What you'll accomplish
By the end of this guide, you'll have imported a client's full journal entry population into Caseware IDEA, run the standard AU-C 240 journal entry tests (Benford's Law, duplicate detection, round number screening, unusual account combinations), and produced a flagged results set ready for follow-up — turning a theoretically required but practically impossible full-population test into a standard workflow.
What you'll need
- Caseware IDEA installed and licensed at your firm (most Big 4 and large regional firms include this in their audit software stack — check with your manager)
- Journal entry population extracted from the client's GL system as a flat file (Excel .xlsx, .csv, or .mdb)
- Basic Excel skills (IDEA imports Excel files directly)
- Time needed: 45–60 minutes for first engagement; 20–30 minutes for subsequent engagements once templates are saved
- Cost: Included in most firm CaseWare licenses — confirm with your firm's technology team
How-To Guide: Journal Entry Testing with Caseware IDEA
Step 1: Request the journal entry population from the client
Add this to your PBC request: "Complete journal entry listing for the [period] including: journal entry number, posting date, effective date, created by (user ID), account number, description, debit amount, credit amount, and approval status."
Most ERP systems (SAP, Oracle, NetSuite, QuickBooks) can export this. If the client uses QuickBooks, have them export the Journal Entry report as an Excel file.
Critical fields: You must have at least: date, user ID, account number, debit/credit amounts, and entry description. Without these, key tests won't run.
What you should see: A flat file with one line per journal entry line item (each debit and credit is a separate row). A mid-size client typically has 1,000–20,000 entries per year.