Cash-flow available, or free cash-flow, is the flow of treasury available. It corresponds to the liquid portion of the capacity of self-financing (CIF) obtained in the year and which is not used to buy new assets (investments) and to refund the normal expiries of loans.

It will be noted that the Anglo-Saxon concept of cash-flow corresponds to a flow of treasury. In French the cash-flow is often regarded as étant" capacity of self-financing, which in English corresponds to the concept of cash earnings."

The foreseeable continuation of the free cash-flows of the years to come is an indicator of the money which the shareholder could recover with the passing of years. It can be useful in actuarial calculations of evaluation of the company before discontinuance of business, it would then be necessary to add to it the final cash-flow which would be obtained by the resale of the remaining credits minus the payment of the remaining creditors.

The cash-flow available can be calculated by the formula: EBB - financial Expenses + Produced financial - employee profit sharing - IS + variation of the BFR - refunding in K of the loans.

A company which develops its activity, and thus must invest much and to be involved in debt unless being strongly profitable and releasing a CIF very important, generally does not have free cash-flow or a negative free cash-flow. Its evaluation is done then on other criteria (see evaluation of company).