What Is Depreciation?

The assets’ value decreases as time passes, and businesses need a way to account for this value loss. Depreciation allocates the cost of a tangible asset each fiscal year. By dividing the cost of assets by how long they would be utilized, you could calculate the depreciation of an asset. In this case, you must know the cost of the assets, residual value, as well as estimated productive life for the calculations. Depreciation is an income tax deduction that enables you to recoup the assets’ cost over the time you use the asset. It is an allowance for the property’s wear and tear, damage, or obsolescence.

Depreciation calculation techniques will certainly subtract a certain amount from the asset’s value yearly. For example, expensive assets, like manufacturing equipment, motor vehicles, and buildings, might become obsolete. Businesses should calculate the depreciation of assets by writing them off the balance sheets.

A common example is a motor vehicle that is used for business operations. The rate of depreciation for the motor vehicle will decrease yearly due to the lost value of the car with time and driving made use of. You can claim some of the initial purchase’s cost and also the vehicle’s maintenance by reporting it as a “depreciable asset” on your business taxes.

Some assets can be considered capital allowance claimable by the IRAS-SG (LHDN-MY). However, there are some specific requirements that need to be applied to depreciation:

• The assets need to be owned by the company
• The assets must be used for your business operations or income-producing activity
• The assets ought to have a determinable useful life

One of the most popular deductions for small entrepreneurs filing tax forms is writing off the depreciation of the properties. Before depreciation on a business’s balance sheet, the depreciation write-off system requires an asset, such as equipment, to be placed into service.

Ways to calculate depreciation of assets:

Straight-line depreciation: The easiest and most general technique to calculate the depreciation of an asset. This kind of depreciation is calculated by dividing the cost (Also see Do You Know What is Cost Structure?) of an asset by how long it would be made use of, which allows you have an equal expenditure yearly.

Reducing balance: This technique is utilized for assets with a faster expected depreciation rate. This method more accurately reveals how fast motor vehicles depreciate and could be made use of to match cost more closely with the advantages of using the asset. This sort of depreciation usually gives you higher depreciation at the early part of the asset (Also see What Is Impairment Of Fixed Assets?) life and lower depreciation at the end of the asset life.