Remapping of GL expense cost element - DIP Profile/Events Based Revenue Recognition

[Theresa]

Good Afternoon

I've read the blog Configuration of G/L Accounts in Event-Based Revenue Recognition which has been extremely informative (https://community.sap.com/t5/enterprise-resource-planning-blogs-by-sap/configuration-of-g-l-accounts)

I would like to pose a question,  our client would like to move a GL account that has been assigned to a non-billable cost element to a billable cost element. The General Ledger account has been used over time.

What would be Best Practice? 

[Jeremy_Deo · Accepted solution]

Hello dear user,

And thank you for asking your question in the SAP Community blog.

Great question - and it’s an important one when working with Event-Based Revenue Recognition (EBRR) in SAP S/4HANA Cloud.

Scenario Recap:

You have:

• A G/L account currently assigned to a non-billable cost element category (e.g., 90 - Statistical or 42 - Overhead).
• The requirement is to reclassify this G/L to a billable cost element (e.g., 11 - Direct Cost).

The G/L has already been used in postings historically.

Best Practice in SAP S/4HANA Cloud:

You should NOT directly change the cost element category of an existing G/L account that already has posted data.

SAP explicitly recommends against this because:

• It could corrupt revenue recognition logic.
• It can break event-based postings, where past postings were created under one category and logic expects consistency.
• It may lead to inconsistencies in CO or Universal Journal (ACDOCA) reporting and allocations.

Recommended Best Practice Steps:

1. Create a New G/L Account:

• Copy the existing G/L using “Manage G/L Account Master Data” app.
• Assign the correct Cost Element Category — use billable (e.g., 11 for Direct Costs).
• Use the same account group if necessary, but make sure the account number is distinct.

2. Reassign Mappings / Derivations:

• Update all the relevant mappings:
• Account Determination for Revenue Recognition (SSCUI 102638)
• Event-Based Recognition Account Assignment
• Any relevant valuation rules, conditions, pricing procedures

3. Update Master Data / Projects:

• Update project templates, project profiles, WBS master data, or cost objects that reference the old G/L.

4. Stop Usage of Old G/L:

• Set the old G/L to “blocked for posting” for future use (optional, or just restrict via roles if still needed for legacy reporting).

I hope this will help you answer your question.

Best regards,

Jeremy

[Theresa · Accepted solution]

Thank you Jeremy. This is valuable information. Regards