Amortization
Amortization, like depreciation, is the process of deducting,
over a set period of time, the costs incurred in the procurement
of assets.� Whereas depreciation is used to expense out
(over the useful life) the costs of� tangible assets such
as buildings, furniture, and machines; amortization is used to
recover the cost of intangible assets such as:
�
Going into Business Costs - start up expenditures, cost of
incorporating, etc.
�
Lease for Business Property
�
Goodwill, patents, customer base,
permits, etc.
�
Reforestation Costs - direct costs of planting or seeding
�
Pollution Control Facilities
When
the intangible asset is originally purchased the cost should be
debited to an asset account.� This cost is then "written
off" or amortized, generally using the straight line method, over the
legal useful life of the asset (see IRS Publication 535 Chapter
9 for amortization period guidelines).� The straight line
method is simply dividing the initial cost of the asset by its
useful life.� For example if a patent is purchased for
$12,000 and amortized over 15 years (180 months) then the
monthly write-off would be $66.67 (12,000/180).
General Journal |
Page: 1 |
Date |
Account Titles/Explanation |
Ref |
Debit |
Credit |
20XX
Jan |
31 |
Amortization Expense - Patents
Patents
|
55
14 |
66.67
|
66.67
|
� |