Construction is a unique business. Typically, a build can stretch over numerous reporting periods, presenting significant accounting challenges.

Work in progress accounting (WIP) may be the best way for your business to manage these challenges.

Let’s look at what WIP is and then an example of how it can help.

What is work in progress accounting?

Work in progress accounting is a technical accounting method used to represent a fair/true profit position in each respective reporting period.

Without using this method, each reported profit would be heavily dependent on the timing of invoicing – both the issuing of invoices to clients and the receipt of invoices from suppliers and contractors.

In short, accountants like to use this method because it shows a more accurate profit position of your business at any given point in time. A WIP figure can be used whenever a build stretches over reporting periods e.g. over two financial years.

Given that builds can be varied in terms of when costs are incurred by the business and when the client is invoiced, the financial position of the business ‘on paper’ will also vary. Often, a business can appear to be less profitable than it is. This affects how favourably a business is perceived by financial institutions, e.g. banks for loan applications or by Warranty for limit increases.

Like many aspects of accounting, the benefits of work in progress accounting are perhaps best illustrated with an example…

Are you in Jill the Builder’s situation?

Jill the builder has a contract to build a new home. The contract value is $1m and Jill expects it to cost $800k and take 12 months to complete, commencing 1st January.

Here’s what happens WITHOUT work in progress accounting…

At 30th June, the banks and QBCC are waiting to see the accounts to ensure you meet your Minimum Financial Requirements (MFR)

Jill is making good progress on the build with no unforeseen delays. She expects to complete it on schedule. As of 30th June, Jill has invoiced the client $380k and incurred costs of $400k.

Without WIP reporting, Jill would be showing a loss on the job of $20k (very simple math: income of $380k minus the cost of $400k equals $20k loss.)

If everything went to plan and the job was finalised according to schedule, Jill would incur a further $400k of cost and bill a further $620k to his client in the second six-month period. The reported profit for the period would be $220k.

Now, that doesn’t seem fair, does it??

Jill was halfway through the job on 30th June, yet he reported a loss of $20k versus a $220k profit in the second period.

This means that Jill's position with a bank or QBCC would be unfairly understated in the first year – potentially preventing loan applications or meeting QBCC (MFR) but for the recognition of WIP. See - https://www.qbcc.qld.gov.au/information-accountants/accounting-construction-work-progress

Work in progress reporting can be used to fix that…

Here’s what happens WITH work in progress accounting…

Taking another look at Jill's job profit using WIP reporting, at 30th June Jill is exactly halfway through the job. This can be easily seen as he has spent $400k on costs and he expects the total build to cost $800k.

With work in progress accounting, because you’ve completed half the work, you report half the profit.

Simplistically, as the job is half-complete, Jill needs to recognise half the total income, being $500k (50% x $1m). But he has only invoiced for $380k, so he needs to adjust this for the $120k difference.

Jill, therefore, recognises an additional $120k income at 30th June, as WIP on the Profit & Loss and as an asset in the Balance Sheet, resulting in a reported profit of $100k for the first six months.

The WIP adjustment is balanced out in the following six months, resulting in a reported profit of $100k for that period.

See the difference that work in progress accounting can make?

For the same job, with combined profit, the same under both scenarios, work in progress accounting results in a “smoothing” of the profit between the two reporting periods.

The timing of the invoicing doesn’t impact on the reported profit; WIP simply adjusts it to make the reported profit fair.

Better yet, not only does WIP improve the Profit & Loss, but it is also considered an asset on your balance sheet, which QBCC will count towards your business’s financial strength as represent in your QBCC (MFR)

See also: - QBCC – Accounting for Revenue from Construction Contracts – AASB 15

See also – Extract – AASB 15 – This standard applies to annual periods on or after 1^st January 2019.

Measurement 46 When (or as) a performance obligation is satisfied, an entity shall recognise as revenue the amount of the transaction price (which excludes estimates of variable consideration that are constrained in accordance with paragraphs 56–58) that is allocated to that performance obligation.

You can make your work in progress accounting as simple as possible by following these basic guidelines:

• Use Xero or similar accounting software, which will allow your accountant easy access to the data.
• Track your job income and costs, again using Xero or like make it simple.
• Be vigilant with contract values and expected costs to complete, which just makes good business sense anyway.
• Use a WIP calculation template, in time QBCC, will not count WIP asset towards the MFR, without an appropriate methodology.

If you would like to discuss how to use WIP, any other property accounting, and or QBCC report, please feel free to contact our office.