Unit 5: GR/IR Account Maintenance
The GR/IR clearing account bridges goods receipt and invoice receipt. When quantities never match – because a GR or an invoice will never arrive – the leftover balance must be cleared manually with MR11. This unit explains why balances remain, what the maintenance posts, and how to run and cancel it.
Lesson 1 · Performing GR/IR Account Maintenance
After this lesson you can
- Explain when GR/IR and delivery-cost clearing accounts need maintenance
- Describe the account movements of an account maintenance document
- Run, display and cancel GR/IR account maintenance
Key concepts
For a PO item, the GR/IR clearing account is balanced once delivered quantity = invoiced quantity. If more has been invoiced than delivered, the system waits for another GR (invoice surplus); if more has been delivered than invoiced, it waits for another invoice (delivery surplus). Normally a further GR, a return delivery, a further invoice or a credit memo resolves this. When none of these will happen – e.g. the supplier wrote off a small quantity, two damaged returns were never credited, or a free sample was delivered and never billed – the remaining quantity difference must be cleared by account maintenance.
The same applies to planned delivery costs: if the delivered quantity differs from the quantity on which delivery costs were settled, the freight/customs clearing account keeps a balance that must be maintained as well.
Only maintain items for which you are sure no further GR or IR will be posted. Maintenance is typically run periodically or at fiscal year-end. Each run creates an account maintenance document (an MM document plus an FI document, default FI document type KP), which appears as a separate line in the PO history.
| Causes a GR/IR difference | Does not cause one |
|---|---|
| Free-of-charge delivery the supplier never invoices (valuated GR posted) | Price variance at IR (goes to stock/PRD, GR/IR cleared at PO price) |
| Return of 100 pcs but credit memo for only 98 | Non-valuated GR (GR/IR not used at all) |
| Supplier invoices more than delivered and no further GR follows |
Account movements
| PO item | Offsetting entry to clear GR/IR |
|---|---|
| Material with MAP | Stock account (BSX) as far as stock coverage exists; remainder to price differences (PRD) |
| Material with standard price | Price difference account (PRD) |
| With account assignment | Consumption account (cost center, order …) |
Example: 100 pcs at 10 EUR received (GR/IR credited 1,000), supplier invoices only 95 pcs (GR/IR debited 950). Maintenance clears the 50 EUR credit balance: Dr GR/IR 50 / Cr stock (MAP) or Cr PRD (standard price).
Process flow
System steps
- Start MR11 (Logistics Invoice Verification › GR/IR Account Maintenance › Maintain GR/IR Clearing Account; Fiori: Clear GR/IR Clearing Account).
- Enter header data for the maintenance document (company code, posting date, document date…).
- Restrict the PO items: supplier or freight supplier, purchasing organization/group, plant, purchasing document/item, PO date, document category (PO or scheduling agreement), order type, surplus type (delivery surplus and/or invoice surplus), accounts to clear (GR/IR and/or delivery-cost clearing), whether ERS POs / ERS delivery costs are included, Last movement before key date, and maximum quantity variance (%) and value variance (company code currency).
- Choose processing: Automatic clearance (also as background job via Program › Execute in Background) or Prepare list to select individual items, then clear.
- Review the PO history. If an unexpected GR or IR arrives later, display and cancel the maintenance document with MR11SHOW (Fiori: Display/Cancel Account Maintenance Document).
Configuration (IMG)
SPRO › Materials Management › Logistics Invoice Verification › Clearing Account Maintenance › Maintain Number Assignments for Accounting Documents (OMR4)
SPRO › Materials Management › Logistics Invoice Verification › Clearing Account Maintenance › Maintain Number Assignment for Account Maintenance Document
See Unit 6 for the number-range transactions KP/KS.
SAP S/4HANA adds Fiori support for analysing GR/IR balances before clearing, e.g. the Reconcile GR/IR Accounts app, which lists open GR/IR items by purchasing document with status and responsibility so purchasing and accounting can resolve them together; MR11 remains the clearing tool.
- GR/IR maintenance clears quantity differences that will not be resolved by further GR/IR; price variances never leave GR/IR balances.
- Offsetting: MAP → stock (coverage) / PRD; standard → PRD; account-assigned → consumption.
- MR11 to post, MR11SHOW to display/cancel; maintenance document is visible in PO history; default FI document type
KP. - Delivery-cost clearing accounts can be maintained in the same run.
Unit summary & exam focus
T-codes in this unit
| T-code | Purpose |
|---|---|
| MR11 | Maintain GR/IR clearing account |
| MR11SHOW | Display/cancel account maintenance document |
| OMR4 | Document types/number assignment for account maintenance |
Self-check questions
- Does a price variance at invoice receipt leave a balance on GR/IR?
Answer
No. GR/IR is cleared at PO price × quantity; the variance goes to stock or price differences. - When should GR/IR account maintenance be performed for a PO item?
Answer
When delivered and invoiced quantities differ and no further GR, return, invoice or credit memo is expected. - Where is the offset posted for a standard-price material?
Answer
To the price difference account. - What can you do if a GR arrives after account maintenance?
Answer
Cancel the account maintenance document with MR11SHOW (or the corresponding Fiori app). - Which two processing modes does MR11 offer?
Answer
Automatic clearance (can run in background) and Prepare list (select items manually).