Section 1: Depreciation for book v. tax purposes. Two ways to compute depreciation. Recording depreciation if the financial statements must undergo a compilation or review.

Section 2: Depreciation under GAAP (for book purposes). Determining the cost of an individual asset v. group of assets v. contributed assets under generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP). Determining the asset’s estimated life, residual value and book value. Journal entries for a manufacturing v. nonmanufacturing company. How depreciation appears on the financial statements.

Section 3: The straight-line method. How to compute, allocate and book straight-line depreciation. How to set up and maintain the depreciation schedule using this method.

Section 4: The units of production method. How to compute, allocate and book units of production depreciation. How to set up and maintain the depreciation schedule using this method.

Section 5: The declining balance method. How to compute, allocate and book declining balance depreciation. How to set up and maintain the depreciation schedule using this method.

Section 6: The sum-of-the-years’-digits method. How to compute, allocate and book sum-of-the-years’-digits depreciation. How to set up and maintain the depreciation schedule using this method.

Section 7: Depreciation for tax purposes. How to depreciate equipment and buildings under MACRS. How to apply the half-year convention . . . mid-quarter convention . . . mid-month convention. How to use IRS tables. Applying the Section 179 deduction. How to set up and maintain the tax depreciation schedule.

Section 8: Depreciating vehicles for tax purposes. Annual IRS limits for cars. How IRS limits apply to unmodified SUVs, pickups and vans weighing up to 6,000 lbs. Sec. 179 and depreciation if these vehicles are modified or weigh over 6,000 lbs. How to handle employee personal use of company vehicles in a sole proprietorship, S corp, C corp or partnership. How to set up and maintain the tax depreciation schedule.

Publisher: AIPB

The post Mastering Depreciation appeared first on American Institute of Professional Bookkeepers.

The post Mastering Internal Controls and Fraud Prevention appeared first on American Institute of Professional Bookkeepers.

Section 1: Introduction. What to include in merchandise costs, when and how to record the journal entries. How inventory is reported on the income statement as cost of goods sold and on the balance sheet as ending inventory.

Section 2: The perpetual method. How to compute and record journal entries for purchases (net or gross) . . . sales . . . purchase discounts . . . returns and allowances . . . customer sales returns . . . and inventory shrinkage.

Section 3: The periodic method. How to compute and record journal entries for purchases (net v. gross), sales, discounts, returns and allowances, sales returns, inventory shrinkage and closing out the inventory-related accounts at year end.

Section 4: Weighted average costing. How to compute ending inventory and COGS using weighted average costing (periodic method) and moving average costing (perpetual method).

Section 5: First-in, first-out (FIFO) costing. Clear explanations of FIFO under the perpetual v. periodic method, including how to compute and record purchases, sales, COGS and ending inventory.

Section 6: Last-in, first-out (LIFO) costing. How to compute and record purchases, sales, COGS, ending inventory and LIFO layers. When and how to compute LIFO liquidations.

Section 7: The lower of cost or net realizable value (LCNRV) rule. How to compute and apply LCNRV by item v. group v. total inventory. How to handle purchase commitments that are followed by a decline in the value of inventory, then a recovery.

Publisher: AIPB

The post Mastering Inventory appeared first on American Institute of Professional Bookkeepers.

Section 1: Where errors occur and how to find them. 10 common causes of errors. 5 areas where most errors occur. How to analyze errors to correct them.

Section 2: Performing the bank reconciliation. Step-by-step instructions on how to do a bank reconciliation and record the required journal entries. How to correct errors found on the bank statement or in the ledger Cash account.

Section 3: Using the trial balance to find errors. Finding and correcting errors in the trial balance or errors that do not show up on a trial balance.

Section 4: Correcting current-period accrual errors.

Correcting accrued expenses: How to correct an accrued expense recorded for too little or too much or omitted entirely. Correcting journal entries when the expense was originally recorded in an expense account v. a prepaid (asset) account. Impact on the financial statements if each kind of error is not corrected.

Correcting accrued revenues: How to correct accrued revenue recorded for too little or too much or omitted entirely. Correcting journal entries when the original entry was recorded in a revenue v. unearned revenue account. Impact on the financial statements if each kind of error is not corrected.

Section 5: Correcting current-period deferral errors.

Correcting deferred expenses: How to correct too little or too much expense recognized or deferred. Correcting journal entries when the prepayment was recorded in an expense account v. prepaid (asset) account. Impact on the financial statements if each kind of error is not corrected.

Correcting deferred revenues: How to correct too little or too much revenue recognized or deferred. Correcting journal entries when a payment received in advance was recorded in a revenue v. unearned revenue account. Impact on the financial statements if each kind of error is not corrected.

Publisher: AIPB

The post Mastering Correction of Accounting Errors appeared first on American Institute of Professional Bookkeepers.

Master double-entry bookkeeping/accounting in one short sitting —around 2 hours.

Ideal before you start any accounting course, for on-the-job training or to nail down a skill you may feel insecure about.

Section 1: How a business keeps track of its money. How bookkeeping measures every item and activity in dollars. The “chart of accounts” made easy. Self-quiz makes sure you really know it.

Section 2: Every transaction affects two or more accounts. When you buy a car your Asset—Car account goes up, but your Cash account goes down. When you buy an ad in the local paper, your Advertising Expense account goes up, but so does your Accounts Payable (bills that are payable later). Filled with examples. Double- quiz lets you practice as if you were on the job.

Section 3: Recording journal entries. Pick up the simple rules of double-entry bookkeeping. Which amounts go in which accounts and how to show this. Filled with examples. Double-quiz lets you practice until you know it cold.

Section 4: The general ledger accounts. Shows you what a ledger account looks like on a computer v. on paper. Explains how journal entries you learned go into the accounts. Now learn how to quickly find and retrieve financial information from the accounts—such as:

• your company’s cash balance
• your company’s sales for any month
• which bills your company has paid or not paid

And other financial information. Double-quiz lets you practice finding and retrieving financial information fast!

Section 5: The income statement and balance sheet. Snapshot of the financial statements and how they are compiled from the general ledger accounts.

Section 6: The accounting cycle. An overview of the accounting process from start to finish.

Publisher: AIPB

The post Mastering Double-Entry Bookkeeping appeared first on American Institute of Professional Bookkeepers.

Section 1: Introduction. Sources and uses of cash: 3 kinds of activities.

Sections 2-4: Cash provided by operating activities (CPO), the direct method.

Part I: Computing cash inflows using changes in A/R and Allowance for Doubtful Accounts. Computing cash outflows using changes in Prepaid Expenses, Depreciation, Amortization, A/P and either Purchases (periodic method) or Inventory and COGS (perpetual method).

Part II: Using changes in Interest Payable, Discount on Notes Payable, Income Tax Payable and related accounts.

Part III: Using changes in Unearned Revenue, Dividends and Interest Receivable, Amortization of Notes Receivable.

Section 5: CPO case study, the direct method. Brings together everything you learned in Sections 2–4.

Section 6: Computing CPO, the indirect method. Computing inflows/outflows from changes in Depreciation, A/R, A/P, Inventory, Unearned Revenue, Interest Payable and other accounts.

Section 7: CPO case study, the indirect method. Brings together and applies what you learned in Section 6.

Section 8: Cash from investing activities. Inflows from disposal of PP&E, intangible assets, securities, loan collection. Outflows for investing in PPE, intangible assets, securities, making loans.

Section 9: Cash from financing activities. Inflows from issuing stock, creditor notes, mortgages, bonds, receipt of principal on loans. Outflows for dividends, treasury stock purchases, payment of loan principal.

Sections 10-11: Preparing a statement of cash flows.

Part I. Asset accounts.

Part II. Liability, stockholders’ equity accounts.

Section 12: Special and supplementary items. Inflows and outflows related to the purchase/sale of securities or treasury stock, foreign currency transactions, acquisitions and lawsuits. Which items are disclosed only as supplemental information.

Section 13: Special items for large corporations. Sale of a business, equity in an affiliate’s income, issuing bonds, amortization of a bond discount or premium, early extinguishment of debt.

Section 14: Comprehensive case study. Everything you learned applied to a complete statement of cash flows.

Publisher: AIPB

The post Mastering the Statement of Cash Flows appeared first on American Institute of Professional Bookkeepers.

Section 1:  Why we use accruals, deferrals and other adjustments. The difference between cash basis and accrual basis accounting.

Section 2: Accrued revenue. How to record accrued revenue. Examples of different kinds of accrued revenue. Computing and accruing interest receivable. How failure to accrue revenue affects the financial statements.

Section 3: Accrued expenses. How to record accrued expenses. Examples of different kinds of accrued expenses. Computing and recording interest payable. How failure to accrue expenses affects the financial statements.

Section 4: Revenue collected in advance (unearned revenue). How to record unearned revenue. How to accrue revenue earned when the revenue collected was originally recorded in a revenue account v. an unearned revenue account.

Section 5: Prepaid (deferred) expenses. Recording prepayments and adjustments. How to accrue expenses when prepayments were recorded in an expense account v. a prepaid (asset) account.

Section 6: Other adjusting entries. How to compute and record the adjusting entry for bad debt expense for tax purposes v. book purposes. Adjusting entries for depreciation and various cash accounts.

Section 7: From unadjusted to adjusted trial balance. The chart of accounts. Preparing the unadjusted trial balance, entering the adjustments and preparing the adjusted trial balance. A summary of how the adjusted trial balance is used to prepare the income statement, balance sheet and statement of retained earnings. Basics of the post-closing trial balance.

Publisher: AIPB

The post Mastering Adjusting Entries appeared first on American Institute of Professional Bookkeepers.