Write-off (afskrivning)
Also known as write-off, bad debt write-off, realised loss, afskrivning, tabsafskrivning, konstateret tab
A write-off is the accounting recognition that a claim is lost — but it does not extinguish the legal claim.
Key facts
- Is
- An accounting entry
- The claim
- Survives in law
In practice
Writing off a claim is an accounting act. It means that you no longer count on the money — not that the debtor is off the hook.
That distinction matters, because many organisations write off and then close the case. If you hold a judgment, the claim lives for ten years, and it costs next to nothing to leave it under monitoring. Write it off in the books, but do not let go of the claim.
Where it commonly goes wrong
- Writing off and abandoning are confused. They are two decisions — one for the auditor, one for you.
- Monitoring stops once the claim is written off. Debtors come into money again — but only the cases someone watches will catch it.
- Write-offs happen case by case on gut feeling. Without a fixed rule the figure becomes a negotiation with the auditor instead of a management number.