Definition of Accruals



Accruals concept says that revenues should not be recorded until the goods are sold or services are provided irrespective of receipt of cash. Similarly, the expenses should be recorded when the benefit of spending has been received irrespective of payment has been made or not. Accrual accounting is different from the cash basis of accounting in which payments are recorded as expenses and receipts are recorded as income.

 


Under the accrual system, if you have received the cash and have not delivered the goods or services, the business should record a liability instead of an income. On the other side, if you have paid the insurance for the whole year in advance, it is not an expense until the period covered by the insurance premium has expired. Until then it should be recorded as a prepaid expense i.e. an asset.


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