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Inventory Valuation Code

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Posted on by JE-20081519-0

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Hi:

Yesterday and for the first time ever in Business Central, I saw a column in the Sales Order line items section called "Inventory Valuation Code".

I researched this and was told that this allows you to specify the inventory valuation layer to pull from.

I did not know that there was a such "thing".

Can anyone else, please, shed some light on this?

Thanks!

John

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Dynamics 365 Business Central

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Dhiren Nagar 2,530 Super User 2026 Season 1 on at

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Hi,

I've not seen such field in my experience. I think that it is a customized field.

Where you researched about it?

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JE-20081519-0 3,494 on at

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@Dhiren Nagar

Thanks, for responding! You may disregard. I found that this is a Dimension that someone created, called "Inventory Variations Code".

John

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RockwithNav 8,840 Super User 2026 Season 1 on at

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That's the beauty of Global Dimension :), So we need to be very careful while giving a name to it and it must not conflict with the existing column names. It triggers confusion.

I was also stuck when I read this like, do we really have this column in BC and we never met. :)

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Jeffrey Bulanadi 9,106 Super User 2026 Season 1 on at

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Hi,

Inventory Valuation Code is not a standard field in the Sales Line table or page in BC.
In standard BC, users cannot manually choose which valuation layer (FIFO layer, receipt entry, cost entry) a sales transaction should consume from. Costing and layer selection are handled automatically by the costing method and item application rules.

This is confirmed by MS docs on inventory valuation and item application:

BC determines cost using value entries, cost components, and item application rules, users do not manually select layers

FIFO, Specific, Average, Standard, and LIFO (legacy) are system‑controlled cost‑flow assumptions; none expose a user‑selectable “valuation code” on sales lines.

Lot‑specific costing is only possible when Item Tracking forces specific application, not through a field on the sales line.

Because of this, when you see Inventory Valuation Code on a sales order line, it almost always means:

An ISV extension added the field
Many industry add‑ons introduce fields that allow users to influence or override cost layer selection.

A partner customization was deployed
Custom AL extensions often add fields to support:

selecting a specific inbound receipt

overriding FIFO/LIFO behavior

linking sales to a specific valuation bucket

advanced landed cost or multi‑layer costing rules

It is not part of Microsoft’s base application

No standard BC page, table, or costing feature includes this field.

To confirm the source:

Open Page Inspection (Ctrl+Alt+F1)

Look at the Extension column for that field

This will show exactly which app added it

Helpful References
Microsoft Learn, Design Details: Inventory Valuation (Confirms that valuation layers and cost application are system‑controlled, not user‑selected)
Dynamics Community, Inventory Valuation by Lot Number (Confirms that selecting specific cost layers requires customization, not available in standard BC)
BC365 Blog, Item Revaluation in BC (Explains how valuation layers are adjusted through revaluation, not manually selected on sales lines)

If you find this helpful, feel free to mark this as the suggested or verified answer.

Cheers
Jeffrey

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YUN ZHU 97,897 Super User 2026 Season 1 on at

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Is it dimension code?

PS:

Dynamics 365 Business Central Blog Series: Work with dimensions
https://yzhums.com/69639/

Thanks.

ZHU

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Khushbu Rajvi. 21,573 Super User 2026 Season 1 on at

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Adding this : https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/training/modules/dimensions-dynamics-365-business-central/

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/dynamics365/business-central/finance-dimensions

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OussamaSabbouh 10,840 Super User 2026 Season 1 on at

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Hello John,

The Inventory Valuation Code you saw is a system/internal field tied to inventory cost layers, not a functional feature for sales processing; it does not let users choose which FIFO/LIFO/Specific layer a sale consumes, and Business Central still applies the item’s costing method automatically. It’s normally hidden because it’s only used by the costing engine during valuation, adjustments, or revaluation scenarios, and when it shows up (usually due to personalization, role changes, or edge cases), it’s informational at best and safe to ignore — there is no supported business process where users should populate or rely on it.

Regards,
Oussama Sabbouh

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