Despite the most thorough review, an occasional accounts payable invoice may be posted through the system with the wrong coding information. To correct such an invoice that has not been paid, the invoice must be voided and then re-entered.
If the invoice has already been paid, then a handwritten check may be entered to reclassify the expense information from one set of coding to another. This can also be accomplished with a general journal entry, however, keep in mind that a general journal does not reference a vendor number, invoice number or a check number except in the description field. The handwritten check provides a better record of all transactions related to a specific check.
The handwritten check entry should reference the same check number, check date and vendor information as the original check, however, the net amount of the check will be zero. Referencing the original invoice number, enter the amount and the expense information (job, phase, account) that the original entry should have been charged to. Next, with the same invoice number, enter the same amount as a negative number (for example: -100.00) with the expense information that the original entry was erroneously charged to. Once posted, these entries will leave an audit trail of both the original entries and the reclassification of the cost.
