Track gift card revenue under accrual accounting

Use this guide to understand how gift card value moves through ROLLER under accrual accounting, so you can reconcile balances, review revenue reports, and explain why gift card sales and recognized revenue may not match in the same reporting period.

When this matters

When guests buy gift cards, your venue receives payment upfront, but that does not mean the revenue is earned yet. Under accrual accounting, gift card sales are treated as a liability until the gift card is used to make a purchase. Revenue is recognized when the item purchased with the gift card is redeemed at POS or expires.

You may need this guide when you are:

• Preparing end-of-month or end-of-year financial reports.

• Reconciling gift card balances with your accounting system.

• Reviewing expired or unused gift card balances.

• Monitoring outstanding gift card liability over time.

Under accrual accounting, it is important to distinguish between:

• Money received from gift card sales.

• Value still held in Gift Card Deferred Revenue.

• Revenue recognized after purchased items are redeemed or expire.

How gift card revenue works in ROLLER

Gift card revenue usually moves through three stages under accrual accounting:

1. A guest buys a gift card
   The full value is recorded as Gift Card Deferred Revenue.
2. A guest uses the gift card to make a purchase
   When a guest uses a gift card to make a purchase, the value moves out of Gift Card Deferred Revenue.
3. Revenue is recognized
   Revenue is recognized when the item purchased with the gift card is redeemed at POS or expires, based on the product’s expiry rules.

Quick reference

Example of deferred gift card revenue

A guest purchases a $100 gift card.

• At purchase, $100 is recorded as Gift Card Deferred Revenue.

• The guest later uses $60 to make a purchase, such as tickets or products.

• When the gift card is used to make that purchase, $60 moves out of Gift Card Deferred Revenue.

• Revenue is recognized when the item purchased with the gift card is redeemed at POS or expires, based on the product’s expiry rules.

• The remaining $40 stays in Gift Card Deferred Revenue until it is used or manually recognized under your accounting policy.

This is why gift card sales and earned revenue do not always match in the same reporting period.

How expired gift cards affect revenue

If a gift card expires with unused balance, that balance remains in Gift Card Deferred Revenue in ROLLER. This is because gift card expiry and breakage rules vary across countries and regions.

This is different from items purchased with a gift card. Revenue for those items is recognized when the item is redeemed or expires, based on the product’s expiry rules.

If your venue needs to recognize unredeemed balances for expired gift cards, follow your accounting policy and local regulations. You can also use the process in How do I recognize funds from expired gift cards?.

How to track gift card revenue using reports

Use these reports to review outstanding gift card liability, track how gift card value has been used, and compare deferred and recognized revenue.

View and export gift card data

Use View and export gift card data to review:

• Expiry

• Original balance

• Remaining balance

• Purchase date

• Payment method

Use this report to identify gift cards with unused value and confirm how much balance is still held in Gift Card Deferred Revenue.

Review revenue recognition

Use the Revenue Recognition report to compare deferred gift card value with revenue recognized from the items purchased with a gift card.

This report helps you identify:

• Funds received
  Payments collected at the time of the transaction. This shows money received, not necessarily revenue earned.
• Deferred revenue
  Payments for future services or products that have not yet been redeemed or expired.
• Gift Card Deferred Revenue
  Gift card value that has not yet been used to buy products. Unused expired gift card balances remain here in ROLLER.
• Gross Revenue
  Revenue earned, including tax, when the related service is delivered. In ROLLER, this is recognized when the item purchased with the gift card is redeemed or expires.
• Discount Recognized
  The value of discounts applied to recognized revenue. This does not refer to unused gift card balances.

Reconcile gift card revenue under accrual accounting

1. View and export gift card data for the reporting period.

2. Review each gift card's original balance, remaining balance, purchase date and expiry date. 

3. Identify gift cards with a remaining balance to confirm how much value is still held in Gift Card Deferred Revenue.

4. Open the Revenue Recognition report for the same reporting period.

5. Review Gift Card Deferred Revenue and recognized revenue to confirm how gift card value moved and when revenue was recognized.

6. Compare these balances with your accounting records.

7. If a gift card expired with unused balance and your venue needs to recognize that value, follow the process in How do I recognize funds from expired gift cards?

Learn more

• How do I recognize funds from expired gift cards?

• View and export gift card data

• Revenue Recognition report

• Trial Balance report

• Revenue recognition and product expiry rules in ROLLER (accrual accounting)

• How is revenue recognized for gift cards?