Introduction
A negative goods receipt is a receipt with a negative quantity. Although Flexi allows you to create one, it effectively behaves like a goods issue: it removes stock from the warehouse. Using it manually is almost always a mistake that breaks the stock valuation, and this often only becomes apparent months later.
🚨 Do not create negative goods receipts manually. They legitimately arise only automatically, for example when issuing a credit note. If you need to correct the stock value, use one of the procedures described below.
Why a manual negative goods receipt is a problem
Typical scenario: goods were received at an incorrect price, in the meantime they were already issued, and the receipt can therefore no longer be deleted. The user tries to restore the value to its original state by creating a receipt with a negative quantity and some price.
However, the price on the receipt is entered manually. This means the warehouse ends up with an issue at a price that wasn't determined by the valuation method, but by the user. The system therefore issues a different value than what should have left according to the item's actual state.
The calculation is based on history. With the FIFO method, it draws from specific earlier receipts; with the average method, from the item's current average price. In neither case does the entered price necessarily correspond to what is actually recorded on the item.
ℹ️ On a completely new item that has never had any movement, a receipt of five units followed by a negative receipt of five units at the same price will result in a zero balance, and everything will appear to be fine. However, once the item has any history, this pair of transactions will leave a discrepancy on it.
How to recognize that this has happened
The most common symptom is a stock item that shows a zero quantity but a non-zero value in currency. This condition is described in more detail in the articles on stock value mismatch and incorrect balance value on a stock item.
You can find exactly where the error occurred in the list of movements on the stock item. Negative goods receipts can be identified by a negative quantity in the Quantity column.
What to do instead of a negative goods receipt
Correcting an incorrect price on a receipt
The price on a receipt can be changed retroactively at any time, even if issues already depend on it. Saving automatically triggers a stock recalculation, which distributes the new price across all subsequent issues. This is the correct solution for the vast majority of cases.
If the receipt was created from a received invoice, correct the price on the invoice. The receipt will be recalculated from it as well.
Writing off goods from stock
If you need to reduce the stock quantity, use a goods issue specifying the movement type as a "Plain" issue, or use an inventory count. An inventory count generates the inventory discrepancy automatically and is more suitable when the issue affects multiple items.
Receipt with zero quantity
If you only need to adjust the value on the item without changing the quantity, you can create a receipt with a quantity of 0 and the corresponding amount. The procedure is described in the article on changes to stock item value.
⚠️ This intervention is not linked to any specific receipt, so with the FIFO method it will not correct the layers — it will only align the item's value. Use it only when there is no other way.
If negative goods receipts already exist in your data
The scope of the correction depends on how long the condition has persisted:
A single case in the current period. Delete the negative goods receipt and replace it with a goods issue, then run a stock recalculation.
A longer period, multiple movements. The correction involves reopening closed accounting periods and recalculating across years. This has an accounting impact, because it changes the balance of the stock account and previously filed reports will no longer match the data. The procedure and its consequences are described in the article on stock recalculation.
You don't want to intervene in the past. An alternative is to reduce the stock on the affected item to zero, discontinue the price list item, and create a new item with the correct valuation. History remains untouched, but you lose the connection to the original item.
🚨 Before making any changes to closed periods, consult the impact with your accountant. In many cases, it is preferable to resolve the discrepancy in the current year.