> ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.nmbr.co/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Journal Entries > How Nmbr generates payroll journal entries and what the Journal Entry report contains. For each payroll, Nmbr generates two payroll-level journal entries, plus a recording entry for each pay stub. ## 1) Payroll Recording (Accrual Entry) * Recognises payroll **expenses** and corresponding **liabilities**. * Ensures costs are recorded in the correct accounting period. * **Debit:** Expense accounts (e.g. Wages Expense). * **Credit:** Liability accounts (e.g. Payroll Payable, Tax Withheld Payable). **Example (simplified):** | Account | Debit | Credit | | -------------------- | ----- | ------ | | Wages Expense | 5,000 | | | Employer CPP Expense | 500 | | | Payroll Payable | | 5,500 | ## 2) Payroll Payment (Payment Entry) * Reflects the actual **cash movement** when payroll and remittances are paid. * **Debit:** Liability accounts (clearing what was accrued). * **Credit:** Bank account. **Example (simplified):** | Account | Debit | Credit | | --------------- | ----- | ------ | | Payroll Payable | 5,500 | | | Bank Account | | 5,500 | ## Pay stub recording entries Alongside the two payroll-level entries, Nmbr generates a `pay_stub_recording` entry for each pay stub, holding the accrual detail for that single pay stub. These carry a `pay_stub` reference and are returned by the [Journal Entries API](/api-reference/journal-entries/list-journal-entries) with the payroll-level entries. Filter by `type` to narrow the list. Only the two payroll-level entries (`payroll_recording` and `payroll_payment`) are exported to the connected accounting platform. ## Tracking dimensions When a line item is allocated across tags, each journal entry row carries the matched tags in its `dimension_1_tag`, `dimension_2_tag`, and `dimension_3_tag` fields, and the row is split per allocation. This breaks down payroll cost by department, project, or location. The tags are returned as stubs by default; resolve them with a nested expand such as `journal_entry_rows.dimension_1_tag`. See [Journal entry tracking dimensions](/guides/accounting/tagging#journal-entry-tracking-dimensions) and [Retrieving dimension tags](/guides/accounting/tagging#retrieving-dimension-tags) for the full model. ## Sample Journal Entry JSON ```json theme={null} { "id": "", "object": "journal_entry", "data": { "type": "payroll_recording", "title": "Payroll Accrual Entry", "payroll": { "id": "", "object": "payroll", "links": { "self": "/payrolls/" } }, "pay_stub": null, "is_balanced": true, "total": 5403.62, "is_missing_line_item_accounting_codes": false, "is_missing_default_account_payable": false, "is_missing_default_bank_account": false, "posted_on": "2025-01-15T00:00:00.000000Z", "invalid_expense_types": [], "invalid_liability_types": [], "integrations": { "quickbooks": { "reference": null }, "xero": { "reference": null } }, "journal_entry_rows": { "object": "list", "data": [ { "id": "", "object": "journal_entry_row", "data": { "type": "debit", "amount": 5000, "code": "6000", "description": "Semi-Monthly Schedule #1 - Wages Expense", "account_code": { "id": "", "object": "accounting_code", "links": { "self": "/accounting_codes/" } }, "dimension_1_tag": null, "dimension_2_tag": null, "dimension_3_tag": null, "created_at": "2025-01-01T00:00:00.000000Z", "updated_at": "2025-01-01T00:00:00.000000Z" }, "links": { "self": null } }, { "id": "", "object": "journal_entry_row", "data": { "type": "debit", "amount": 403.62, "code": "6010", "description": "Semi-Monthly Schedule #1 - Employer Contributions Expense", "account_code": { "id": "", "object": "accounting_code", "links": { "self": "/accounting_codes/" } }, "dimension_1_tag": null, "dimension_2_tag": null, "dimension_3_tag": null, "created_at": "2025-01-01T00:00:00.000000Z", "updated_at": "2025-01-01T00:00:00.000000Z" }, "links": { "self": null } }, { "id": "", "object": "journal_entry_row", "data": { "type": "credit", "amount": 1930.24, "code": "2200", "description": "Semi-Monthly Schedule #1 - Statutory Withholdings Payable", "account_code": { "id": "", "object": "accounting_code", "links": { "self": "/accounting_codes/" } }, "dimension_1_tag": null, "dimension_2_tag": null, "dimension_3_tag": null, "created_at": "2025-01-01T00:00:00.000000Z", "updated_at": "2025-01-01T00:00:00.000000Z" }, "links": { "self": null } }, { "id": "", "object": "journal_entry_row", "data": { "type": "credit", "amount": 3473.38, "code": "2210", "description": "Semi-Monthly Schedule #1 - Net Pay Payable", "account_code": { "id": "", "object": "accounting_code", "links": { "self": "/accounting_codes/" } }, "dimension_1_tag": null, "dimension_2_tag": null, "dimension_3_tag": null, "created_at": "2025-01-01T00:00:00.000000Z", "updated_at": "2025-01-01T00:00:00.000000Z" }, "links": { "self": null } } ] }, "created_at": "2025-01-01T00:00:00.000000Z", "updated_at": "2025-01-01T00:00:00.000000Z" }, "links": { "self": "/journal_entries/" } } ``` > Journal entries can be retrieved via the [Journal Entries API](/api-reference/journal-entries/list-journal-entries). ## Validation flags Before a journal entry can be exported it must be complete and balanced. Inspect these flags on the entry: | Field | Meaning | | --------------------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------- | | `is_balanced` | `false` if debits ≠ credits. | | `is_missing_line_item_accounting_codes` | One or more line items lack codes. | | `is_missing_default_account_payable` | No default payroll payable code set. | | `is_missing_default_bank_account` | No default bank code set. | | `invalid_expense_types` | List of `{ type, subtype }` missing an expense code. | | `invalid_liability_types` | List of `{ type, subtype }` missing a liability code. | To stop incomplete entries from reaching an approved payroll, enable `block_approval_on_incomplete_journal_entries` (or `block_approval_on_missing_export_identifiers`) on the Business Entity's `accounting_settings`.