Transaction Templates and Recurring Transactions

Templates are reusable shortcuts for transactions you record regularly, like monthly rent, a quarterly insurance payment, or a weekly payroll entry. Add a schedule to a template and it becomes a recurring transaction that NP Ledger tracks and reminds you to post. (Posting a transaction means finalizing it and adding it to your books.)

Nonprofits have predictable, repeating expenses: rent, utilities, insurance, loan payments, payroll. Entering these from scratch every month wastes time and invites mistakes. Templates let you record them in one click, and recurring schedules make sure nothing falls through the cracks.

• Your chart of accounts and funds should be set up
• Templates require a Standard plan or higher
• You need a Member role or higher to create and post templates

Creating a template from scratch

1. Go to Transactions > Shortcuts (in the sidebar).
2. Click "New Shortcut."
3. Enter a name: something descriptive like "Monthly Rent" or "Quarterly Insurance."
4. Select the transaction type: Receipt (money in), Payment (money out), or Journal Entry.
5. Optionally select a contact and bank account to associate with this template.
6. Add a description if helpful.
7. To make it recurring, fill in the Recurring Schedule section:
   • Frequency: Monthly, Quarterly, or Annually
   • Next Due Date: when this transaction should next be posted
8. Click "Save."

Tip: Templates created from scratch don't include line items. The easiest way to get a complete template is to save one from an existing transaction (see below).

Saving a template from an existing transaction

This is the fastest way to create a template with the right line items already filled in.

1. Open a posted transaction that you want to reuse.
2. Click "Save as Template." NP Ledger creates a new template with all the line items, accounts, funds, and amounts copied from that transaction.
3. You'll be taken to the template editor where you can rename it and add a recurring schedule.

Posting a transaction from a template

One-off templates (no recurring schedule):

1. Go to Transactions > Shortcuts.
2. Click "Post now" next to the template in the One-Off Templates list — or open the template and click "Post now" on its page.
3. NP Ledger creates a new transaction dated today with the template's line items and posts it immediately. Use "Edit & Post" instead if you want to adjust the details first.

Recurring templates (with a schedule):

1. Open the template from Transactions > Shortcuts (or from the dashboard reminder when it's due).
2. When it's due, click "Post as-is" (or "Edit & Post" to adjust first). NP Ledger posts the transaction and advances the next due date automatically.

Skipping a scheduled posting

Sometimes a recurring transaction doesn't apply this period: maybe rent was waived or a quarterly payment was deferred.

1. Open the template detail page while it's due.
2. Click "Not this period," optionally enter a reason, and confirm.
3. The next due date advances without creating a transaction. The skip reason is recorded in the audit log.

NP Ledger can also detect recurring patterns automatically by scanning your bank import history.

How it works

1. Go to Transactions > Recurring Transactions in the sidebar (this opens the Recurring Patterns page).
2. Click "Scan for Patterns." NP Ledger analyzes your imported transactions and looks for repeating revenue patterns: donations or payments that come in at regular intervals from the same source.
3. Review suggested patterns. Each shows the source (contact or description), frequency, amount, and number of occurrences detected.
4. Confirm patterns you recognize. This marks matching past transactions as recurring and turns on alerts if an expected one doesn't arrive.
5. Dismiss patterns that aren't actually recurring (one-time coincidences, for example).

Lapsed pattern alerts

When a confirmed recurring pattern is overdue (the expected date has passed without a matching transaction), NP Ledger shows a banner on your dashboard. This helps you follow up on missing donations or late payments.

• Dismiss the banner if you've already handled the situation.
• Snooze to suppress the alert for 30 days.

• Your templates appear in the Templates list, separated into Recurring and One-Off sections
• Recurring templates show the correct frequency, next due date, and last posted date
• After posting, a new transaction appears in your transaction list with the correct amounts and accounts
• The Budget vs. Actual report reflects the posted transactions

• Creating a template without line items: Templates created from scratch have no line items. Save from an existing transaction instead, or create the transaction first, then save as template.
• Forgetting to set a schedule: A template without a frequency and due date is a one-off shortcut. It still works, but NP Ledger won't remind you to post it.
• Posting a template with stale amounts: a template keeps whatever amounts it was saved with. If a recurring amount has changed (rent, a grant payment), use "Edit & Post" to adjust it, and review your templates periodically to keep them current.