What are outstanding checks in accounting?

Outstanding checks refer specifically to checks that have been issued by a company but have not yet been cleared or processed by the bank. This means that while the company has recorded the transaction in its own accounting records when the check was written, the bank has not yet deducted the amount from the company's bank account.

This concept is important in bank reconciliation, where a company needs to align its recorded transactions with those reflected in the bank statement. Outstanding checks indicate pending deductions that will ultimately reduce the balance available in the bank account once the bank processes these checks.

In contrast, checks that have cleared the bank already reflect that the transaction has been completed from both the company's and the bank's perspective. Checks that have been received by the company but not deposited are related to income rather than expenditures and do not fall under the category of outstanding checks. Canceled or voided checks do not have any financial impact and are not outstanding since they never completed the payment process.