Gift Card – Partial Redemption

One of the most common questions is how to handle partial redemption – when the guest uses only a portion of the gift card balance. The key is that each redemption event is booked separately, but the liability on 2421 only decreases by the actual redemption amount.

The core principle

On partial redemption:

• Only the used amount is booked (debit 2421, credit 3001 + VAT)
• The remaining balance stays on 2421
• No special procedures – it's just a smaller version of full redemption

Concrete example – 500 SEK card used 3 times

The guest receives a 500 SEK gift card (day 1). Uses it for lunch 150 SEK (day 10), dinner 250 SEK (day 30) and coffee 100 SEK (day 60).

Day 1 (issuance):

• D 1580 / C 2421 – 500 SEK
• 2421 balance: 500 SEK

Day 10 (redemption 150 SEK, food 12%):

• D 2421 150 / C 3001 133.93 / C 2620 16.07
• 2421 balance: 350 SEK

Day 30 (redemption 250 SEK, food 12%):

• D 2421 250 / C 3001 223.21 / C 2620 26.79
• 2421 balance: 100 SEK

Day 60 (redemption 100 SEK, food 12%):

• D 2421 100 / C 3001 89.29 / C 2620 10.71
• 2421 balance: 0 SEK (card status → 'redeemed')

Check: total VAT reporting

Total consumption via gift card: 500 SEK Total revenue booked: 133.93 + 223.21 + 89.29 = 446.43 SEK Total VAT booked: 16.07 + 26.79 + 10.71 = 53.57 SEK Sum: 446.43 + 53.57 = 500.00 SEK ✓

This matches exactly what the customer paid for the card. But VAT was triggered on three different dates (day 10, 30 and 60), not on day 1.

Reporting: outstanding gift card liability

At each month-end close, reconcile 2421 against the sum of remaining balance for all active gift cards. These two must match exactly.

Related articles

• Gift card accounting – redemption
• Gift card expiry to account 3960
• Balance sheet account reconciliation