The NRTA (National Real Estate Tenants Association) is the premier professional association for lease accounting and lease administration professionals.  We are pleased to support the NRTA with 100% of the profits from the Lease Accounting Institute.  Find out more at:  Home - NRTA

Yes!  16 hours of CPE credit will be awarded upon completion of the CGLA course of study.

Yes!  We start at the beginning, so this course of study is perfect for you.

Yes!  16 hours of CPE credit will be awarded, and the designation will formalize your existing expertise.  We also hope you will encourage other members of your team to earn the CGLA designation.

Yes!  Many people move into lease accounting from other areas of business, real estate and lease administration for example.  This course is designed for you!

Here are titles and learning objectives for each of the 16 modules:

Accounting Basics for Lease Accountants

• Articulate the Goal of Business and the Role of Accounting
• List the Three Main Financial Statements and Their Components
• Process Journal Entries Using T-Accounts
• Define Key Concepts and Guiding Principles of Accounting
• Complete a Building Purchase Case Study

Fundamentals of Leasing for Lease Accountants

• Recognize a Lease
• Determine the Critical Dates in a Lease
• List the Main Types of Lease Contracts
• Recognize Lease Clauses that are Relevant to Lease Accounting
• Describe How Lease Administration and Lease Accounting Work Together

Introduction to Lease Accounting

• Describe the Main Deficiency of Old ASC 840 Lease Accounting Rules
• Describe the Primary Change required by ASC 842
• List the Characteristics of a Finance Lease
• List the Characteristics of an Operating Lease
• Know the Exceptions for Low-Value and Short-Term Leases

Lease Term and Lease vs. Non-lease Components

• Identify the Beginning Date of a Lease for Lease Accounting
• Identify the Ending Date of a Lease for Lease Accounting
• Define Lease Components
• Define Non-Lease Components
• Define Variable Expenses

Lease Accounting Interest Rates, NPV, and Classification Testing

• Identify the Interest Rate to use for Lease Accounting
• Relate the Time Value of Money to NPV
• Perform a Lease Classification Test
• Define a Finance Lease
• Define an Operating Lease

The Lease Accounting Amortization Schedule in Excel

• Build a Finance Lease Amortization Schedule in Excel
• Build an Operating Lease Amortization Schedule in Excel
• Calculate ST/LT lease liability
• Describe the effect of ARO and TIA on lease accounting
• Describe the effect of prepaid rent and direct costs on lease accounting

Lease Accounting Journal Entries

• Describe why T-accounts are useful
• Explain how data from amortization schedules relate to T accounts
• Create journal entries for Finance Leases
• Create journal entries for Operating Leases
• List the steps to research an out of balance journal entry

Month End Close and Reconciliations

• Define Month End Close
• Describe the process of posting journal entries
• List the steps required to reconcile a balance sheet account
• Use the V-lookup function in Excel
• Use the Pivot Table function in Excel

Lease Modification Accounting

• Define Lease Modification
• Recognize the Three Primary Types of Lease Modifications
• Describe the Accounting Implications of Lease Modifications
• Record Journal Entries for Lease Modifications
• Evaluate if a Modification Creates a New Lease

Termination, Abandonment, and Impairment of Leases

• Account for a Lease Termination
• Account for a Lease Abandonment
• Account for a ROU Asset Impairment
• Describe the Role of Sub-leases in Lessee Accounting
• Evaluate when to Use Termination vs. Abandonment vs. Impairment

Fundamentals of Equipment Lease Accounting

• Describe why Equipment Leases are presented on Balance Sheets
• Define the term Evergreen Lease in the context of equipment
• Identify Embedded Leases
• Recognize lease accounting implications of Energy Service Agreements
• Define the Portfolio Approach as it relates to equipment lease accounting

Lease Accounting’s Impact on Financial Statements

• Describe Lease Accounting’s Impact on The Income Statement
• Describe Lease Accounting’s Impact on the Cash Flow Statement
• Describe Lease Accounting’s Impact on the Balance Sheet
• Recognize the Components of the Lease Footnote
• List the Components of a Roll-Forward

IFRS Differences and Currency Considerations

• List the primary differences between ASC 842 and IFRS 16
• Describe IFRS 16 Disclosure Requirements
• Articulate why ASC 842 Cannot Simply be Adjusted to IFRS 16
• List Key Considerations for Dual Reporting Companies
• Describe How Currency Can Affect Lease Accounting

Lessor Accounting and Subleasing Considerations

• Describe how Lessor Accounting Intersects with Lessees
• Define the Three Lessor Accounting Classifications
• Articulate the Accounting Differences in Lessor Classifications
• List Common Tax Strategies Involving Lessor Accounting
• Avoid Confusion when Researching Lessee vs. Lessor

Business Combinations and Sale Leasebacks

• Define Business Combination
• Describe Changes to Lease Classification During a Business Combination
• Determine What Needs to be Reassessed During a Business Combination
• Calculate Favorable/Unfavorable Lease Adjustments
• Define Sale-and-Leaseback Transaction

Preparing for the Lease Accounting Audit

• Explain the Role of the Auditor in Financial Reporting
• Explain the Role of Company Management in Financial Reporting
• List the Main Audit Contributions of Lease Accountants
• List the Primary Critical Audit Matters in Lease Accounting
• Articulate How to Work with Auditors and Not Worry About the Audit

This program should qualify for tuition reimbursement or be reimbursable as continuing professional education.  Students must achieve an A (>=90%) or B (>=80%) on each module's assessment to graduate.  The CGLA program is accredited under NASBA's National Registry of CPE Sponsors QAS (quality assurance service) standards, which involves the most rigorous review process in the area of continuing accounting education.  Please click the CPE QAS logo above to read our National Registry Statement.  

No.  The Lease Accounting Institute^TM and the CGLA^TM designation are independent of any software provider. This program is designed to offer students practical knowledge of the concepts of lease accounting. That knowledge can be applied to any company and any software solution.

Both!  The standards have many similarities, but they are different.  We cover concepts that can be applied to both, and one course is designed to explain key differences.

Probably.  We cover lease accounting principles in the context of ASC 842 and IFRS 16 guidelines.  Most of the same concepts apply to governmental accounting, although some of the terminology is slightly different.

We want to simplify your CPE reporting process!  At the end of the program, you will receive 1 certificate for 16 CPE credits.  If you happen to cross a CPE reporting deadline while working through the courses and need to document different amounts of CPE in two separate years, just reach out to us, we keep records of each 1 credit module, and we'll be happy to help!

This course primarily focuses on lessee accounting.  There is some lessor material, because many lessees sometimes find themselves needing to understand sublease accounting.  However, this course is designed for lessees.  

No ongoing fees.  We hope you will recommend this course of study to others as you progress in your career!  We also plan to offer "deep dive" CPE courses for you to take in 1 or 2 hour increments, and we welcome suggestions on topics.  Regarding rules for using the CGLA^TM designation:  as long as you earn the certificate, go for it!  Just don't get convicted of any felonies or commit any ethical violations, in which case you'll need to stop using the designation.

Matt Waters, CGLA, CPA is the founder of The Lease Accounting Institute and the instructor for the CGLA program.  Find out more about Matt and connect with him at: Matt Waters | LinkedIn

No worries.  We don't think you will fail any course assessments because all the information you need is clearly presented in each course for the multiple-choice assessments.  Also, there are review questions that prepare you for each assessment.  However, if you don't pass one, we just suggest you review the material and try again.  No extra charge.

The format for each course is about 30 minutes of video instruction with 10 multiple choice review questions distributed throughout.  That is followed by a 5-question assessment, that you must pass before moving on, and then an opportunity for you to rate the course.  Repeat that 16 times, and you are a CGLA!

This should take you about 16 hours.  However, for best knowledge retention, we suggest you split this up over at least a week or two.  Take your time, work through the provided Excel templates, and you will get the most out of this material.  Matt is teaching you exactly how he would train someone to join a lease accounting team at a multi-billion dollar corporation.  2-3 hours a day for a few weeks is ideal but go at your own pace and enjoy the journey!