Books cannot be deleted: vouchers or payments exist in them
The Delete books dialog refuses because the books already hold vouchers or payments; deactivate the books instead so their history stays intact.
Messages this explains
- “Vouchers or payments exist in these books; deactivate them instead”
Books cannot be deleted: vouchers or payments exist in them
What you see
You press the trash icon on the Books list or Delete on the books overview. The Delete books? dialog explains that the books "and its chart of accounts, fiscal years, voucher types and cost centres will be removed. Books with vouchers or payments cannot be deleted; deactivate them instead." When you confirm, the dialog shows:
"Vouchers or payments exist in these books; deactivate them instead"
Why it happens
A set of books is the ledger of one promoter company. Deleting it removes the chart of accounts, fiscal years, voucher types and cost centres with it. As soon as a single voucher (even a draft or a cancelled draft) or a single payment has been recorded in the books, deleting them would erase accounting history that demands, receipts, payouts and reports refer to. The app therefore only deletes books that were never used, and asks you to deactivate the others. Inactive books keep everything but refuse new vouchers and postings.
Deleting needs the Delete permission on Books; the button is not shown without it.
How to fix it
- Open the books from Books and press Edit on the books overview. You need the Edit permission on Books.
- Untick Active ("Inactive books keep their data but refuse new vouchers and postings.") and press Save changes. The overview now carries an Inactive badge, and the list filter Inactive only finds the books later.
- If the books really must go, the vouchers and payments in them have to go first: only Draft vouchers can be deleted, and posted ones can only be reversed, so in practice used books are kept inactive. See Vouchers and Payments to see what is in them.
- If the books were created by mistake and never used, delete them: the dialog succeeds and the toast says "Books "<name>" deleted."
Related
Related
- BooksScreen
The list of every set of books in your organization, one per promoter company, with the actions to set up books for a company, open a set or delete one.
- Books overviewScreen
The home page of one set of books: its company and settings, counts, fiscal years, and shortcuts to the chart of accounts, vouchers, reports and opening balances, with the actions to rename, deactivate or delete the books.
- VouchersScreen
Every voucher in the chosen set of books (drafts, posted, reversed and cancelled), with filters and the menu to start a new voucher.
- PaymentsScreen
Every receipt and payout of the chosen books, with filters and search, and the buttons to record a receipt, record a payout or open the payout runs, the RERA sweeps, the TDS credits and the escrow withdrawals.
- "These books are inactive": nothing posts until the books are reactivatedTroubleshooting
Posting a voucher, issuing a demand, recording a payment, starting a run or cancelling a booking is refused because the promoter's books are inactive; what is blocked and how to reactivate them.