How can I correct my 2021 retained earnings balance?

Thank you for dropping by the Community today, shcnorthpole-gma.  

I’m here to help and guide you on how to correct your 2021 retained earnings balance. Let’s run the Retained Earnings account Quick Report to check transactions that affect the amount.

Here’s how:

1. In QuickBooks Online (QBO), go to the Accounting menu on the left panel and choose Chart of Accounts.
2. From the list, look for your Retained Earnings account and click the Run report link under the Action column.
3. On the Account QuickReport page, head tap the Report period drop-down and select All Dates.
4. Click the Run report menu for the changes to take effect.

If the amount is incorrect, create a journal entry to fix the discrepancy. I also suggest reaching out to your accountant to check the categories used for the debit and credit. This is to ensure your books have the correct information.

To learn more about what makes up your Retained Earnings, feel free to browse this article: What makes up your Retained Earnings. It outlines the complete steps on how to build the Profit and Loss report and the account Quick Report.

Also, this reference will guide you through the steps of viewing financial reports in QBO. From there, you’ll learn about exporting the statement, emailing your printing as well as printing one.

Keep in touch if you have additional concerns or questions on how to correct your retained earnings. I’ll be glad to get this taken care of for you. Have a great day ahead.

@shcnorthpole-gma 

If 2021 was your first year in business, your balance sheet will show $0 in retained earnings as of 12-31-21.  Retained earnings is not booked until 1-1-22.  If you run a balance sheet as of 1-1-22, you will see the net income that was shown on the 12-31-21 balance sheet is now shown as retained earnings.