What Is Goods Received Not Invoiced (GRNI)?
Also known as: GRNI, GR/IR, GR/IR clearing account, received not invoiced accrual
Definition
Goods received not invoiced, also called GRNI or GR/IR, is the accrued liability for items received into stock for which the supplier invoice has not yet been matched or posted. It is cleared when the invoice is verified.
Goods Received Not Invoiced (GRNI) Explained
When a purchase order line is received, the ERP debits inventory (or an expense) and credits an interim accrual account, because the company owes the supplier even though no invoice exists yet. When the invoice arrives and is matched, the accrual is debited and accounts payable is credited, which clears the GRNI balance. Any price difference goes to a variance account.
SAP calls this the GR/IR clearing account, posted at goods receipt in MIGO and cleared at invoice verification in MIRO. Automatic clearing and the GR/IR maintenance transactions, such as MR11 for adjusting balances and F.13 for automatic clearing, are routine finance tasks. Business Central posts expected cost to an interim inventory account and has the Post Inventory Cost to G/L job. NetSuite uses an Accrued Purchases or Received Not Billed account driven by item receipts and vendor bills. Odoo and Infor products have equivalent accrual accounts.
Balances build up for many reasons: invoices delayed or lost, quantity or price mismatches that block the three-way match, receipts posted against the wrong PO line, partial deliveries, and returns that were never credited. Old items inflate liabilities and hide problems with suppliers.
At period close the finance team reviews the aging report, accrues for genuine unbilled receipts, and writes off or reverses items that are clearly wrong.
Why It Matters
- It keeps liabilities and inventory correct at month end without waiting for supplier invoices.
- Aged GRNI items show receiving errors, disputes or missing invoices that cost money.
- A large unreconciled balance is a common audit finding for manufacturers and distributors.
- Clearing it faster speeds the close and improves cash forecasting for payables.
In Practice
A plant receives 500 bearings at 8 each on 28 March. The receipt posts 4,000 to inventory and credits GRNI. The invoice arrives on 5 April at 8.20 each, 4,100. Matching at invoice entry clears 4,000 from GRNI, posts 100 as a price variance and credits payables 4,100. At 31 March the 4,000 appears correctly as an accrued liability.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is GRNI an asset or a liability?
It is a liability or accrual account. The matching debit is inventory or expense, and the credit to GRNI represents what you owe for goods already received.
Why does my GR/IR balance keep growing?
Usual reasons are unmatched invoices, price or quantity mismatches blocking the three-way match, duplicate or wrong receipts, and returns with no credit memo.
How is GRNI cleared?
Posting and matching the supplier invoice clears it automatically. Remaining stale items are cleared by correcting the receipt, getting a credit note, or a reviewed manual adjustment.
Related Terms
Three-Way Match
A three-way match is the accounts payable control that compares the purchase order, the goods receipt, and the supplier invoice on quantity and price before releasing payment, ensuring a company pays only for what it ordered and actually received.
Purchase Requisition
A purchase requisition is an internal request to procure goods or services, routed for approval against budget and authority limits before a buyer sources it and converts it into a purchase order sent to a supplier.
Purchase Price Variance (PPV)
Purchase price variance is the difference between the standard cost of a purchased item and the actual price paid, multiplied by quantity. A positive or negative balance in the PPV account shows how purchasing costs compare with plan.
Period Close
Period close is the recurring process of finalizing a fiscal period: completing transactions, reconciling subledgers to the general ledger, posting accruals and adjustments, running costing, then locking the period so reported results cannot change.
General Ledger
The general ledger is the central accounting record of a business, where every financial transaction posts as balanced debits and credits against accounts in the chart of accounts, producing the trial balance behind all financial statements.
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