Close & reporting
Revenue recognition (ASC 606 / IFRS 15)
Finbryn builds IFRS 15 revenue recognition schedules for EU businesses, separating contracts into performance obligations, allocating transaction price across them and scheduling revenue by month, so recurring, multi-year and bundled contracts are recognised when earned rather than when cash is collected.
Management report
Illustrative client · August 2026
EUR
| Line | Aug | Jul | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | 142,380 | 131,904 | +10,476 |
| Cost of sales | (51,260) | (48,115) | (3,145) |
| Gross profit | 91,120 | 83,789 | +7,331 |
| Payroll | (46,300) | (45,900) | (400) |
| SoftwareNoted | (6,480) | (5,490) | (990) |
| Rent | (8,000) | (8,000) | 0 |
| Other operating | (9,215) | (9,870) | +655 |
| Net income | 21,125 | 14,529 | +6,596 |
Reviewer's note
Software is up on last month after two seats were added mid-month. Revenue includes one milestone invoice that will not repeat next month.
Illustrative. An example of the document, not a client's figures.
Cash received is not the same as revenue earned
A customer paying twelve months of subscription fees on day one has not given you twelve months of revenue that day. IFRS 15 requires spreading that revenue across the period it is actually earned, using a five-step test: identify the contract, split it into its separate performance obligations, price the contract, allocate that price across the obligations, and recognise each piece as it is delivered.
Where this actually bites
A software contract bundling a subscription with a one-time setup fee needs the two priced and recognised separately, on different timelines, because they are genuinely different obligations even on one invoice. An agency retainer covering several distinct deliverables across a quarter needs the same split, or the monthly numbers overstate revenue in whichever month the invoice happened to land.
How we build the schedule
We work through your contracts, identify the obligations inside each one, and produce a monthly schedule that ties recognised revenue to the deferred and unbilled balances sitting on the balance sheet. Anywhere the call is not obvious, such as whether an implementation fee stands alone or not, the reasoning goes into a memo your group's finance lead or local accountant can rely on later rather than re-litigate.
One standard, applied the same way group-wide
IFRS 15 does not vary by member state, which is genuinely useful for a group operating across several: a contract structured the same way gets recognised the same way in every entity, even where each entity's statutory accounts otherwise sit on a different national GAAP.
Related services
The balances this produces are tracked in detail under deferred revenue, and the schedule feeds any IFRS conversion work a parent company needs.
Questions
Frequently asked questions: Revenue recognition (ASC 606 / IFRS 15)
Do we need a formal IFRS 15 schedule for simple one-time product sales?
Probably not in the same depth. IFRS 15 matters most when a contract spans a period of time, bundles multiple deliverables, or collects cash before the work is done.
How do you decide what counts as a separate performance obligation?
We look at whether the customer could benefit from each part of the contract on its own or together with resources readily available to them, which is the core test under the standard, and document the conclusion for each contract type.
Does this apply the same way in every member state?
IFRS 15 itself applies the same way across the EU; what differs is whether an entity's local statutory accounts use IFRS directly or a national GAAP with its own revenue rules, which we check per entity.
How do you handle a contract that bundles a product and ongoing support?
Each distinct promise in the contract, the product and the support, is identified and priced separately, then revenue for each is recognised on its own pattern rather than all recognised at the point of sale.
Does this change when we actually invoice the customer?
No, invoicing timing under your contract terms stays the same; IFRS 15 only changes when revenue is recognised in the accounts, which can differ from the invoice date without affecting how or when you bill.
Does this apply outside of software subscriptions?
Yes. Any business with multi-year contracts, bundled products and services, or upfront fees tied to ongoing delivery needs a recognition schedule, not only SaaS companies.
What is the difference between deferred revenue and unbilled revenue?
Deferred revenue is cash collected before it is earned. Unbilled revenue is the reverse: work delivered before an invoice goes out.
How do we get started with revenue recognition (ASC 606 / IFRS 15)?
Getting started with revenue recognition (ASC 606 / IFRS 15) begins with a short review of your current records and software access. Once that is done we confirm scope and timing in writing, and ongoing work begins on the schedule agreed with you.
What if our records for revenue recognition (ASC 606 / IFRS 15) are not up to date?
If your records are behind, we scope a catch-up first so revenue recognition (ASC 606 / IFRS 15) starts from a clean, reconciled base. That catch-up is priced and timed separately from the ongoing engagement, so you always know what each part costs.
Related services
- Close & reportingDeferred revenueCash collected before it is earned tracked separately from revenue and released to the profit and loss on the schedule that matches when the work is actually delivered.
- Close & reportingUS GAAP conversionBooks moved from cash basis or another framework onto US GAAP accrual accounting, with every adjustment documented so a lender, investor or auditor can follow the trail.
Industries
Next step
Talk to the team that would run your books
A short call covers your setup, your software and what a first month would look like. You get a written scope and price after it.