Construction Accounting for Bookkeepers: A Practical Specialisation Course for South Africans

The purpose of this course is to equip working bookkeepers to identify, classify, measure and treat every transaction in a construction contractor’s books correctly under IFRS for SMEs (Third Edition). It exists to remove the guesswork from contract revenue, retentions, work in progress, progress billings and construction VAT, so that a contractor’s accounts can be trusted by owners, accountants, auditors and SARS.

10 CPD units July 13, 2026 1 presenter

What will set you apart

By completing this course you will gain the following competencies

Identify, classify, measure and treat every transaction that recurs in a contractor’s books.
Recognise construction revenue over time under the new Section 23 five-step model.
Handle the VAT timing that trips up most bookkeepers, including the deferred VAT on retention.
Account for retentions, progress billings, variations, contract assets and liabilities, plant and payroll.
Produce contract-level numbers the owner relies on, and spot a loss-making contract in time to act.

Event breakdown

The course follows the life of a construction contract, from the first source document on site to the reporting-date financial statements:
PART A · FOUNDATIONS
#
Chapter
Time
1
Introduction to Construction Bookkeeping
60 min
2
Source Documents on Site
60 min
3
Chart of Accounts for a Contractor
55 min
4
Double-Entry Refresher for Construction
45 min
5
The IFRS for SMEs Map: Section 23 for Construction
60 min
PART B · THE CONSTRUCTION TRANSACTION CORE
#
Chapter
Time
6
Contract Costs and Work-in-Progress
60 min
7
Recognising Revenue Over Time
75 min
8
Progress Billings and the Contract Asset or Liability
75 min
9
Retentions
55 min
10
Variations and Claims
50 min
11
Loss-Making Contracts and the Month-End
70 min
PART C · THE WIDER CYCLE, ADAPTED TO CONSTRUCTION
#
Chapter
Time
12
Construction Debtors, Creditors and Credit Management
65 min
13
Construction Cash Flow, Guarantees and Working Capital
70 min
14
Construction Budgeting and Cost Control
70 min
15
Plant, Equipment and Fixed Assets
60 min
16
Construction Payroll and Labour
65 min
17
Construction Financial Statements
75 min
18
Construction Tax Compliance
65 min
19
Technology and Job-Costing Tools
45 min
20
Internal Controls and Ethics on Site
55 min
FINAL
#
Chapter
Time
21
Cumulative Final Assessment
45 min
Total: approximately 21 hours 20 minutes · 10 CPD units.
Each chapter builds on the same running client, so the course reads as one continuous story rather than a set of disconnected topics.

Category: AccountingType: CPD CourseCPD category: Accounting

Description

Retention held back. Payment certificates. Revenue you have earned but cannot yet bill. Two VAT clocks running at once. A contractor’s books behave like no other client’s, and the rules changed when the third edition of IFRS for SMEs rewrote how construction revenue is recognised. Get it right and you become the bookkeeper a contractor cannot afford to lose. Get it wrong and the accounts overstate profit, the VAT lands in the wrong period, and your client carries the risk. This course makes sure you get it right, every time. This course teaches construction bookkeeping the way it is done in a working practice. Across twenty chapters and a cumulative final assessment, you follow one running client, Khumalo Build (Pty) Ltd, through the full bookkeeping cycle adapted to construction, from source documents on site to contract-level financial statements. Every chapter ends with an interactive knowledge check, and every treatment is built on IFRS for SMEs (Third Edition) with South African VAT woven throughout. The course is self-paced and online, pitched for a working bookkeeper. It runs to about 21 hours and earns 10 CPD units. One chapter every day or two works well; spread over about two weeks, the material sticks. Who This Course Is For This course is designed for:

Bookkeepers in practice who keep the books of one or more construction or contracting clients
Employed finance and admin staff in a mid-sized South African contractor
Accounting practice staff who prepare or review the books of contractor clients
Bookkeepers comfortable with double-entry, the basics of VAT and a trial balance who now need to handle construction

This course assumes no prior construction knowledge. It is not an introduction to bookkeeping, and it is not a project-management or quantity-surveying course.

Presenters

Nicolene Smit — Nicolene Smit is an accounting professional, academic, and education strategist with experience across professional practice, higher education, and professional body leadership. She completed her accounting articles in 2015 before moving into academia in 2017, where she served as a lecturer, subject head, and programme coordinator in Accounting Sciences. Nicolene holds a Master's degree in Taxation, a BCom Honours degree in Financial Management, and is a Chartered Business Accountant in Practice (CBAP) with CIBA. Since joining CIBA as Education Manager in 2023, she has led initiatives in academic partnerships, professional designation development, competency frameworks, and the advancement of future-focused accounting education, including the integration of artificial intelligence into finance and accounting learning

You will earn a certificate

On successful completion you will receive a certificate for 10 CPD units in Accounting.

Requirements

Laptop, desktop, or mobile device with internet access
Microsoft Edge, Google Chrome, Safari, or Firefox browser