Fixed Assets
Fixed Assets
The Fixed Assets module tracks every long-lived asset your company owns — machinery, vehicles, computers, software licenses, leasehold improvements, and any other item you capitalize rather than expense immediately. It builds a depreciation schedule automatically from the asset's cost, useful life, and residual value, posts Journal Entries to the general ledger on each depreciation run, and records the complete disposal entry when you retire or sell an asset.
Where to find it
Go to Accounting > Fixed Assets.
Fixed Assets list, every depreciable asset on your books.
Related Setup pages:
- Accounting > Asset Categories — group assets by type and pre-fill GL accounts
- Accounting > Fixed Asset Products — product templates that auto-create assets from Vendor Bills
How it fits into the GL
Fixed assets touch four accounts:
| Account | Role |
|---|---|
| Asset Account | Balance-sheet asset; debited at capitalization for acquisition cost |
| Accumulated Depreciation Account | Balance-sheet contra-asset; credited on every depreciation posting |
| Depreciation Expense Account | Income-statement expense; debited on every depreciation posting |
| Offset / Gain-Loss Account | Used for the capitalization credit offset, and for gain or loss on disposal |
Optional:
| Account | Role |
|---|---|
| Disposal Proceeds Account | Debited for cash or receivable when an asset is sold |
Setup: Asset Categories
Asset Categories let you group similar assets (for example, Vehicles, Computer Equipment, Furniture) and pre-configure the three required GL accounts. When you assign a category to a new asset, the accounts fill in automatically — you do not need to select them manually for every asset.
Where to find it
Go to Accounting > Asset Categories.
Fields
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Code | Short identifier, unique across your company |
| Name | Descriptive label shown in lists and Reports |
| Description | Optional notes |
| Default Asset Account | Pre-fills the Asset Account on new assets in this category |
| Default Accumulated Depreciation Account | Pre-fills the Accumulated Depreciation Account |
| Default Depreciation Expense Account | Pre-fills the Depreciation Expense Account |
Categories cannot be deleted while any asset is assigned to them.
Setup: Fixed Asset Products
Fixed Asset Products are standard Products with Is Fixed Asset enabled. They serve as templates: when a vendor bill containing one of these Products is posted to the GL, CifraHQ creates a FixedAsset record automatically for each unit on the bill line — no manual data entry required.
Where to find it
Go to Accounting > Fixed Asset Products. This is a filtered view of the Products catalog showing only items with Is Fixed Asset = Yes.
Fixed-asset-specific product fields
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Asset Category | Copied to the auto-created asset |
| Asset Type | Tangible or Intangible |
| Useful Life (months) | Duration of the depreciation schedule |
| Depreciation Method | Currently: Straight-Line |
| Depreciation Frequency | Monthly, Quarterly, or Annual |
| Residual Value | Salvage value at end of useful life |
When a bill is posted, the service reads these defaults, sets the capitalization date to the bill's posting date, and builds the full depreciation schedule immediately.
Creating an asset manually
Go to Accounting > Fixed Assets and click New Asset.
Identity
| Field | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Asset Code | Auto | Generated automatically using your company's numbering convention |
| Name | Yes | Descriptive name of the asset |
| Description | No | Additional notes |
| Serial Number | No | Manufacturer serial, vehicle plate, license key, etc. |
| Asset Type | Yes | Tangible (physical equipment) or Intangible (software, licenses, rights) |
| Category | No | Selects a category and auto-fills the three GL accounts |
| Vendor | No | Supplier the asset was purchased from |
Dates and cost
| Field | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Acquisition Date | Yes | Date the asset was purchased or received |
| Capitalization Date | Yes | Date the asset was placed in service. The depreciation schedule starts here. Must be on or after Acquisition Date. |
| Acquisition Cost | Yes | Total capitalized cost (must be greater than zero) |
| Residual Value | No | Estimated salvage value at end of useful life. Defaults to 0. Must be less than Acquisition Cost. |
| Currency | Yes | Currency of the acquisition cost. Exchange rate can be set if different from base currency. |
Depreciation parameters
| Field | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Depreciation Method | Yes | Currently: Straight-Line — depreciable amount is divided evenly across all periods |
| Depreciation Frequency | Yes | Monthly, Quarterly, or Annual. Useful life must be exactly divisible by the frequency period. |
| Useful Life | Yes | Total service life, entered as years and months. Internally stored in months (1–600). |
GL accounts
| Field | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Asset Account | Yes | Balance-sheet account for the asset cost. Must be account type Asset. |
| Accumulated Depreciation Account | Yes | Contra-asset account. Must be account type Asset. |
| Depreciation Expense Account | Yes | P&L expense account. Must be account type Expense. |
| Offset Account | No | Used as the credit side of the capitalization journal entry, and as the gain/loss account on disposal. |
| Disposal Proceeds Account | No | Debited for sale proceeds when disposing with a sale price. |
Post capitalization entry
When Post Capitalization Entry is enabled, CifraHQ creates a GL journal entry on save:
DR Asset Account Acquisition Cost
CR Offset Account Acquisition Cost
This entry is posted once only. If no Offset Account is set, the option is disabled.
Saving the asset
On save, CifraHQ:
- Generates the asset code (if blank)
- Validates account types
- Builds the complete depreciation schedule (all periods, all amounts) and saves it
- Posts the capitalization journal entry (if enabled)
The depreciation schedule is visible immediately on the asset detail page under the Schedule tab.
Depreciation schedule
The depreciation schedule is a table of periods generated at save time. Each row covers one depreciation period.
| Column | Description |
|---|---|
| Period | Sequential period number |
| Period Start | First day of the period |
| Period End | Last day of the period |
| Depreciation Amount | Amount for this period |
| Accumulated | Running total of depreciation posted so far |
| Book Value After | Cost minus accumulated after this period |
| % Applied | Proportion of depreciable amount for this period |
| Status | Pending, Posted, or Reversed |
| Posted At | Date and time the period was posted to the GL |
How the schedule is calculated (Straight-Line)
Depreciable Amount = Acquisition Cost - Residual Value
Total Periods = Useful Life Months / Period Length Months
Period Amount = Round(Depreciable Amount / Total Periods, 2)
Period Start[n] = Capitalization Date + ((n-1) * Period Length Months)
Period End[n] = Capitalization Date + (n * Period Length Months) - 1 day
The last period absorbs any rounding difference so the total depreciation always equals the depreciable amount exactly.
Recalculation
If you edit an asset before any period has been posted, the old pending schedule is deleted and a new one is regenerated from the updated parameters. Once the first period is posted, the schedule is frozen and the acquisition cost, capitalization date, useful life, method, frequency, and residual value fields are locked.
Posting depreciation
Individual asset
- Open the asset detail page.
- On the Schedule tab, click Depreciate Through Period and select a period number.
- CifraHQ posts all pending periods sequentially up to the selected period. Periods cannot be skipped.
Each posted period creates a journal entry:
DR Depreciation Expense Account Period Amount
CR Accumulated Depreciation Account Period Amount
When book value reaches the residual value, the asset status changes to Fully Deprecated automatically.
Bulk depreciation run
From the Fixed Assets list page, click Bulk Depreciate. Enter a Through Date and confirm. CifraHQ enqueues a background job (via Hangfire) that:
- Identifies all Active assets
- For each asset, finds all pending periods whose end date falls on or before the through date
- Posts each period sequentially
- Applies the currency conversion rate (base currency rate / asset currency rate) if the asset is in a foreign currency
- Validates that the posting period (by calendar date) is unlocked before writing
- Transitions any fully-depreciated assets to Fully Deprecated status
The job runs in the background. You can monitor it from the Hangfire dashboard or refresh the asset list to see updated book values.
Asset statuses
| Status | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Active | Asset is in service and eligible for depreciation |
| Fully Deprecated | Book value has reached the residual value; no more depreciation periods remain |
| Disposed | Asset has been retired, sold, or scrapped |
| Voided | Asset was created in error and has never touched the GL |
Disposing of an asset
When you retire, sell, or scrap an asset, use the Dispose action (available from the detail page or the list page action menu).
Disposal fields
| Field | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Disposal Date | Yes | Date the asset left service |
| Disposal Reason | No | Notes explaining the disposal (theft, sale, write-off, etc.) |
| Sale Price | No | Net proceeds if the asset was sold. Leave blank or enter 0 for a write-off. |
What happens on disposal
- All pending depreciation periods with
Period End <= Disposal Dateare posted first - The asset status is set to Disposed and the disposal date is recorded
- A disposal journal entry is posted:
Write-off (no sale price):
DR Accumulated Depreciation Account Total Accumulated Depreciation
DR Offset Account (Loss) Book Value at Disposal
CR Asset Account Acquisition Cost
Gain on sale (sale price > book value):
DR Accumulated Depreciation Account Total Accumulated Depreciation
DR Disposal Proceeds Account Sale Price
CR Asset Account Acquisition Cost
CR Offset Account (Gain) Gain Amount
Loss on sale (sale price < book value):
DR Accumulated Depreciation Account Total Accumulated Depreciation
DR Disposal Proceeds Account Sale Price
DR Offset Account (Loss) Loss Amount
CR Asset Account Acquisition Cost
Voiding an asset
Use Void to cancel an asset that was created by mistake. Voiding is only allowed when:
- No depreciation periods have been posted
- No capitalization journal entry has been posted
A voided asset cannot be reactivated. If you need to remove an asset that has posted GL entries, use Dispose with a write-off instead.
Reports
Five Reports are available from the detail page via the Reports button, and from the list page for register-level Reports.
| Report | Description |
|---|---|
| Fixed Asset Register | Full list of all non-voided assets with cost, book value, accumulated depreciation, status, and GL accounts |
| Depreciation Schedule | Complete period-by-period schedule for a single asset, including posted amounts and journal entry references |
| Acquisitions Report | Assets ordered by capitalization date; total count and total acquisition cost |
| Disposals Report | Disposed assets with book value at disposal, sale price, and gain or loss per asset |
| Book Value Report | All non-voided assets grouped by category with subtotals; per-asset percentage depreciated; grand totals |
Tips
- Set up categories before assets. Categories pre-fill the three required GL accounts, saving time and reducing account selection errors across many assets.
- Use Fixed Asset Products for purchased equipment. If you regularly buy the same type of equipment from Vendors, set it up as a Fixed Asset Product. CifraHQ creates the asset automatically when the bill is posted — no manual entry.
- Capitalization date drives the schedule, not acquisition date. Enter the date the asset was actually placed in service as the Capitalization Date. If equipment arrives in December but is not installed until January, the schedule — and depreciation expense — begins in January.
- Post periods in order. Depreciation periods must be posted sequentially. You cannot post period 5 before periods 1–4 are posted.
- Bulk runs check posting period locks. If a posting period is locked, the bulk depreciation job skips the periods that fall in that month. Unlock the period first if you need to post into it.
- Disposal posts catch-up depreciation automatically. You do not need to manually post all pending periods before disposing. The Dispose action catches up automatically through the disposal date.
- Voiding is permanent. Once voided, an asset cannot be reactivated. Use voiding only for assets entered in error that have never touched the GL.
Related: Tax Payments · Journal Entries · Vendor Bills · Asset Categories · Fixed Asset Products · Audit Trail · Account Priming
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