Accounting guidance for situations when stock awards (stock options, restricted stock units and other equity-based instruments) are modified after the original grant date has been in place for a long time – with the original literature that covers fair value calculations and determining how much and when compensation expense is recorded. What hasn’t been clear for a long time is when the rules for how to handle modifications need to be applied to changes in stock awards. (more…)
Cryptocurrency Tax Update - Still More Questions Than Answers
There have been a few developments since we last looked at cryptocurrency in April, 2017 (Are Bitcoin Users Cheating on Taxes? (Or Are They Just Confounded by the Rules?)). The IRS has increased tax compliance enforcement but unfortunately, guidance from the Internal Revenue Service has not kept up with the advances in the cryptocurrency world continuing tax reporting challenges.
In 2014 the IRS released their position regarding the taxation of cryptocurrency transactions in Notice 2014-21 (https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-drop/n-14-21.pdf). The IRS notified taxpayers that: (more…)
Stranded Tax Effects from New Tax Act
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the Act), enacted on December 22, 2017, creates some interesting consequences when applying US GAAP principles for income tax accounting related to deferred taxes. FASB guidance requires that deferred income tax assets and liabilities be remeasured as a result of changes in tax laws or tax rates. As commonly known by now, the Act reduced the maximum tax rate for corporations to 21% from 35%. (more…)
Look Before You Leap - Understanding Some Unique Accounting Rules
In the last couple of years, I have witnessed several of my private company clients reorganize their operations, through either a merger, an acquisition or a significant management member buyout. While such situations provide a great stage for all to display their accounting chops, they also present us an opportunity to consult with our clients and help them avoid an accounting faux pas or burdensome and unnecessary disclosures caused by an inadvertent accounting election. So, in no specific order, I thought I would summarize some of the unique accounting issues I’ve encountered in such situations and how to navigate them: (more…)
Revenue Recognition Update – Step 5: Recognizing Revenue When (Or As) the Entity Satisfies a Performance Obligation
After all the research and analysis put in working through the prior four steps, you are now able to begin the process for recognizing revenue for the transaction price (Step 3) which has been allocated to each performance obligation (Step 4).
Each performance obligation identified in Step 2 can be satisfied by either the transfer of a promised good or by performing a service to the customer. This distinction will be the main driver for the next decision that needs to be made, and that is, whether the revenue needs to be recorded over time or at a point in time. For a good majority of the identified performance obligations, a good or service will be transferred/consumed over a period of time and therefore revenue would be recognized over that same time period. ASC 606 has helped in this analysis by providing guidance, so to recognize revenue over time, one of the following criteria needs to be met: (more…)
Revenue Recognition Update – Step 4: Allocating Transaction Price to Performance Obligations
If you have been following Steps 1 (Identify the Contract with the Customer) through 3 (Determining a Transaction Price), of the revenue recognition update as eagerly as I have, then I am sure that you keenly await the discussion on Step 4 about the allocation of the transaction price to the performance obligations in a contract. The wait is over as we explore Step 4 in this blog post. A couple key concepts that we need to understand in this process: the allocation objective and standalone selling price. (more…)
Revenue Recognition Update – Step 3: Determine a Transaction Price
Now that all of the performance obligations (Step 2) of the contract have been separately identified, it’s time to determine a transaction price. Seems easy, right?
ASC 606 defines the transaction price as “the amount of consideration to which an entity expects to be entitled in exchange for transferring promised goods or services to a customer, excluding amounts collected on behalf of third parties (for example, some sales taxes).” On the surface this sounds like an easy step for your entity to identify the price you are selling a product for, but in practice we know that not all transaction prices are fixed at the onset of the contract. When calculating the transaction price, an entity needs to consider all of the following: (more…)
Revenue Recognition Update - Step 2: Identify Performance Obligations
To continue the discussion of the ASC 606, Step 2 of the revenue recognition process requires examining what the seller has promised to do for the customer, and if there are multiple promises, whether these promises should be accounted for separately or combined. This examination determines the performance obligations which are the basis for the revenue recognition. (more…)
Revenue Recognition Update - Step 1: Identify the Contract with the Customer)
Revenue recognition is getting a lot of attention since ASC Topic 606 “Revenue from Contracts with Customers” was first issued in 2014. Since that date, we have had several posts on our blog that focus on some of the details and changes related to the new standard. As we get closer to implementation, it is time to take a closer look. (more…)