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Administrator Guide
Last Updated: 2026-09-04
Create Rule Sets for Matching Transactions

Create Rule Sets for Matching Transactions

  • Use the
    Set Up Journal Line Matching
     task to select a matching type.
  • Security: These domains in the Financial Accounting functional area:
    • Set Up: Matching Rule Set
    • Access: Matching Rule Set (Segmented)
You can create a rule set consisting of different matching rules to match transactions on journal lines automatically. You can set up matching rules to match:
  • One journal line to another.
  • One journal line to many journal lines.
  • Many journal lines to 1 journal line.
  • Many to many journal lines.
  1. Access the
    Create Matching Rule Set
     or
    Edit Matching Rule Set
     task.
    You can’t change the matching type for a rule set once it’s created.
  2. Complete the initiation screen:
    Option Description
    Name
    Enter a unique name for the matching rule set.
    Description
    Enter a description that provides more detail about the purpose and function of the matching rule set.
    Matching Type
    Select
    Journal Line
    .
    Inactive
    Select to inactivate the rule set.
  3. For each matching rule, complete the
    Rule Information
     section:
    Option Description
    Order
    Enter a number 1 through 50 for the order of the rule. Workday evaluates and processes the rules in the order you specify.
    Place the most specific rules before rules that require less precision in the match. That way, when Workday identifies more granular matches first, it removes the matched journal lines from future consideration.
    Name
    Enter a unique name to help you identify the rule.
    Matching Method
    Select whether the rule matches journal lines one-to-one, one-to-many, many-to-one, or many-to-many.
    Inactive
    Select to inactivate the rule. Workday won’t apply this rule when you trigger a matching run.
  4. Complete the
    Filter Criteria
     section.
    Specify filter criteria to reduce the number of transaction lines to match from Source 1 to Source 2.
    When you select:
    • The same worktag type for both sources, Workday applies the filters as OR conditions. Example: When you select 2 cost centers.
    • Different worktag types for each source, Workday applies the filters as AND conditions. Example: When you select a cost center for one source and a custom worktag for the second source.
    Option Description
    Journal Sources
    Select journal sources to filter by.
    Worktags
    Select worktags to filter by.
    External Reference ID
    Enter an external reference ID to filter by. The external reference IDs must match this value exactly.
    Line Memo
    Enter a line memo to filter by. The memos must match this value exactly.
  5. Complete the
    Match On
     section.
    For more precise matching, you can specify multiple criteria for each ledger account. Click
    Add Row
     to add more match-on criteria.
    Option Description
    Source 1 Source 2
    Select more granular attributes to match on, such as
    Ledger/Budget Debit Amount
    .
    When you create a matching rule for
    Ledger/Budget Debit Amount
    ,
    Ledger/Budget Credit Amount
    ,
    Transaction Debit Amount
    , or
    Transaction Credit Amount
    , you can specify a tolerance threshold to match transactions whose amounts differ slightly. Specify the tolerance threshold using the
    Tolerance Amount
    ,
    Tolerance Percentage
    , and
    Item Tolerance
     fields in the
    Operator
     column.
    When you create a matching rule for
    Accounting Date
    , you can specify a range of days before and after the accounting date within which Workday can match transactions. Set this range of days using the
    Within Number of Days
     field in the
    Operator
     column.
    When a primary balancing worktag is enabled in your tenant, add the primary balancing worktag as a match-on criterion for tolerance-based matching rules. Optional balancing worktags aren't required. Workday populates worktags you add as match-on criteria on the resulting transaction matching write-off operational transaction and journal lines.
    Workday automatically populates any worktags that you add as match-on criteria to the resulting transaction matching write-off operational transaction and journal lines.
    Tolerance Amount
    Displays when you select
    Ledger/Budget Debit Amount
    ,
    Ledger/Budget Credit Amount
    ,
    Transaction Debit Amount
    , or
    Transaction Credit Amount
     as sources.
    Select this option to enable Workday to match transactions whose amounts differ by a specified amount.
    Example: When you select this option and enter
    1.5
     in the
    Item Tolerance
     field, Workday can match a journal line that has the amount 250.00 with another journal line that has an amount between 248.50 and 251.50.
    Tolerance Percentage
    Displays when you select
    Ledger/Budget Debit Amount
    ,
    Ledger/Budget Credit Amount
    ,
    Transaction Debit Amount
    , or
    Transaction Credit Amount
     as sources.
    Select to enable Workday to match transactions whose amounts differ by a specified percentage.
    Example: When you select this option and enter
    1.5
     in the
    Item Tolerance
     field, Workday can match a journal line that has the amount 250.00 with another that has an amount between 246.25 and 253.75.
    Item Tolerance
    Displays when you select
    Ledger/Budget Debit Amount
    ,
    Ledger/Budget Credit Amount
    ,
    Transaction Debit Amount
    , or
    Transaction Credit Amount
     as sources.
    This field combines with the
    Tolerance Amount
     or
    Tolerance Percentage
     options.
    Enter the tolerance threshold Workday can accept when matching transactions. You can enter a number with up to 4 decimal places.
    Within Number of Days
    Displays when you select
    Accounting Date
     as a source.
    Enter a number to specify how many days before or after the accounting date Workday can match transactions. You can enter a maximum of
    365
    .
    Example: When you enter
    2
     in this field, Workday can match a journal line that has the accounting date 11/05/2026 with another that has an accounting date between 11/03/2026 and 11/07/2026.
    Write-off Ledger account
    Select a ledger account from the same account set to assign any write-off that results from matched transactions.
  6. Complete the
    Matching Options
     section:
    Option Description
    Include Blank Values for Line Memo, Worktags, External Reference ID
    Select this check box to include blank values for line memos, worktags, and external reference IDs in the matching criteria.
    Workday automatically excludes the options from the
    Match On
     criteria.
  7. Click
    Add
     to add more matching rules to the rule set.
When you run automatic transaction matching, Workday uses the rules in the matching rule set to match transaction lines.
To view the defined matching rule sets and the number of rules within each set, you can access the
Maintain Matching Rule Sets
 task. You can then drill down to view these details for each rule in the set:
  • Matching method.
  • Rule order.
  • Whether the rule is currently active.