Bank accounts, purposes and bank ledgers

NirmaanOne keeps one register of every bank account the organization deals with: the promoter's collection, RERA separate, operative, GST and operating accounts, and the payout accounts of channel partners, vendors, buyers and society members. Every account has exactly one owner and, optionally, a purpose tag and a project. Four purposes are special: they mark the promoter's RERA accounts for a project and they get a ledger in the books automatically; a project is not ready for sale until its collection, RERA separate and operative accounts, with their ledgers, are in place.

How it works in NirmaanOne

One owner, never changed

An account belongs to one Company, one Person (a contact) or one Society member (a tenant), chosen when the account is created. The owner cannot be changed afterwards ("The owner of a bank account cannot be changed. Add a new account for the other owner instead."), because payments already made reference it. An account number together with its IFSC identifies the account: the same pair cannot be entered twice in one organization ("An account with this number and IFSC already exists").

The IFSC

The IFSC is the eleven-character branch code printed on cheques: four letters for the bank, the digit 0, then six letters or digits (HDFC0001234). It is typed in upper case and anything else is refused with "Enter the 11-character IFSC, e.g. HDFC0001234". A ten-character code you were given is a truncation (a zero was lost), not a valid IFSC. The IFSC goes into every payout bank file.

Purposes

A purpose is a lookup value tagged on the account (see Lookups and their codes). The seeded purposes are Collection account, RERA separate account, Operative account, GST, Operating, Client Payment, Tenant Payout and Channel Partner Payout. The first four are the project's RERA accounts and are read by the app:

Purpose	What it is for
Collection account	Every buyer payment enters here (100%). It is non-operative: the bank sweeps it daily, the escrow share to the RERA separate account and the rest to the operative account. Receipts default to it, and a receipt banked anywhere else carries a warning.
RERA separate account	Receives the escrow share of every sweep (70% under RERA 2016). It is drawn only for land and construction cost, against the architect's, engineer's and chartered accountant's certificates, through an escrow withdrawal.
Operative account	Receives the rest of every sweep (30% under RERA 2016): the developer's working account. Cancellation refunds are paid from it by default.
GST	Optional. Where a buyer's GST receipt is banked so it never enters the sweep. Without one, the GST receipt goes into the operative account (never swept either); a GST receipt banked into the collection account is swept with the rest, with a warning.

Operating, Client Payment, Tenant Payout and Channel Partner Payout are descriptive: they say what an account is used for and change nothing in the app. NirmaanOne records what the bank did with these accounts; it moves no money. See RERA accounts and the daily sweep.

The four RERA purposes describe accounts the promoter company holds for a project, so they may sit only on a company-owned account; the Purpose hint on a company's account reads "Collection, RERA separate, operative, GST, operating, payouts…". On a person's or a member's account they are hidden ("Collection, separate, operative and GST accounts belong to the promoter company, so they are not offered here."), and a person's or member's account is simply where money is paid to them.

A project's accounts

A project finds its collection, RERA separate, operative and GST accounts among its promoter's active accounts of those purposes: an account pinned to the project (the Project field, hint "RERA and GST accounts belong to one project.") wins; otherwise a shared account with no project is used, primary first. The project's readiness check needs the collection, RERA separate and operative accounts (the GST account is only a warning), so Book stays greyed out with reasons such as "<Promoter> has no collection bank account for this project" until they exist.

Bank ledgers

Money can only be cleared into a bank the books know about. When an active company account with one of the four RERA purposes is saved, and the company's books exist and are active, a bank ledger is created under the Bank group of those books at once, named "<bank> ····<last four digits> (<purpose> · <project>)", flagged RERA escrow so the RERA accounts statement lists it. Accounts saved before the books existed are caught up by Sync bank ledgers on the project's readiness card (the Edit permission on Projects), which creates every missing ledger for the four accounts in one click and answers "Bank ledgers created: <codes>." or "Every bank account already has its ledger." A missing ledger is itself a readiness blocker: "The books have no ledger for the collection bank account <bank> ····<last 4>; sync bank ledgers" (and the same for the RERA separate, operative and GST bank accounts). A sweep or a withdrawal on a project whose ledger is still missing is refused with "The books have no ledger for the collection bank account <bank> ····<last 4>; sync bank ledgers on the project first".

A receipt cleared with no bank account goes to the Cash ledger instead.

The primary account

Each owner can have one Primary account ("Default for payouts to this owner."); ticking it on one account unticks it on the owner's others. Payout runs pay a channel partner, member or vendor into their primary active account, or any active account when none is primary; a payee with no active account is skipped with "The payee has no active bank account on file" (cash and cheque runs excepted). The Verified flag ("Cancelled cheque or penny-drop checked.") is recorded for your own control; it does not stop a payout.

Holders and joint accounts

A person's or member's account names that person as Primary holder unless you list holders yourself; a company account has none by default. A joint account lists every holder (roles Primary / Joint) and, with two or more, a Mode of operation (Either or Survivor, Jointly, Former or Survivor, Anyone or Survivor), the bank's mandate for the account.

The collection-account warning

Into our account on a receipt defaults to the project's collection account (unless the mode is Cash). Pick any other account and the form warns before you save: "Under RERA every buyer payment enters the project's collection account (<bank> ····<last 4>), where the bank sweeps it. Pick it unless the money really went elsewhere; the receipt is saved either way, with a warning." Save it anyway and the receipt carries the warning "This receipt goes to <bank ····last 4 | cash>, not the collection account <bank ····last 4> of <project>; under RERA every buyer payment enters the collection account, where the bank sweeps it <n>% to the separate account", where the share is the organization's escrow rule in force (see Effective-dated rules) or the project's own RERA escrow share. A project with no collection account yet gets "<Project> has no collection bank account yet, so this receipt cannot be checked against RERA; add the account under the project's "Promoter & bank accounts" step". The warning never blocks the receipt, and NirmaanOne never moves money between accounts on its own: a cleared receipt into the collection account is swept the moment it clears, by a sweep that only records what the bank did. Receipts banked outside the collection account stay visible on the project's RERA accounts card and on the statement until they are moved with a Contra voucher. See Receipt saved with a warning: it went outside the collection account.

GST banked apart

The GST a buyer pays is its own receipt (receipt kind GST), banked into the project's GST account, else its operative account (the form's default for a GST receipt), recorded on its own or together with the consideration receipt. It never enters the sweep; the project's RERA accounts card and the RERA accounts statement show it as GST banked apart ("never swept"). A GST receipt banked into the collection account is saved with the warning "This GST receipt goes to the collection account <bank ····last 4> of <project>, where the bank sweeps it with the consideration; GST is normally banked into the GST or operative account" and, once cleared, is swept with the rest; one banked anywhere else warns "This GST receipt goes to <bank ····last 4>, which is not the GST or operative account of <project>". Older receipts recorded with GST banked apart and GST into keep that split: their Receipt voucher debited the chosen account net of the GST and the GST account for it, and their GST sent elsewhere warns "The GST of this receipt goes to <bank ····last 4>, which is not the project's GST or operative account". See GST banked apart refused on a receipt for the checks those older receipts met.

Deleting

An account that any payment references cannot be deleted ("Payments reference this bank account; deactivate it instead"); untick Active instead. An inactive account is no longer a project's collection, RERA separate, operative or GST account and is not paid into.

Example

Shree Siddhi Developers LLP is the promoter of Sai Darshan, a redevelopment in Ghatkopar. Its books exist. The accountant opens Bank accounts and adds:

1. Owner Company Shree Siddhi Developers LLP, purpose Collection account, project Sai Darshan, HDFC Bank, account 50200012344321, IFSC HDFC0000060 (a colleague had written "HDFC000060", ten characters, which is one zero short; the panel refuses it until the eleventh character is typed). Because the company keeps books, the ledger "HDFC Bank ····4321 (Collection account · Sai Darshan)" appears under the Bank group at once.
2. The same owner, purpose RERA separate account, project Sai Darshan, HDFC Bank account ending 7788. Its ledger is created too.
3. The same owner, purpose Operative account, project Sai Darshan, HDFC Bank account ending 5560, ticked Primary account. Its ledger is created too.
4. The same owner, purpose Operating, no project, ICICI Bank account ending 0912. No ledger is created for an Operating account by saving it; the accountant adds one on the Ledgers tab if the firm wants to bank there.

The project's readiness card now shows the three required accounts with their ledgers and no blocker; only the amber note about the optional GST account remains.

A buyer pays ₹10,00,000 net of TDS by NEFT. Into our account comes up with the HDFC collection account, and the receipt is cleared on 18 November. The moment it is cleared, the rule Receipt cleared into the collection account: post its RERA sweep (system) posts one sweep for that receipt alone, dated 18 November, at the 70% rule in force:

to the separate account = 10,00,000 × 70% = ₹7,00,000.00; to the operative account = 10,00,000 − 7,00,000 = ₹3,00,000.00

The sweep's one Contra voucher reads Dr HDFC Bank ····7788 ₹7,00,000.00, Dr HDFC Bank ····5560 ₹3,00,000.00 / Cr HDFC Bank ····4321 ₹10,00,000.00. It mirrors what the bank does with the day's collections; NirmaanOne moved nothing.

Another buyer's ₹9,90,000 net is recorded into the ICICI operating account by mistake. The form warns before saving that under RERA every buyer payment enters the project's collection account (HDFC Bank ····4321); saved anyway, the receipt carries the warning that it goes to ICICI Bank ····0912, not the collection account HDFC Bank ····4321 of Sai Darshan, where the bank sweeps it 70% to the separate account. The receipt is still saved; the accountant edits the pending receipt to the HDFC collection account before clearing it, the warning disappears, and the next sweep splits it ₹6,93,000.00 / ₹2,97,000.00.

For a channel partner, Skyline Realty, the accountant adds a Kotak account (owner Company Skyline Realty, purpose Channel Partner Payout) and ticks Primary account. The next Commissions payout run pays Skyline into that account and prints its IFSC in the bank file.

Where you see it

• Bank accounts: the register, the owner, purpose, project, IFSC, Primary account, holders and Mode of operation.
• Company: the Bank accounts card of an owner.
• Project overview and Project setup wizard: the readiness card, the banking step, Sync bank ledgers.
• Ledgers: the bank ledgers under the Bank group.
• Record receipt / Record payout: Into our account defaulting to the collection account (the GST account, else the operative account, for a GST receipt), and the collection-account and GST warnings.
• Payout runs and Payout run: the paying account, payee accounts and the bank file.
• RERA sweeps: the daily sweeps of the collection account into the separate and operative accounts; Escrow withdrawals: certified drawdowns from the RERA separate account.
• RERA accounts: the statement of the four accounts, ledger by ledger.
• Book <unit> for <name> (booking wizard): readiness blockers about missing accounts and ledgers.
• Lookups: the purposes list; Organization: the RERA escrow share rule; Project settings: a project's own RERA escrow share.

Related

• RERA accounts and the daily sweep
• Effective-dated rules
• Lookups and their codes
• Contacts, companies and company types
• Dashboard figures: absorption, funnel and operational money