What is Long-Term Liabilities

Long-term liabilities, in accounting, form part of a section of the balance sheet that lists obligations of the company that become due more than one year into the future. Long-term liabilities include items like debentures, loans, deferred tax liabilities and pension obligations. The portions of long-term liabilities that will come due within the next 12 months are listed under current liabilities, such as the current portion of long-term debt.

BREAKING DOWN 'Long-Term Liabilities'

Separating liabilities into current and long-term liabilities allows analysts to gain a more accurate view of a company's current liquidity position. Typically an analyst would want to see that a company has most of the assets needed to pay for current liabilities in cash or cash equivalent accounts, while the assets needed to satisfy long-term liabilities could be expected to be derived from future earnings or future financing transactions.