Release a prepaid expense
See this course’s project requirements
A fictional month-end adjustment packet with accruals, prepayments, depreciation, corrected trial balance and reconciled income statement.
Keep your working files in your own notebook or software. Save a private description, checklist, and work link in My Proof.
What to include
- An earned-revenue adjustment journal and posted balances.
- An unpaid-wage accrual and later-settlement distinction.
- A prepaid-rent release schedule and asset/expense posting.
- A depreciation assumption schedule and gross/contra/net bridge.
- A posted adjustment journal and complete adjusted trial balance.
- An adjusted income statement, balance-sheet bridge and changed-earned-revenue check.
Review and revise
Use these criteria to check your work and choose what to improve.
- Cutoff: each adjustment has period evidence.
- Journal: debit/credit accounts and amounts are correct.
- Posting: adjusted balances and totals reconcile.
- Statements: profit and net assets obey the accounting equation.
Want more background?
The idea in everyday life
Original fictional practice. All money is USD. No account, payment, personal record or outside participation is required. Original fictional month-end unadjusted trial balance: debit cash 5,000; accounts receivable 1,000; prepaid rent 1,200; equipment 2,400; wages expense 600. Credit accounts payable 800; unearned revenue 1,200; owner capital 6,200; service revenue 2,000. Each side totals 10,200. Month-end evidence:400 of advance service was earned;300 service earned but unbilled;250 wages incurred/unpaid; prepaid rent covers three equal months including this one; equipment cost 2,400, zero residual,24-month straight-line life, full month in use. No other transactions, tax, drawings or opening accumulated depreciation.
Advance payment is an asset until the supplied benefit is consumed.
Release a prepaid expense — complete worked case
Advance payment is an asset until the supplied benefit is consumed.
Original fictional month-end unadjusted trial balance: debit cash 5,000; accounts receivable 1,000; prepaid rent 1,200; equipment 2,400; wages expense 600. Credit accounts payable 800; unearned revenue 1,200; owner capital 6,200; service revenue 2,000. Each side totals 10,200. Month-end evidence:400 of advance service was earned;300 service earned but unbilled;250 wages incurred/unpaid; prepaid rent covers three equal months including this one; equipment cost 2,400, zero residual,24-month straight-line life, full month in use. No other transactions, tax, drawings or opening accumulated depreciation.
Unadjusted original trial balance
Paste at A1.
| AAccount | BDebit | CCredit |
|---|---|---|
| Cash | 5000 | 0 |
| Receivable | 1000 | 0 |
| Prepaid rent | 1200 | 0 |
| Equipment | 2400 | 0 |
| Wages expense | 600 | 0 |
| Payable | 0 | 800 |
| Unearned revenue | 0 | 1200 |
| Capital | 0 | 6200 |
| Service revenue | 0 | 2000 |
Copy as plain text
1. 3.1 Release
State covered months and elapsed benefit for the closing date.
You should see: Three equal months; one consumed.
2. 3.2 Release
Calculate 1,200/3 and write the expense/asset reduction.
You should see: 400 used.
3. 3.3 Release
Post prepaid 800/rent expense 400 and keep cash unchanged.
You should see: Future benefit remains an asset.
4. 3.4 Release
Change elapsed months to two at the first adjustment and recompute expense 800/prepaid 400.
You should see: No duplicate original cash payment.
What to finish
A prepaid-rent release schedule and asset/expense posting.
Watch for this
Expensing all 1,200 merely because it was paid before this month.
How can I tell I understand it?
Verify that your completed prepaid-rent release schedule and asset/expense posting meets the three lesson-specific checks and retains the supporting original records.
Quick knowledge check
Answer all 3 questions. Get at least 2 right and the lesson completes automatically.
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Pass the check. We’ll save the progress.
Answer all 3 questions above and get at least 2 right. You can review the explanations and try again.
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Sources and further reading
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Source & access notes · checked 2026-10-01
Read earned/incurred versus received/paid and period boundary; no current tax-basis claim inferred.
Access: Public primary page body opened and relevant sections read through the web reader on 2026-10-01; no account required for reading.
Reuse: Original Life Starter cases, datasets and questions; no source exercise or worked dataset reproduced. Links support further reading.
Source & access notes · checked 2026-10-01
Read accrued revenue/expense, deferral release and depreciation contra-asset entries.
Access: Public primary page body opened and relevant sections read through the web reader on 2026-10-01; no account required for reading.
Reuse: Original Life Starter cases, datasets and questions; no source exercise or worked dataset reproduced. Links support further reading.
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