---
title: Why did my current and long-term deferred revenue change for a closed period?
url: https://docs.maxio.com/insights/finance-reports/why-did-my-current-and-long-term-deferred-revenue-change-for-a-closed-period
applies_to: Maxio Core
updated: 2026-10-27
---

# Why did my current and long-term deferred revenue change for a closed period?

Maxio recalculates the split between current and long-term deferred revenue from your revenue schedules as they are today. If future revenue changes after a period is closed, that period's split can change even though its total doesn't.

## Scenario

“Our long-term deferred revenue for December dropped by about $87,000, months after we closed the books. Total deferred revenue didn't change. What moved the balance, and how do we see what caused it?”

## How Maxio splits deferred revenue

On the balance sheet, deferred revenue is split in two. The **short-term** portion is the revenue expected to be recognized in the 12 months after the report period. Anything beyond that is **long-term**.

## Why a closed period's split can change

Reports reflect your data as it is when you run them. If revenue schedules change after the period, for example when a contract's future schedule is updated, the historical split is recalculated even though the total deferred revenue stays the same.

Closing Dates don't prevent this. They lock revenue dated on or before the close, but the split depends on revenue scheduled after it.

## View the split

Turn on **Display Short Term / Long Term Deferred Revenue** in any of these reports:

- **Advanced Revenue Summary:** adds Current Deferred Revenue and Long Term Deferred Revenue rows.
- **Rollforward (Deferred Revenue):** adds an ending balance detail section. Requires long-term liability accounts to be enabled.
- **Deferred Revenue by Transaction:** shows the split for each transaction. Because it works at the transaction level, it won't match the contract-level Advanced Revenue Summary exactly.

## Find what changed

If you ran the report within the last 60 days, Maxio Support can refresh a sandbox with your data as of that date. Run the Deferred Revenue by Transaction report in both the sandbox and production, then compare them line by line to see which transactions moved between current and long-term.

> Because reports show current data, export the reports you use at each close. You'll keep a record of the numbers as they were booked.