Church Cashbook User Manual

Transactions are the heart of the system: record money in and out, keep a clear audit trail, and export or import in bulk.

View and filter

• Use date range and search to find items.
• Filter by money in / money out.
• Choose whether to show voided items.
• Filter by cleared / uncleared to reconcile against the bank statement.

Add money in (receipts)

1. Go to Transactions → Add transaction.
2. Choose Money in.
3. Enter date, amount, category and description.
4. Attach a document if appropriate.
5. Save.

Add money out (payments)

1. Go to Transactions → Add transaction.
2. Choose Money out.
3. Enter date, amount, category and description.
4. Attach an invoice or receipt if available.
5. Save.

Duplicate transaction warning

When you enter or edit a transaction, the system checks whether another transaction on the same date with the same amount already exists. If it finds one, an amber warning appears below the amount field. This warning is advisory only — you can still save. It is designed to catch accidental double-entry, not to prevent legitimate repeated amounts such as a monthly standing order.

Edit a transaction

Click the edit icon on any transaction row. If other transactions exist on the same date and amount, the duplicate warning appears automatically when the page loads. If you are unsure whether an edit is appropriate, void and re-enter rather than silently changing a historic item.

Audit trail

At the bottom of every edit form, an Audit trail card shows the full history of that transaction: when it was created, every edit, receipt additions or removals, and any void or unvoid actions — with the timestamp and name of the user who made each change.

Clear / unclear

Use clear/unclear to track reconciliation status, matching the bank statement. The bank statement balance check panel shows whether the cashbook cleared balance matches the statement closing balance.

Void / unvoid

• Use Void for duplicates or incorrect entries.
• Voided items remain visible but do not affect totals or reports.
• Always provide a reason (e.g. "Entered twice — see transaction 42").
• Void actions are recorded in the audit trail.

Bulk import from CSV

To import multiple transactions at once — for example, when onboarding a church mid-year — use Import transactions from the dashboard. The process is two steps:

1. Upload — select your CSV file and the destination bank account. The system parses every row and shows a preview table highlighting any errors.
2. Confirm — valid rows show in green; rows with errors show in red and will be skipped. Click Import to insert the valid rows.

The CSV format uses seven columns: Date, Description, Amount, Direction (in/out), Category (optional), Fund (optional), Cleared (optional). The import page shows a full reference table of accepted category codes. A header row is automatically detected and skipped. Maximum 500 rows per file.

Export CSV

Exports respect your permissions and current filters. Treat exported files as sensitive financial data and store them securely.