01
The Instructions Sheet
Four lines to read first, including where ICAI's format comes from and who it is not for, then five steps and what the workbook does not do.
Balance Sheet Format in Excel for Proprietorship and Partnership Firms (2026)
For periods from 1 April 2024, ICAI has set out a balance sheet format for proprietorships and partnership firms; ICAI's relaxation covered 2024-25 only. This free Excel builds that balance sheet with each partner's capital account, and checks that the two sides agree. Updated October 2026.
- The balance sheet in the order ICAI's Guidance Note sets, with this year and last year side by side
- Capital and current accounts for each partner, or for the proprietor, with closing balances worked out
- A check that both sides agree, and where to look first when they do not
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Balance Sheet Format
For proprietors and partnership firms
0
Difference · Excel
2026
What's Inside
Nine sheets from the capital accounts to a balance sheet that tallies
02
The Capital Accounts
One row per partner, or one for the proprietor: opening balance, capital introduced, remuneration, interest, withdrawals and share of profit, with the closing balance worked out. A current account too, if you keep one.
03
The Balance Sheet
Owners' funds, liabilities and assets in ICAI's order, this year beside last year, with the difference between the two sides, where to look when it is not zero, and four other checks. It prints without the checks.
04
Compare and Read
Every line against last year, the change, the change in per cent, and each line as a share of total assets.
05
The T-Format and the Tally List
The same figures in the older two-sided layout, for anyone who still asks for it, and seven usual reasons a balance sheet does not tally.
06
A Worked Example and the Rule Reference
A made-up two-partner firm, filled in and balanced, and ICAI's text behind the format, quoted so you can read it yourself.
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Why This Matters
Proprietors and firms have a balance sheet format now
Companies have long had Schedule III of the Companies Act. A proprietor or a partnership firm had no format of its own: ICAI's 2022 Technical Guide only recommended one, and the old two-sided T-format stayed in use. Our guide to six balance sheet layouts you can copy into Excel shows them side by side.
That changed with ICAI's Guidance Note on Financial Statements of Non-Corporate Entities. It covers sole proprietorships, partnership firms registered or not, HUFs and other non-corporate businesses, and sets out one vertical balance sheet for them: owners' funds and liabilities, then assets, with this year and last year side by side. It applies to financial statements for periods beginning on or after 1 April 2024. In September 2025 ICAI made it voluntary for 2024-25 only, so for a year ending 31 March 2026 it applies without that relaxation.
It is ICAI's format, not an Act of Parliament, and a format set by a statute or a regulator for your entity comes first. But ICAI expects auditors to see it followed, so if a CA prepares or audits your accounts, this is the layout to expect. LLPs have a Guidance Note of their own, and companies stay on Schedule III.
In a partnership firm balance sheet, the part that changes most is capital. Each partner gets a line in the capital account note: opening balance, capital introduced, remuneration, interest, withdrawals and share of profit. Lumping partners into one figure, or showing closing stock in one place and not the other, is how a balance sheet stops tallying. The figures still come from your trial balance; the format only decides where they go. Our trading account format covers the statement that feeds it.
Sample Preview
What each sheet gives you
Here's a preview of what you'll get inside, sheet by sheet, in the order they open.
Instructions: Four lines to read first, the nine sheets, five steps, and what the workbook does not do.
Capital Accounts: For each partner: profit-sharing %, opening balance, capital introduced, remuneration, interest, withdrawals, share of profit or loss and closing balance.
Balance Sheet: Every line of ICAI's format with a column for note numbers, this year and last year, the difference, the status, where to look first and four other checks.
Compare and Read: For each line: this year, last year, change, change in per cent and share of total assets.
If It Does Not Tally: Seven usual reasons with where to look, and a status for each. Plus the T-Format.
Example: A two-partner firm totals 19,06,000 on both sides; the check reads zero. The firm is made up.
... all 9 sheets in one Excel file, with the formulas locked and the input
cells in yellow.
Key Stats
Three facts from ICAI's Guidance Note
1 Apr 2024
The Guidance Note applies to financial statements for periods beginning on or after this date.
Source: ICAI Guidance Note on Financial Statements of Non-Corporate Entities, read 23-Oct-20262024-25 only
The one year ICAI made the format voluntary. Its announcement says nothing about later years.
Source: ICAI announcement, 19-Sep-2025, read 23-Oct-20262 years side by side
The format has a column for the current reporting period and one for the previous period.
Source: ICAI Guidance Note, Part I, Form of Balance Sheet, read 23-Oct-2026
Common Mistakes
7 Balance Sheet Mistakes Proprietors and Firms Make
01
Still saying there is no format
For periods from 1 April 2024, ICAI's Guidance Note sets one for proprietorships and firms. The 2024-25 relaxation was for that year only.
02
Lumping the partners into one capital figure
The capital account note gives each partner a line. One lump sum has to be unpicked at the next admission, retirement or dispute.
03
Treating drawings as an expense
What a partner or the proprietor takes out reduces capital. It is never a business cost, and counting it both ways throws the sheet out by exactly that amount.
04
Leaving closing stock out on one side
Closing stock belongs in the trading account and on the asset side. Our inventory audit checklist covers the count behind it.
05
Skipping last year's figures
The format has a column for the previous period, for every year except your first. Opening capital this year should equal last year's closing.
06
Not separating MSME suppliers' dues
The Guidance Note asks for amounts owed to micro, small and medium suppliers in the notes. Keep those sundry creditors apart from the start.
07
Borrowing company headings
Share capital and Schedule III headings belong to companies. A firm shows owners' funds: capital and current accounts.
Comparison
A Copied Layout vs This Workbook
| Aspect | A copied layout | With this workbook |
|---|---|---|
| Layout | Whatever was used last year | ICAI's format for proprietorships and firms |
| Partners' capital | One figure for all partners | A line per partner, closing worked out |
| Last year | Not shown | Beside this year, with the change |
| Does it tally? | Found out at the bank or the audit | The difference shown, and where to look |
| MSME suppliers | Inside sundry creditors | A separate figure for the notes |
| T-format | The only version | Kept as a reading view |
Swipe the table sideways to see the full comparison.
A balance sheet that tallies first time
Download the free balance sheet format and build this year's in ICAI's layout, with the check built in.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Is there a prescribed balance sheet format for a partnership firm?
Yes, from ICAI rather than from an Act. ICAI's Guidance Note on Financial Statements of Non-Corporate Entities sets one for partnership firms, registered or not, and for proprietorships, for periods beginning on or after 1 April 2024. ICAI made it voluntary for 2024-25 only. A format set by a statute or regulator for your entity comes first, and ICAI expects auditors to see this one followed. This page is general guidance, not accounting advice; your CA's view of your accounts is the one that applies.
What is the balance sheet format for a sole proprietorship?
A proprietorship balance sheet uses the same Guidance Note format: owners' funds and liabilities, then assets, with last year beside this year. A proprietor has one capital account, and withdrawals reduce it. They are never an expense. The year's profit that goes into that account comes from the profit and loss account.
Does Schedule III apply to a partnership firm?
No. The Guidance Note itself says formats for companies are provided under Schedule III of the Companies Act, 2013. A partnership firm or proprietorship is covered by the Guidance Note instead, unless a statute or regulator sets a format for it, and an LLP has ICAI's separate Guidance Note on LLP financial statements.
Why does my balance sheet not tally?
Almost always a missing or one-sided entry, not the format: closing stock left out on one side, drawings treated as an expense, bank charges never entered, or an entry on the wrong side. A bank reconciliation finds the bank items. The workbook shows the difference and where to look first.
Can I still use the T-format balance sheet?
For reading, yes. The Guidance Note's format is the vertical one, so that is the layout to prepare if a CA prepares or audits your accounts. The workbook keeps a T-format view of the same figures. Our guide to six balance sheet layouts compares them.
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