# Add an Account

Type first, because it cannot be changed once anything posts.

Then a code, a name and a parent if you group. The whole job takes a minute and lives with you for years.

![The Accounts Chart with the Add Account button at the top right, above the table of existing accounts and their codes.](https://www.sorviai.com/help/accounts-chart/accounts-chart-list.png)

*Pick the type first. It decides which statement the account lands on and cannot be casually changed later.*

## Add one

- **Choose the type first**

  Asset, liability, equity, income or expense. This decides which report it appears on and cannot be changed once it has transactions.
- **Give it a code and a name**

  Codes control the order accounts appear in. Leave gaps so you can insert later.
- **Set the parent, if you group accounts**

  Sub-accounts roll up into their parent on reports.
- **Decide whether it belongs in the VAT return**

  An account carries an Include in VAT Return flag rather than a tax rate. It is the flag that decides whether the balance reaches a return; the rate itself comes from the item or the document line.
- **Save**

  It is immediately available on every document.

> **Warning:**
>
> **Type cannot be changed after posting**
>
> Getting it wrong means an expense sitting on your balance sheet, or an asset in your profit and loss, with no way to move it except journalling the balance to a correct account and retiring the wrong one.

## Numbering

Account codes are ordering, not identity. A conventional block scheme keeps the chart readable and leaves room to add without renumbering.

| Range | Typically |
| --- | --- |
| 1000 to 1999 | Assets |
| 2000 to 2999 | Liabilities |
| 3000 to 3999 | Equity |
| 4000 to 4999 | Income |
| 5000 to 5999 | Cost of goods sold |
| 6000 upwards | Overheads and other expenses |

> **Tip:**
>
> **Leave gaps of ten**
>
> Numbering 6010, 6020, 6030 rather than 6001, 6002, 6003 means the account you add next year can sit where it belongs rather than at the end.