Prepaid expenses are future expenses that have been paid in advance. As the item purchased is used, the expense is recognized.
At month end, Finance reviews all expenditures >$10,000 to determine if a prepayment needs to be recognized. If it does, Finance will raise a prepayment on behalf of the affected department. The prepayment will be recognized within 12201 - Prepaid Expenses and amortized over the period during which the expense will apply. Finance will also raise an encumbrance against the department for the remaining expense balance to ensure simple review of department’s spending against budget.
Example:
$12,000 paid on July 1, 20XX for a 12 month subscription to:
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