carryover

Carryover is the term for the transfer of a quantity, effect, or obligation from one period, condition, or context to another, often because rules or policies allow postponement, accumulation, or continuation.

In taxation and accounting, carryover describes items that can be applied to future periods. The best known examples are net operating loss carryforwards and capital loss carryovers, which allow losses to offset future profits. Tax credits may also be carried forward. Rules vary by jurisdiction, influencing how long a loss or credit may be used and under what conditions. In budgeting and financial reporting, carryover refers to funds, obligations, or work items that are not resolved in the current period and are moved into the next period, sometimes requiring management approval or compliance with policy limits.

In operations, carryover commonly applies to inventory and work-in-progress. Inventory carryover occurs when stock remains unsold at period end, potentially affecting forecasting and pricing. In project management, carryover or backlog describes tasks that were planned but not completed within a period, affecting planning and resource allocation.

In scientific and regulatory contexts, carryover can refer to lingering effects or contaminants that persist from one experiment or assessment to the next, such as carryover contamination in laboratory assays or residual effects in radiation or pharmacology studies. Policies often address mitigation, measurement, and reporting of carryover to avoid bias or incorrect conclusions.