Account Groups

Based on the requirements of Indian Accounting System, Tally provides a set of 28 pre-defined groups, of those 15 are primary groups and 13 are sub-groups as follows:


CAPITAL ACCOUNT
This is a primary group to hold the Capital and Reserves of the company. Accounts like Partners capital A/c, Proprietors Capital A/c, Share Capital, Partner or Proprietors Drawings etc. belong to this group. 

Reserves and Surplus

This is a sub-group of Capital Account. Accounts like Investment Allowance Reserve, General Ledger, and other such Reserves belong to this group. This Group is also called by the name Retained Earnings. Open ledgers like Capital Reserve, General Reserve, Reserve for Depreciation, etc.

CURRENT ASSETS

This is a primary group. All assets of the company are placed under this head. But generally accounts are created for its sub-groups. There are six sub-groups to Current Assets.  Any asset, which does not fall into six subgroups can be created under the group Current Assets.

Bank Accounts

This is the first sub-group of Current Assets.  Any banks saving or current A/c's can be placed under this group. 

Cash-in-hand

This is the second sub-group of Current Assets. This will hold Cash A/c only. Cash accounts is automatically created under this group, when a company is created. You are permitted to open more cash accounts, if necessary. 
Note :- An account under cash-in-hand group or Bank accounts/Bank OCC A/c group is printed as separate Cash Book in the traditional Cash Book format and does not form part of the ledger. 

Deposits (Assets)

This is the third sub-group of Current Assets. Accounts related to Deposits like Security Deposits, Fixed Deposits and Rental Deposits etc. or any deposit made by the company (not received by the company, which is a liability), can be created in this group. 

Loans and Advances (Assets)

This is the fourth sub-group of current Assets. Accounts related to advances and loans of non-trading nature for example, advances against salaries, work contracts, advances to purchase fixed assets etc. can be created in this group. 

Stock-in-hand

This is the fifth sub-group of Current Assets. This is used to hold the opening and closing stock figures of certain accounts like raw materials, work in progress, finished products etc. 

Sundry Debtors

This is the sixth sub-group of Current Assets.  This group is used to create the account of customer (all parties to whom credit sales are made). 

CURRENT LIABILITIES

This is a primary group to hold the outstanding and statutory liabilities of the company, such as ESI, PF, TDS etc. It has three sub-groups. 

Duties and Taxes

This is the first sub-group in Current Liabilities. Accounts of trade duties and taxes like Excise, VAT, Central Sales Tax etc., can be opened in this group. 

Provisions

This is the second sub-group of Current Liabilities. It is used to hold tax provisions like Income Tax. 

Sundry Creditors

This is the third sub-group of Current Liabilities. Liabilities Account of trade creditors/suppliers (all parties from whom credit purchases are made) are created under this group. 

FIXED ASSETS

This is a primary group. Accounts like building, land, furniture, machinery etc. can be created under this group. 

INVESTMENTS

This is a primary group. It holds the ledger accounts of all types of investments made by the company on shares, bonds, debentures and other securities of the company as well as other companies. 

LOANS (LIABILITY)

This is a primary group. Accounts of loans taken by the company are created in this group. It has three sub-groups. 

Bank OD Accounts (Bank OCC Accounts)

This is the first sub-group of loans. Overdraft accounts of a bank like hypothecation accounts, bill discounting accounts etc., can be opened under this group. 

Secured Loans 

This is second sub-groups of loans. Accounts of loans, taken by the company from financial corporations, bank etc., against its fixed assets are created under this group. 

Unsecured Loans

This is third sub-group of loans. Accounts of loans taken by the company unconditionally from outside parties including debtors and partners can be created under this group. 

SUSPENSE  ACCOUNT

This is a primary group. Account of money received or paid by the company, the nature of which is not known like money paid as travelling advance, can be created in this group. This is a balance sheet item. 

MISC. EXPENSES (ASSETS)

A rarely used primary group. Preliminary and pre-operative expenses, which have been capitalized to the extent of not writing them off in the profit and loss account, will fall into this group. 

SALES ACCOUNT

This is a primary group. (VAT Sales A/c, State Sales A/c etc. can be created under this group)

PURCHASE ACCOUNT

This is a primary group. (VAT Purchase A/c, State Purchase can be created under this group). 

DIRECT INCOME [INCOME DIRECT]

This is a primary group. Selling the goods of the company can create accounts of direct income  of the company like income by selling the goods of the company under this group. 

INDIRECT INCOME [INCOME INDIRECT]

This is a primary group. Accounts of indirect income like rent received, interest received, commission received etc., can be created under this group. 

DIRECT EXPENSES [EXPENSES DIRECT]

This is a primary group. The accounts related to payment of Wages, Freight, Coolie, Carriage, Electricity Bill, Water Bill etc., can be created under this group.

INDIRECT EXPENSES [EXPENSES INDIRECT]

This is a primary group. The accounts of payments made for advertisement, maintenance of vehicles, salary paid to staff, depreciation on fixed assets, travelling expenses etc., can be created under this group. 

BRANCH / DIVISIONS

This is a primary group. Accounts of branches, divisions, sister concerns etc. of the existing company can be created under this group.