Tolerance Limit - Customer or Vendor

Payment Differences
What is Tolerance?

Minor differences between the Invoice amount and the amount received from the
customers/amount paid to the vendors are a very common occurrence.

In such scenario, the following options can be adopted:

The receipts/payments can be posted by partially clearing the invoices and creating a
residual item for the difference, if the amount of difference is beyond a certain limit and
is hence material

The receipts/payments can be posted by clearing the invoices and creating a separate
entry for the difference amount, if the amount of difference is within a certain limit and is
hence immaterial

The above mentioned limit which controls whether a difference amount is material or immaterial
is determined by the tolerance limit defined in the SAP system.

Functioning of Tolerance in SAP:

The way SAP system handles such a scenario can be controlled by carrying out relevant
configurations and master data maintenance.

Step 1 - The main activity to be done for using the concept of Tolerance in SAP is:

Analyzing the requirement for creating tolerance group

If as per the business requirement there is a need to provide for tolerance in case of
payment differences, then tolerance groups would have to be created as required

Grouping together customers/vendors who should be assigned same tolerance limits

Creating as many Tolerance Groups as there is a need to classify customers into different
groups entitled to different tolerance limits

If there is no need to classify the customers/vendors into different groups, who are entitled to
different tolerance limits, the requirement to assign tolerance group to customers/vendors can be
met by creating blank tolerance group (as shown in the screenshot below).

Thus whenever any customer/vendor master is created the tolerance group in the master data can
be left blank.The blank tolerance group would become automatically applicable to the
customer/vendor.

Step 2 - Define Tolerance Group:

The tolerance limits would have to be defined by way of tolerance groups.

Tolerance Groups contain the details that control the way the system processes the cash discount
and payment differences.

Further, the tolerance limits can be defined:

Either as an absolute amount

Or as a percentage of the amount received/paid

But the applicable tolerance limit would be the lower of either the absolute amount or the amount
arrived at by calculating the percentage.

Tolerance Group would have to be created for Customers/Vendors and Users.

Step 3 - Assignment of Tolerance Group:

The tolerance limits would have to be assigned to the customers/vendors for each company code
separately.

The tolerance limits would have to be assigned to the employees/users.

Determining the Tolerance Amount Applicable:

The tolerance which would be applicable in any scenario would be the least of the following:

Either the absolute amount or the amount arrived at by calculating the percentage of the
amount received/paid up to which payment differences are allowed to be posted for the
customer/vendor as specified in the tolerance group applicable for the customer/vendor

Or the absolute amount or the amount arrived at by calculating the percentage of the
amount received/paid up to which payment differences are allowed to be posted by the
user posting the invoice specified in the tolerance group applicable for the user

The maximum amounts would have to be defined separately for revenue as well as expenses.

Posting of Payment Differences:

The way the payment differences would be posted would depend upon whether:

The payment difference amount is within the allowed cash discount tolerance amount and
is a gain or

The payment difference amount is within the allowed cash discount tolerance amount and
is a loss or

The payment difference amount exceeds the allowed cash discount tolerance amount

If the payment difference is within the maximum discount adjustment for gain/loss from
payment differences, then the difference amount would be posted to the Cash Discount
Adjustment account.

If the payment difference exceeds the maximum discount adjustment for gain/loss from payment
differences, then the difference amount would be posted to the Payment Difference account.

Step 4 - Automatic Determination of G/L Accounts to be posted to:

The payment differences irrespective of, whether it exceeds or is within the permitted payment
difference as per the tolerance groups, would have to be posted to G/L Accounts.

The G/L accounts to be posted to in both the abovementioned scenarios can be automatically
determined as per the configuration settings in the SAP system.

Step 4 A - Account to be posted to in case of payment differences beyond defined cash discounts:

Description

Transaction Code

Maintain FI Configuration Automatic Posting - Accounts

OBXL

The General Ledger Account to which the payment difference should be posted in case it
exceeds the permitted payment difference amount is assigned here:

Step 4 B - Account to be posted to in case the payment difference gain is within defined
Maximum Discount Adjustment Amount for Gain from Payment Differences:

Description

Transaction Code

Maintain FI Configuration Automatic Posting - Accounts

OBXU

In the scenarios where the payment difference is a gain and should be adjusted to the Cash
Discount Gains account, the General Ledger Account to which it should be posted is assigned
here:

Step 4 C - Account to be posted to in case the payment difference loss is within defined Maximum
Discount Adjustment Amount for Loss from Payment Differences:

Description

Transaction Code

Maintain FI Configuration Automatic Posting - Accounts

OBXI

In the scenarios where the payment difference is a loss and should be adjusted to the Cash
Discount Loss account, the General Ledger Account to which it should be posted is assigned
here:

Step 5 - Specification of Customer/Vendor Tolerance Group:

Description

Transaction Code

Customer/Vendor Tolerances

OBA3

For each company code, the specifications for the tolerance groups for customers/vendors would
have to be configured, which would control:

the permitted payment differences in terms of either absolute amounts for gains or losses
or

the permitted payment differences in terms of percentages for gains or losses and

the limit till which the cash discounts can be adjusted for gains or losses for
customers/vendors

Step 6 - Specification of User Tolerance Group:

Description

Transaction Code

User Tolerances

OBA4

For each company code, the specifications for the tolerance groups for user would have to be
configured, which would control:

the permitted payment differences in terms of either absolute amounts for gains or losses
or

the permitted payment differences in terms of percentages for gains or losses and

the limit till which the user is authorized to adjust the cash discounts for gains or losses

Step 7 - Assignment of Tolerance Group to Customer:

Description

Transaction Code

Create/Change Customer Master Data

FD01/FD02/XD01/XD02

The tolerance group configured above shall have to be assigned to the customer master.

Step 8 - Assignment of Tolerance Group to Users:

Description

Transaction Code

Assign Users to Tolerance Group

OB57

The tolerance group configured above shall have to be assigned to the User.

Illustration of Functioning of Tolerance in SAP:

Illustration Step 1 - Post Customer Invoice:

Description

Transaction Code

Post Customer Invoice

FB70

An invoice is posted:

against the above customer who is assigned the Blank tolerance group

by the user shown above who is assigned the Blank tolerance group

Permitted Payment Difference as per Tolerance Group - Blank:

As per the tolerance group assigned to the customer master as well as the user, the following
payment differences are permitted:

Payment difference of an amount upto 5 EUR(as per absolute amount specified)

Payment difference of an amount upto 10 EUR(as per % specified)

Hence the maximum permitted payment difference as per the tolerance group assigned to the
customer master as well as the user is 5 EUR.

Illustration Step 2 - Post Incoming Payment with payment difference exceeding the
permitted amount as per the Tolerance Group Blank:

Description

Transaction Code

Post Incoming Payment

F-28

The customer is entitled to a 2% cash discount which is EUR 40 as per the payment term
assigned to the customer.

Amount of Invoice
= EUR 2000
Cash Discount entitlement as per payment term - 2% = EUR 40
Correct amount to be received for clearing the invoice = EUR 1960
Permitted payment difference
= EUR 5

An incoming payment is posted against the above customer for EUR 1940 (with a payment
difference amount of EUR 20, which is beyond the permissible payment difference amount or
EUR 5, as per the tolerance group - Blank).

When the document is tried to be saved an error message is displayed:The difference is too
large for clearing

Illustration Step 3 - Post Incoming Payment with payment difference within the permitted
amount as per the Tolerance Group Blank:

Description

Transaction Code

Post Incoming Payment

F-28

Once again an incoming payment or EUR 1956 is tried to be posted against the same customer
for the same invoice, but this time with a payment difference or EUR 4, which is within the
permissible payment difference of 5 EUR.

The incoming payment is successfully posted against the customer, clearing the invoice.

Conclusion:

Hence it can be concluded that:

if the payment difference exceeds the amount defined as maximum permissible payment
difference as per the tolerance group assigned to the customer and user, the system will
display an error message.

if the payment difference is within the amount defined as maximum permissible payment
difference as per the tolerance group assigned to the customer and user, the system
automatically posts the difference to the payment difference account configured in
transaction code OBXL as described above.