---
title: "How do I create accounting periods within an accounting year?"
slug: "how-do-i-create-accounting-periods-within-an-accounting-year"
updated: 2026-06-10T11:26:25Z
published: 2026-06-10T11:26:25Z
canonical: "help.cintra.co.uk/how-do-i-create-accounting-periods-within-an-accounting-year"
---

> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://help.cintra.co.uk/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# How do I create accounting periods within an accounting year?

> [!NOTE]
> **New!** When you move payroll into the next period, Cintra iQ now automatically checks for accounting periods that have ended, and creates new ones if needed.
> 
> However, you must still set up your [accounting group and financial year](/iq/docs/how-do-i-create-accounting-periods-within-an-accounting-year#to-create-accounting-reporting-groups).

**Cintra iQ** can produce a costing file that is relevant to your accounting system, so that you can upload the file without having to manually enter the data.

> [!TIP]
> **Example:** For example, in a typical company there might be:
> 
> - A monthly payroll for the office staff.
> - A weekly payroll for the factory staff.
> - The accounting year runs from 01 July to 30 June and runs in months.
> - There are twelve accounting months and the first will be in July. In July,
> - Therefore, we will need journals to cover the July's payroll and weeks 14-17 of the weekly payroll. I need to produce a journal for those weeks.

Before you can produce a **Journal** of your company accounts, you need to set up an **Accounting Structure** in order to apply logic to all your accounting journals, and enable pay periods to be aligned with company accounting. This is also useful if you are paying third parties.

> [!CAUTION]
> **Remember:** Once an Accounting Group is set up, you will need to maintain it for each new accounting year.

## About Accounting Groups

**Accounting Groups** allow you to define a structure for a payroll or group of payrolls so that their pay periods are assigned to accounting periods to match the accounting system logic.

The **Accounting Group** defines the accounting periodicity eg **Lunar** or **Monthly**. It can be used to group payroll periods together and also define how each payroll pay period is assigned to an accounting period. This can be based on any one of the following:

- Normal Pay Date
- Tax Period From Date
- Tax Period To Date
- Pay Period From Date
- Pay Period To Date.

### To create accounting reporting groups

1. Navigate to the **Accounting Reporting Group** window.
  - Go to **Cintra iQ**: Payroll > Payroll Tools > Accounting > Accounting Group
2. Click the **New** button.
3. Enter a **Group Name** and **periodicity** (e.g. monthly).
4. Select how you want payroll periods to be assigned to the accounting periods (e.g. based on normal pay date).

![](https://cdn.document360.io/fc2cda72-4645-4b36-96bf-60439ec11f11/Images/Documentation/3XBrzTiBv-2tdoWGNbX46xgfA2mQ6Wy1pQ.png)
5. Below, click **New** to open the **Accounting Year** window.
6. Enter the desired **Accounting Year**.
7. Enter the desired **Start Date** and **End Date**.
8. Click **OK**. The **Accounting Year** is displayed in the **Accounting Group** window.
9. Click the **Generate Periods** button. The **Accounting Reporting Group** message appears stating: **Changes have been made these will be saved before proceeding.**
10. Click **Yes** to proceed. The **Accounting Periods** window appears with the payroll periods assigned based on the **Group** logic you defined earlier.

![](https://cdn.document360.io/fc2cda72-4645-4b36-96bf-60439ec11f11/Images/Documentation/WmRAOWsmb5TqO6fHHPi26ekRJt8z5Z89GQ.png)
11. Click the **OK** button when finished. You are returned to the **Accounting Reporting Group** window.
  - Remember: once you have set up your accounting periods, Cintra iQ will automatically create a new accounting period when you roll the payroll forward.

> [!NOTE]
> **Note:** You can update the Period's name by double-clicking the desired period and changing the name in the Edit Period form.