Cash Discrepancy – How to Book It (3740)

Account 3740 (Penny Rounding / Öresavrundning) has two main functions in a restaurant's accounting:

1. Automatically balance the day's Z-report against ±1-öre errors from VAT rounding
2. Book cash discrepancies between physical cash and system balance

Both are handled on the same account, even though they have different characters. Vendion handles both automatically via Z-report.

Account 3740 in the BAS chart

3740 Penny Rounding is a revenue account (3xxx series) in BAS. It's used specifically for small adjustments to earnings that arise from mathematical or physical rounding errors.

Character: Mixed – can be both debit and credit depending on direction.

In a restaurant context:

• Overage (too much cash) → credited to 3740
• Shortage (too little cash) → debited to 3740
• Z-report ±1 öre balancing → either side

Case 1: Automatic Z-report balancing (most common)

Every day, mathematical errors of 1–5 öre arise in the Z-report due to VAT calculations. E.g.:

Sales: 100 SEK including 12% VAT
  Net: 100 / 1.12 = 89.2857... (rounded to 89.29)
  VAT: 100 − 89.29 = 10.71

But if we sum individual rows the total is 89.285 + 10.715 = exactly 100
Rounded: 89.29 + 10.71 = 100.00 ✓

Across thousands of transactions per day, small errors accumulate:

Total debit: 10,000.02 SEK
Total credit: 10,000.00 SEK
Difference: +0.02 SEK

The system automatically adds:

CREDIT 3740 (Penny Rounding) 0.02 SEK

Now the voucher balances.

Case 2: Cash discrepancy – too much cash (overage)

After counting: 5,828 SEK. Expected: 5,825 SEK. Difference: +3 SEK.

The physical till has 3 SEK more than the system expected. It's an overage.

Accounting-wise: You have extra money that "shouldn't" be there. Because this money is physically in the drawer, account 1910 (Cash) should show the correct actual balance. The system must therefore debit 1910 with 3 SEK and balance it against 3740.

DEBIT  1910 (Cash)                  3.00 SEK   (till increases)
CREDIT 3740 (Penny Rounding)        3.00 SEK   (a kind of "income" from over-cash)

In practice, Vendion does this automatically when the Z-report runs if you entered "counted cash: 5,828" in the UI.

Case 3: Cash discrepancy – too little cash (shortage)

After counting: 5,820 SEK. Expected: 5,825 SEK. Difference: −5 SEK.

The physical till has 5 SEK less than expected. It's a shortage.

Accounting-wise: Account 1910 must be reduced by 5 SEK (there's less money). The difference is booked as a "cost" or loss on 3740.

DEBIT  3740 (Penny Rounding)        5.00 SEK   (loss)
CREDIT 1910 (Cash)                  5.00 SEK   (till decreases)

Combined example – real Z-report

A full Z-report with VAT rounding AND cash discrepancy:

Day's facts:

• Cash sales: 4,325 SEK
• Card sales: 6,200 SEK
• VAT 12% incl: 8,525 × 0.12/1.12 = 913.39 SEK (rounded to 913.40)
• VAT 25% incl: 2,000 × 0.25/1.25 = 400 SEK
• Counted cash: 5,830 SEK (float 1,500 + 4,330)
• Expected cash: 5,825 SEK (float 1,500 + 4,325)
• Difference: +5 SEK overage

Resulting voucher Z#147:

DEBIT  1910 (Cash)                        4,330.00 SEK   (counted)
DEBIT  1580 (Card receivables)            6,200.00 SEK

CREDIT 3001 (Food revenue 12%)            7,611.60 SEK
CREDIT 3003 (Alcohol revenue 25%)         1,600.00 SEK
CREDIT 2620 (Output VAT 12%)                913.40 SEK
CREDIT 2610 (Output VAT 25%)                400.00 SEK
CREDIT 3740 (Penny Rounding)                  5.00 SEK   (cash discrepancy)

Total debit:  10,530.00 SEK
Total credit: 10,530.00 SEK
Balanced: ✓

The only difference from a "clean" day is the extra CREDIT 3740 row that captures the overage.

How Vendion distinguishes automatic öre balancing from real cash discrepancy

Both types of entries land on the same account (3740) but Vendion labels them with different descriptions on the voucher:

• "Automatic penny rounding" – when the Z-report absorbs ±1 öre errors from VAT rounding.
• "Cash discrepancy – overage" – when physical cash exceeds expected (credit 3740, debit 1910).
• "Cash discrepancy – shortage" – when physical cash falls short (debit 3740, credit 1910).

For the accountant, the description is key – it tells what caused the difference.

When does it become a tax problem?

Small differences (under 20 SEK/day): Totally normal. Skatteverket expects this.

Medium differences (20–200 SEK/day): Acceptable on occasional weeks, but systematic can be problematic. The bookkeeper should be notified.

Large differences (over 200 SEK/day or systematic):

• Can indicate shrinkage, theft, or poor routines
• Can trigger audit questions
• Should be investigated internally and documented

Over 5,000 SEK/year total on 3740: Skatteverket may question whether all cash sales are actually being registered. Risk of estimated taxation.

Tips to minimize differences

1. Reduce cash handling The less cash, the less risk of error. Swedish restaurants average under 20% cash share today. Encourage card and Swish.

2. Automatic change machine Expensive initially (~50,000 SEK) but eliminates change errors almost completely. Profitable for high-volume restaurants.

3. Separate cashier responsibility The person counting the till shouldn't be the one who used it. Rotate responsibility.

4. Written procedures Clear routines for voids, comps, staff purchases. Everyone signs off.

5. Regular training New cashiers are often the cause of differences. Teach them to give the right change, count slowly, double-check.

Tax law aspects

Under § 29 of the Swedish VAT Act (1994:200), ALL sales must be registered. Cash discrepancies must be reported transparently.

Accepted by Skatteverket:

• Cash discrepancy on 3740 with clear description
• Documentation in the till journal
• Reasonable level (a few SEK, occasional day)

Not accepted:

• Hidden sales (e.g. private pocket money)
• "Balancing out" the discrepancy without booking
• Systematically large negative differences without explanation

Monthly summary

Once a month you should review the 3740 balance:

April 2026 summary:
- Total credit 3740: 147 SEK (from 30 Z-reports)
- Total debit 3740:   22 SEK
- Net income 3740:   125 SEK (0.03% of turnover)

If the net is positive (overages outweigh) it counts as a small extra income. If negative, it's a small cost. Both are taxable/deductible.

Summary

3740 is used for:

• Automatic Z-report balancing (±1-öre errors)
• Cash discrepancies (overage and shortage)

Overage: CREDIT 3740 + DEBIT 1910 (till increases) Shortage: DEBIT 3740 + CREDIT 1910 (till decreases)

Vendion books both automatically. You control it by counting physical cash carefully and documenting any deviations.