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What to catalog inside NetSuite first
Subsidiaries
Each OneWorld subsidiary, its base currency, tax nexus and parent, plus any elimination subsidiaries used in consolidation.
Classes, departments, locations
The standard segments, their hierarchies and which ones are mandatory on which transaction types.
Custom segments and fields
Custom segments, entity fields, item fields and transaction body and column fields, with how often users fill in each one.
Custom records
Custom record types, what created them, and whether any transaction or script depends on them.
Saved searches
Which saved searches drive dashboards, emails or exports, and which are one-off lookups nobody opens.
SuiteScript
User event, scheduled, client and map/reduce scripts, each with the business rule it enforces written in plain English.
SuiteFlow workflows
Approval routing, field defaults and state changes defined in workflows rather than code.
SuiteApps and integrations
Installed bundles, ecommerce, payment, tax and shipping connections, and every system that calls SuiteTalk or RESTlets.
NetSuite records translated for Business Central
Saved searches, SuiteScript and SuiteFlow: rebuild on purpose
Nothing written in SuiteScript runs in Business Central. Translating scripts line by line only produces the same tangle in a new language. We start from the business rule each script enforces. Many turn out to be standard in Business Central: credit limit checks, required dimensions, approval before release, automatic numbering. We write the rules that remain as AL extensions, which install on your tenant and survive Microsoft's updates. When the logic is really a notification or a hand-off between people, we use Power Automate flows instead.
SuiteFlow workflows map the same way. Approval workflows for purchase orders, vendor bills and journals exist as standard templates in Business Central. They can route by amount, dimension or requester. Field defaults move to customer and item templates.
Saved searches split into three groups. Lookups become filtered list views, which any user can save. Analytical searches become analysis mode views on lists or Power BI reports built on Business Central data. Searches that feed exports to other systems become API queries or scheduled Power Automate exports. Role centers with cues and Power BI tiles replace dashboards built from saved search portlets.
Which NetSuite transactions come across
Per subsidiary trial balance
Each subsidiary's trial balance posts into its Business Central company at the cutover date. It posts by account and dimension, in the subsidiary's base currency.
- ✓Balance sheet at closing balances
- ✓Year-to-date income statement by month if mid-year
- ✓Intercompany balances agreed between subsidiaries first
Documents still in progress
Anything unfinished comes across as a live document, so your team can complete it normally in Business Central.
- ✓Open invoices and credit memos with original currency and due dates
- ✓Open vendor bills and unapplied payments
- ✓Open sales orders not yet fulfilled and purchase orders not yet received
- ✓Item receipts not yet billed, loaded against a receipts-not-invoiced account
What stays archived
We export closed transactions, system notes and attachments to storage you control. We can also load summarized prior-year figures for comparative reports.
- ✓Full CSV and saved search exports kept as the audit record
- ✓File cabinet documents downloaded before access ends
- ✓Summarized comparatives in Business Central where reports need them
Sequencing the switch around your NetSuite contract
- 1
Check the contract end date
Access to NetSuite ends with the subscription. So the last rehearsal, the final extract and the archive all have to fit before that date.
- 2
Extract with repeatable exports
Build saved searches or SuiteAnalytics exports for every entity and open-item set. The same extract then runs for each rehearsal and for the final cutover.
- 3
Rehearse in a sandbox
Load a full trial NetSuite to Business Central migration into a sandbox and reconcile it. Fix the mapping until the numbers tie without manual edits.
- 4
Switch integrations
On cutover day, point ecommerce, tax, shipping and payment connections at Business Central, and hold orders in the gap.
- 5
Run the first close on both sides
Close the first Business Central month and compare key balances to where NetSuite would have been. Then sign off the archive.
NetSuite departures: common questions
Why do companies move from NetSuite to Business Central?
Most move for fit with Microsoft 365 or for licensing they can plan around. Others leave because heavy customization has made NetSuite hard to change. Business Central sits inside the Microsoft stack alongside Excel, Teams, Outlook and Power BI. Its extension model keeps custom code separate from the base product, which makes upgrades predictable. It is not the right move for every NetSuite customer, and we compare both honestly on a first call.
Can we convert our SuiteScript customizations automatically?
No, no tool converts SuiteScript automatically, and none should. JavaScript written against NetSuite records has no meaning in Business Central, which uses AL and a different data model. We document the business rule behind each script, check whether Business Central does it as standard. Then we build only the remainder as an extension. Most accounts need far less custom code afterwards than they had before.
What happens to our saved searches and dashboards?
We rebuild them as filtered list views, analysis mode views, financial reports or Power BI reports, depending on each one's job. We first sort out which searches people still open, since many accounts carry hundreds that nobody uses. Searches that feed other systems become API queries. Role centers give each user a start page with the counts and tiles they check daily.
More NetSuite to Business Central migration questions
Does Business Central handle multiple subsidiaries like NetSuite OneWorld?
Yes, through several companies in one environment, intercompany postings and a consolidation company. Each subsidiary keeps its own base currency, chart of accounts setup and tax configuration. Intercompany sales and purchases can create the matching document in the partner company automatically. Consolidation translates foreign subsidiaries and posts eliminations in its own company.
Do we move every NetSuite transaction since we started?
No, we recommend moving open items and balances, with summarized history only where reporting needs it. Loading every closed transaction adds cost and risk without helping daily work. We export and archive the full detail for audit and lookup. Summarized monthly figures give the financial reports their comparative columns.
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