Executive Summary

Currently the cashflow forecast in Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central does not consider expected cashflows from Subscription Billing contracts for either customers or vendors. This proposal enhances the cashflow calculation by including forecasted amounts from both customer subscription contracts and vendor subscription contracts to provide a more complete and realistic financial outlook.

Current Problem

Cashflow forecasts only reflect posted documents and standard receivables/payables.

Recurring revenues from customer subscription contracts and recurring costs from vendor subscription contracts are not included in the Cashflow Forecast until invoices are created and posted. As a result, the forecast does not reflect predictable future inflows and outflows, which reduces its reliability for companies that operate with subscription-based business models on both the sales and purchasing side.

Proposed Solution

• Extend the Cashflow Forecast functionality to include expected billing amounts from active Subscription Billing contracts for both customers and vendors.
• The system should evaluate subscription lines and their Next Billing Date, billing frequency, and contract status to determine forecasted invoice amounts within the selected forecast horizon.
• Customer subscription contracts should be treated as forecasted cash inflows.
• Vendor subscription contracts should be treated as forecasted cash outflows.
• The system should simulate future billing cycles based on the billing frequency (e.g., monthly, yearly) until the end of the forecast horizon.
• Add a setup option allowing users to include or exclude Subscription Billing data in the Cashflow Forecast
• Forecasted subscription inflows and outflows should appear as separate categories in the Cashflow Forecast so users can clearly distinguish them from posted receivables and payables.

Business Value

Including both customer and vendor subscription contracts in the Cashflow Forecast significantly improves financial planning accuracy. Companies gain better visibility into predictable recurring revenues and expenses, enabling more reliable liquidity planning and reducing the need for manual forecasting or external tools. This is particularly valuable for businesses with subscription-based revenue models and recurring supplier agreements.