New AICPA standards aid accounting for the costs of internal-use software

Statement of Position (SOP) No. 98-1, "Accounting for the Costs of Computer Software Developed or Obtained for Internal Use," issued by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants in March 1998, provides financial managers with guidelines regarding which costs involved in developing or obtaining internal-use software should be expensed and which should be capitalized. The SOP identifies three stages in the development of internal-use software: the preliminary project stage, the application development stage, and the postimplementation-operation stage. The SOP provides that all costs incurred during the preliminary project stage should be expensed as incurred. During the application development stage, costs associated with developing or obtaining the software should be capitalized, while costs associated with preparing data for use within the new system should be expensed. Costs incurred during the postimplementation-operation stage, typically associated with training and application maintenance, should be expensed.