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Moving from Dynamics NAV to Business Central: What Changes
Moving from Dynamics NAV to Business Central is more than transferring ERP data to a newer platform. Depending on your NAV version, it can involve modernizing C/AL customizations, replacing or rebuilding integrations, reviewing third-party add-ons, cleaning up data, and deciding which legacy processes still belong in the future-state system.
Korcomptenz helps you untangle years of NAV customizations and technical dependencies, modernize them for Business Central’s extension-based architecture, and use the migration to simplify the ERP environment rather than carry legacy complexity forward.
NAV support update: Microsoft's support for Dynamics NAV is winding down on a version-by-version basis. Extended support for NAV 2015 ended January 14, 2025, and for NAV 2016 on April 14, 2026. Both versions are now fully unsupported. NAV 2017 loses extended support on January 11, 2027, and NAV 2018, the final NAV release, on January 11, 2028. After these dates, Microsoft issues no further security patches, regulatory updates, or technical support for that version.
What Needs Special Attention in a NAV to Business Central Migration?
Microsoft provides cloud migration tooling for supported NAV environments, but what actually moves — and how — is a business decision as much as a technical one, especially where NAV's C/AL codebase is involved.
Two NAV Decisions to Get Right Early
Upgrade or Reimplement? Let Your NAV Environment Decide
| Factor | Technical Upgrade | Reimplementation |
|---|---|---|
| Existing Processes | Mostly retained | Redesigned |
| Customizations | Modernized selectively (C/AL → AL) | Rebuilt or replaced |
| Historical Data | Greater continuity | Requires planned migration |
| Project Complexity | Potentially lower | Potentially higher |
| Best For | Stable, lightly customized NAV environments | Heavily customized or process-drifted environments |
Where Could NAV Modernization Create Value?
CFO | Multi-Entity, Multi-Country Operations
Business problem: Consolidated reporting depends on reconciling numbers across separate NAV databases with different dimensional structures — sometimes dozens of them.
Migration focus: Single-database consolidation, unified chart of accounts, month-end close automation.
Business question: Can we get one number for the whole business without a week of spreadsheet reconciliation?
This is the exact challenge Korcomptenz solved for a Middle East construction group unifying 53 companies and 27 NAV/CMiC databases into one Business Central environment — see case study below.
Operations / Quality Leader | Perishable or Regulated Supply Chain
Business problem: Claims, quality, and inventory processes run on manual workarounds because an aging on-premises NAV system can't keep pace with real-time operational needs.
Migration focus: Cloud accessibility, claims and quality workflow automation, real-time visibility.
Business question: Can we resolve a claim or quality issue in hours instead of days?
This mirrors Korcomptenz's migration for Pescatlantic Group, a seafood supplier that moved from on-premises NAV 2009 to Business Central to modernize claims management — see case study below.
CIO / IT Leader | Long-Tenured, Heavily Customized NAV
Business problem: The C/AL customizations holding NAV together are understood by one or two people, and every Windows Server or SQL upgrade adds infrastructure risk on top of application risk.
Migration focus: C/AL-to-AL conversion strategy, ISV add-on compatibility, cloud migration tooling.
Business question: What happens to this business if that one person leaves before it's fixed?
Controller / Finance Leader | Reporting Outgrew NAV
Business problem: Real reporting happens in Jet Reports, Excel exports, or a data warehouse someone built on the side, because native NAV reporting hasn't kept up with what the business needs.
Migration focus: Power BI and embedded reporting, real-time data access, retiring shadow reporting tools.
Business question: Can finance get answers directly from the system instead of building around it?
When a NAV Migration Becomes More Than an IT Project
Real reporting happens in Jet Reports, Excel, or exports because native NAV reporting can't keep up
The C/AL customizations are understood by one or two people, not a documented process
Different entities or subsidiaries run different NAV versions or divergent customizations
ISV add-ons overlap or duplicate functionality Business Central now offers natively
Reconciliation happens manually outside NAV because an integration was never finished
The classic client is still in daily use because nobody's fully tested the Role Tailored or web client
Before You Move, Get Your NAV Environment Migration-Ready
Document Every C/AL Customization and Its Owner
Know what each one does, who relies on it, and what breaks if it's retired instead of rebuilt.
Inventory ISV Add-ons and Third-Party Solutions
Determine which are still earning their cost, which have a Business Central or AppSource equivalent, and which can simply retire.
Clean and Reconcile Data
Resolve duplicates, inactive records, and financial discrepancies before they migrate forward with you.
Map Every Integration
EDI, banking, e-commerce, Power Platform, and any system exchanging data with NAV — know what must work on day one versus what can modernize after go-live.
Plan Cutover Around the Business
Month-end, year-end, inventory counts, and seasonal peaks all influence the safest go-live window.
What Will Your NAV Migration Really Take?
Cost, timeline, and risk are driven by the same set of factors: NAV version, number of companies or databases, data volume, depth of C/AL customization, ISV add-ons, integrations, testing, training, and cutover complexity. A readiness assessment defines these dependencies before you commit to a scope or a number.
Korcomptenz reviews your NAV environment and Business Central fit to identify:
All about Microsoft
Dynamics 365 Business Central
Dynamics SL to Business Central Migration
Migrate Microsoft Dynamics GP to Dynamics 365 Business Central
Dynamics Business Central Customization
Business Central Support Services
MS Dynamics 365 Implementation Service
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Consulting
Dynamics 365 Assessment and Modernization
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Support Services
Frequently Asked Questions
It's the process of moving an organization's ERP data, business processes, configurations, customizations, and integrations from Dynamics NAV to Dynamics 365 Business Central, using either a technical upgrade or a reimplementation approach depending on the environment.
Extended support ended for NAV 2015 on January 14, 2025, and for NAV 2016 on April 14, 2026 — both are now fully unsupported. NAV 2017 loses extended support on January 11, 2027, and NAV 2018 on January 11, 2028.
Microsoft provides cloud migration tooling for supported NAV versions (generally NAV 2017 and later), subject to technical prerequisites. Earlier versions typically require a reimplementation approach rather than a direct technical migration.
A technical upgrade carries existing processes, data, and modernized customizations forward. A reimplementation starts cleaner, rebuilding processes and customizations from the ground up — better suited to environments where NAV has drifted far from current business needs.
C/AL customizations don't convert automatically. Each one should be assessed and either translated into a modern AL extension, replaced by native Business Central functionality, or retired.
Each add-on should be assessed individually — some have direct Business Central or AppSource equivalents, some functionality is now native, and others may need to be rebuilt or retired.
Yes, though not every transaction necessarily needs to move. Options range from full historical migration to selective migration to maintaining a separate archive, depending on reporting, audit, and operational needs.
Cost depends on NAV version, number of companies or databases, data volume, customizations, ISV add-ons, integrations, testing, training, and support requirements.
Timeline depends on the same factors as cost, plus whether the project is a technical upgrade or a full reimplementation — a formal assessment is the fastest way to get a realistic range for your specific environment.
Yes — this is one of the most common migration paths, and typically the one that unlocks the most value, since it removes infrastructure management while opening up Microsoft's ongoing cloud, AI, and Copilot investment.
