Fixed assets
Fixed assets are the assets that serve the business over the longer term — real estate, machinery, vehicles, installations, intangibles and participations; they are depreciated over their useful life.
Definition
The line against expense runs through useful life and amount: a tool for three hundred francs is booked as an expense, a machine for thirty thousand is capitalised. Where the line sits is a business decision and should be applied consistently.
Internally developed software may be capitalised only under narrow conditions. In SMEs treating it as an expense is the rule — which burdens the profit of the development year and relieves it afterwards.
Where to read it
What the software must be able to do
You need fixed asset accounting with categories, useful lives and depreciation runs, plus a fixed asset schedule for the notes. Programs without this area push it into a spreadsheet.
Checked Aug 2026
More terms under Bookkeeping and retention: Accrual principle Accrued liabilities Annual accounts Association accounting Balance sheet Balance sheet total Book value Break-even point Business assets Business expenses Cash book Cash flow statement Cash receipts Contribution margin Cost centre Current assets Debit and credit Depreciation Double-entry bookkeeping Duty to keep accounts EBIT EBITDA Equity Equity ratio Financial year Fixed costs Foreign currency General ledger Gross profit Hidden reserves Income statement Inventory count Journal Journal entry Liabilities Liquidity Loss carry-forward Membership dues Net profit Opening balance sheet Overheads Pass-through item Prepaid expenses Provision Record-keeping ordinance Reserves Retained profit Simple accounts Swiss SME chart of accounts Tamper resistance Turnover Value adjustment Variable costs Volunteer-run structure Voucher Year-end closing modules