Asset Category

An Asset Category is the master record that defines how a class of assets is depreciated and accounted for. Set up one Asset Category per asset class (Office Equipment, Vehicles, Plant and Machinery, Buildings) so depreciation method, useful life, and GL account routing don't have to be set on every individual asset.

When you create a new Asset and pick its category, the depreciation schedule fields and account routing pre-fill. Override on the asset only when an individual asset legitimately deviates from policy.

Where to find it

Asset > Asset Category (or Projects > Assets > Asset Category depending on your workspace layout).

Key fields

Field	What it does
Asset Category Name	The user-facing label (e.g. Motor Vehicles, Office Equipment). Mandatory.
Enable Capital Work in Progress Accounting	When ticked, asset cost flows through a Capital Work In Progress (CWIP) account on purchase, and only moves to the Fixed Asset account once the asset is Available for Use.
Non Depreciable Category	Tick for asset classes that aren't depreciated (e.g. land). Hides the depreciation fields on assets in this category.
Finance Books	Per-finance-book table of depreciation method and parameters. See below.
Accounts	Per-company table of the GL accounts to post to. See below.

Asset Category form with Finance Books and Accounts tables visible

The Finance Books table

One row per Finance Book. Use multiple rows when you depreciate the asset differently for tax versus management reporting.

Column	What it does
Finance Book	Leave blank for the default book, or pick a specific finance book (e.g. Tax).
Depreciation Method	Straight Line, Double Declining Balance, Written Down Value, or Manual.
Total Number of Depreciations	The total number of periods over the asset's useful life.
Frequency of Depreciation (Months)	12 = yearly, 1 = monthly. Drives how often the schedule posts.
Depreciation Posting Date	The first scheduled depreciation date for assets created after this default takes effect. Usually overridden per asset.
Rate of Depreciation (%)	Required for Written Down Value and Double Declining Balance methods. Auto-calculated for Straight Line.
Expected Value After Useful Life	Salvage / residual value at the end of the depreciation schedule.
Salvage Value Percentage	Alternative to Expected Value: enter the salvage as a percentage of Gross Purchase Amount.
Depreciate based on daily pro-rata	Vary period depreciation by the number of days in the calendar period. Useful for partial first/last periods.
Depreciate based on shifts	Tick if the asset depreciates faster when used more (factory equipment).

The Accounts table

One row per Company. Multi-company sites must add a row per company before any asset under this category can be created.

Column	What it does
Company	The company this row applies to.
Fixed Asset Account	The Balance Sheet asset account where the gross purchase value sits.
Accumulated Depreciation Account	The contra-asset account that accumulates depreciation against the Fixed Asset account.
Depreciation Expense Account	The P&L expense account each depreciation entry posts to.
Capital Work In Progress Account	Required only when Enable Capital Work in Progress Accounting is ticked. The intermediate Balance Sheet account that holds asset cost between purchase and commissioning.

Asset Category Accounts table for one Company

What gets created

Nothing on save. Asset Category is master data.
When a new Asset is created and its Asset Category is picked, the depreciation fields and the GL routing pre-fill from this record.
Override on the asset only when one specific asset legitimately deviates (e.g. a custom-built machine with unique useful life).

Common pitfalls

Account fields are per Company. Multi-company sites must add a row per company before assets in that company can be created. Asset creation fails with a clear error if the row is missing.
Changing the Asset Category on an existing posted Asset doesn't retroactively change the depreciation already posted. Only future schedule recalculations use the new category. To restate prior periods, post manual journals.
For NZ tax depreciation, IRD-prescribed rates aren't pre-loaded. Look up the rate per asset class on the IRD depreciation rate finder, then configure the Tax finance book row with that method and rate.
Two finance books with different methods is the standard pattern for separating tax depreciation from management depreciation. The Asset will then post two depreciation schedules, one per book.
Capital Work In Progress is optional. Only enable it for asset classes where you genuinely have a delay between purchase and commissioning. For laptops bought today and used today, it's noise.