Most reconciliation of outward supply starts from the ledger balances, because that is what is easiest to reach. It is also one step removed from what was actually invoiced, and the step is where the differences hide.
The register as the authority
Here the outward figure is built from the sales register at invoice level — sales, plus debit notes raised against a sale, less credit notes against one — with each note treated according to the direction it actually moves tax. The reconciliation is then between documents and the return, rather than between a balance and a return.
Why invoice level matters
A ledger total tells you the amount. The register tells you which invoices make it up. When the return and the books disagree, the question is always which documents, and only one of those two answers it. An invoice-level basis also means a credit note booked in the wrong direction shows up as the wrong direction, rather than disappearing into a net figure that happens to look right.
Notes, routed properly
Credit and debit notes are the commonest cause of a reconciliation that nearly works. A note that reduces outward tax and a note that increases it are not interchangeable, and netting them together produces a total that agrees with nothing. Each is routed by what it actually does.
Month by month, not just for the year
The annual totals are the figure everyone looks at and the least useful view, because an excess in one month and a shortfall in another cancel out. The monthly reconciliation keeps them apart, which is where the difference that matters usually lives.
Returns as filed, taken as given
Where a return has been filed, it is the fixed point: the books are reconciled to it rather than the other way round, and a difference is reported as a difference instead of being adjusted away.
The rest of the workbench, unchanged
Everything else behaves as the main reconciliation does — the monthly view, the differences, the registers underneath. Only the authority for the outward figure changes, which is the one choice that decides whether the exercise is about balances or about documents.
Questions CAs ask
How does this differ from reconciling on ledger balances?
The outward figure is built from the sales register at invoice level, including debit and credit notes raised against a sale, rather than from ledger totals. A difference against the return can then be traced to particular documents.
How are credit and debit notes handled?
Each is routed according to the direction in which it actually moves tax, rather than being netted together. A note recorded in the wrong direction stays visible instead of disappearing into a net total.
Is the reconciliation monthly or annual?
Both, and the monthly view is the one that matters: annual totals let an excess in one month offset a shortfall in another, which is where most real differences hide.
What happens where a return has already been filed?
The filed return is treated as the fixed point and the books are reconciled to it. A difference is reported as a difference rather than adjusted to make the two agree.
Further reading
Related modules
- GST Reco — Reconcile Tally books with GSTR-1, 2A, 2B and 3B period by period — register-led outward supply, every leg classified by its own tax tag, and a colour-coded matrix.
- Detailed Scrutiny — Transaction-level voucher scrutiny across the whole Tally population — exception flags, period read from the narration, and prior-period items confirmed by the CA.
- Accounting Checks — Completeness, cut-off, accrual and classification checks run over the whole Tally books — every verdict showing its basis, every finding exportable as a working paper.