Dear Archie_B

Thank you for your reply.  I appreciate your input.  The reply didn't quite answer my question.  I'll try to rephrase below with a little more information.

We have recently taken on a new cash-based accounting system client whose QBO books were closed through 2017.  We cleaned up, reconciled and closed 2018.  We are getting ready to close 2019.  Before closing 2019 we would like to cleanup and clear old unreconciled transactions.

There are 96 unreconciled transactions from 2015-2017 which show up when I am in the reconciliation module.  I have reviewed many of the unreconciled transactions and realize they are “unmatched” duplicates of reconciled transactions (2015-2017).  (The business owner had been doing the bookkeeping and did not know how to “match” manually entered and bank downloaded transactions.)  Based on those transactions I reviewed, in additional to all the matching I assume that most, or all, of them are duplicates of reconciled transactions.  If I were to go back and match the duplicate transactions it would change the Balance Sheet and P&L.  Yes, in their favor, but…this is a startup business and the dollar amount involved is not significant.  The cost for me to go back and match those duplicate transactions is not worth it to the business.

The business owner and we would like to clear those unreconciled transactions in the current year (2019).  I saw one answer to a similar post that recommended a "off-cycle" reconciliation and adjusting entry to clear those sorts of uncleared transactions.  Can you expand on that concept?  I'd like to leave a clear and clean audit trail.

Thank you in advance for your answer.  I am new to the Community and appreciate all it has to offer.