1. Administering Financial Consolidation and Close
  2. Working with Rules
  3. Working with Override Translation Rules

Working with Override Translation Rules

By default, the system provides standard translation methods on all accounts with either a time balance property of Flow or Balance. You can select to change these settings and specify a default translation method and rate account for the application. See Specifying Default Translation Settings.

You can also create translation rules to override the default translations. Use these guidelines for override translation rules.

For the procedures on creating and deploying override translation rules, see Creating Override Translation Rules and Deploying Override Translation Rules.

Note:

Translation Override rules are executed before Amount / Rate override entries. This sequence may reduce the need to amend a translation rule when applying an override amount or rate that occurs within the scope of the translation rule. If you do not want override rules to be processed before Amount / Rate override entries, you can create a Substitution Variable named skipTransRulesIfOverrideRatesExist and set the value to False.

Searching for Override Translation Rules

The Manage Translation Override Rules page lists all the translation rules available in the application. It also displays the total number of available rules by the selected filter options.

You can search for specific rules and include asterisk (*) to return any number of characters, and question mark (?) to return any single character. For example, searching for "1?" will return any two character name starting with a 1 (10, 11, 12, and so on), and "1*" will return any name starting with 1 (10, 11, 12, 100, 1000, and so on)

The default view is the To Be Deployed view. If you create a new rule, the rule is displayed in the list with a blue icon indicating that there has been a change and that it has not yet been deployed.

Security Rights for Override Translation Rules

  • Only Service Administrators can create, modify, deploy, or delete translation rules.
  • Power users have view access for translation rules.
  • Users and Viewers cannot view or access translation rules.

Types of Override Translation Rules

You can create these types of override translation rules.

Using a different translation method

You can create a rule to specify a different translation method (Periodic or YTD) than the default translation setting.

Using a different translation method and rate account

You can create a translation rule with a different method and rate account than the default translation for a specific POV.

Referencing a different Scenario, Year and Period

You can create translation rules using a rate account referencing a different Scenario, Year and Period. By default, the rate account data is from the same Scenario, Year and Period for which the translation is being processed. For example, if you are translating data for Actual, 2016, January, the system uses the rate account data from Actual, 2016, January. You can specify a rate account from a different Scenario, Year and Period, such as Budget, 2016, January.

When you select the Scenario, Year and Period for the rate account, you can use a relative references and keyword for the Year and Period. These keywords and relative references are supported:

  • Current
  • Prior
  • Next
  • First
  • Last
  • Current + n
  • Current - n

Any rate account which contains no data is translated using the value 0.

Using multiple dimensions

Translation override rules do not have a default Source POV dimension. You can add any of the following dimensions to restrict the data set to which the translation is applied:

  • Scenario

  • Year

  • Period

  • Entity

  • Account

  • Intercompany

  • Movement

  • Data Source

  • Multi-GAAP (if enabled)

  • Additional custom dimensions (if enabled)

You should define at least one dimension when you create a rule. If no dimensions are selected, the system applies the rule to all members of all dimensions.

You can create translation rules that contain multiple dimensions (for example, Account, Custom, and so on). You can select multiple members for the selection, and use functions such as IDescendant and IChildren.

Note that in the Source POV, you cannot select a single Parent member. The Parent member can only be selected as part of a function list.

Using redirection to a different member

When you create a translation rule, you can specify redirection to a different destination member. The Source POV can include any members, including parent or system members. The Parent member can only be selected as part of a function list and must have redirection to a base member. You cannot select a single Parent member.

The Redirection POV must be a base member and not a system-calculated member, such as Opening Balance or FX Opening. If you do not specify a redirection member, the system will process the translation and write to the same dimension members as the source.

Historical Account Override Versus Translation Override

Historical accounts can use the default translation method, or use an override rate or amount. If the application also contains translation override rules for the historical account, then the translation override rule overwrites the default translation.

Valid Members for Override Rules

You can select single members, multiple members or a function list for the source for each specified dimension and redirect to only one base member of that dimension.

The View and Consolidation dimensions are not applicable when creating translation rules.

Overrides are allowed against Intercompany Eliminations at parent entity levels when the data is against Entity Consolidation.

Overrides are not allowed against Intercompany Eliminations with the Elimination member of the Consolidation dimension.

The availability of other dimensions is based on the features enabled for the application. You cannot select redirection members from Scenario, Year, Period, Entity and Data Source dimensions.

You cannot select a parent member for the POV, as a parent is aggregated from translated base members.

You cannot select level 0 members that have the data storage property set to Dynamic Calc; these are members that are calculated using Member Formulas or a system or user-defined calculation script.

Reporting Currency

The translation rule applies to the selected entity when translating to all of its parents with the same currency. For example, if Entity1 has two parents P1 and P2, and both P1 and P2 have the same currency, the translation rule applies to both P1.Entity1, and P2.Entity1.

By default, the translation rule applies to all reporting currencies. However, when you create a rule, you can select reporting currencies to include or exclude for the rule. You can select one ore more currencies, or select All.

Note that the selection of the Currency for Translation applies to all Translation Override rules regardless of whether the local rate data or global rate data or a specific rate is used for translation.

Processing Options for Multiple Override Rules (Replace, Add, Subtract)

When you create translation rules, you select the translation method and rate account to use for the translation. The translation rule overrides the default translation setting for the selected POV. However, if you have multiple translation rules, and there is a conflict in the rules (for example, they reference the same cell with a different translation method or rate account), the system uses the processing option that you selected for the rule: (Replace, Add or Subtract) to process the correct translation override amount to and replace the original default translation amount.

Replace Option

If you have multiple transaction rules with the same referenced POV and select the Replace option, the system uses the last translation rule.

For example, the first translation rule contains Acct1 that translates using PERIODIC and MyRate. A second translation rule contains the same Acct1, but translates using YTD and MyRate. The third translation rule contains the same Acct1 using PERIODIC and NewRate. Since the third translation rule is the last one with Acct1 reference, the system uses the third rule for translation.

Add Option

The Add option is used for accumulating translation override rules.

If you have multiple transaction rules with the same referenced POV and select the Add option, the rule accumulates to the override translation amount.

For example, the first translation rule contains Acct1 that translates using PERIODIC and MyRate. A second translation rule contains the same Acct1 but translates using YTD and MyRate. The third translation rule contains the same Acct1 and uses PERIODIC and NewRate. If all these rules have the Add option, the system accumulates all the translation override results. The override translation will always replace the default translation value.

Subtract Option

If you have multiple transaction rules with the same referenced POV and select the Subtract option, the rule subtracts from the previous override translation amount.

For example, the first translation rule contains Acct1 that translates using PERIODIC and MyRate. A second translation rule contains the same Acct1 but translates using YTD and MyRate. If these rules have the Subtract option, the system will subtract from the previous translated override result. The override translation will always replace the default translation.