit). Accounts are commonly categorized into assets and expenses (debit balances) and liabilities, equity, and revenues (credit balances). The balances reflect the cumulative effect of postings in the general ledger.

The rekeningbalans serves several purposes: it helps detect posting errors, provides a snapshot of financial position, and supports the preparation of the balance sheet and income statement. After adjusting entries, an adjusted rekeningbalans is produced, which then feeds into financial statements. It is not a substitute for supporting documents or for auditing; it only shows arithmetic accuracy and classification, not completeness.

The term is used in various accounting traditions and may be referred to as trial balance in English. In Dutch-language contexts, rekeningbalans is the equivalent term, with similar function.