There is no one-size-fits-all answer to this question, as the treatment of licenses will vary depending on the type of license and the accounting standards that apply to your business. However, in general, licenses should be treated as capital assets if they are acquired in exchange for consideration (i.e. money or other property), and they have a useful life of more than one year. Expensing a license would generally be appropriate only if the license was acquired for free, or if it has a limited useful life.