Most deposit transactions are entered as a transfer from an income account to a bank account. Income may come from many sources, and it’s a good idea to set up a separate income type account for each different source. For example, your income may come mainly from your paychecks, but you may also receive interest on your savings. In this case, you should have one income account for salary and another income account for interest income.
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Be sure to check the Tax-Related box and assign an appropriate tax category in the Income Tax Information Dialog ( Chapter 11, Capital Gains. → ) when you set up taxable income accounts. Some types of income, such as gift income, may not be considered taxable, so check the appropriate tax rules to determine what is taxable. For ways to track capital gains income, refer to |
Before you start entering paycheck deposits, decide how much detail you want to track. The basic
level of detail is to enter your net pay, just like you would in your paper register. This is
easiest, but you can get even more information out of GnuCash
if you enter your gross pay with
deductions. It takes a bit more effort to enter the deductions, but entering your tax
withholding information throughout the year allows you to run useful tax status reports in
GnuCash
at any time. These reports can help you determine whether you are withholding enough
tax, and they can help you estimate your tax bill ahead of time. If you are unsure about the
level of detail, start by entering net pay. You can always go back and edit your transactions
later if you decide you want more detail.