Configuring VAT

By the end of this page, you will know how to turn VAT on for a fiscal year, find your country’s legal rates, add your own rates and check the accounts used in your entries. Everything is set in Settings → Company details, Tax tab.

What the Tax tab contains

Section	Purpose
Company tax identity	Tax regime, tax office, NIU (taxpayer number), filing frequency
VAT regime per fiscal year	Liable, partially liable or not liable, fiscal year by fiscal year. This setting turns VAT on
Legal rate grid (country)	Legal rates of the company’s country, read-only
VAT rates & accounts	Your editable rate catalogue: these are the rates suggested during entry

Turning VAT on for a fiscal year

1. In VAT regime per fiscal year, find the fiscal year’s line and click Edit.

2. Choose the VAT regime: VAT liable, Partially liable or Not liable for VAT.

3. Choose the VAT chargeable event: On invoicing (VAT is due as soon as the invoice is issued) or On receipts (VAT is due when payment is received). This choice decides which invoices enter the return.

4. Save, then click Validate and Confirm lock.

Permanent lock

Once validated, the fiscal year’s regime can no longer be changed. Until it is validated, the line shows “Inherited — not validated” and uses the previous fiscal year’s regime.

If the company is not liable for VAT, the Tax menu stays hidden and no VAT is suggested during entry.

The legal rate grid

The Legal rate grid (country) shows the rates in force in the company’s country, with the collected VAT account and the deductible VAT account of each regime. It currently covers the six CEMAC countries:

Country	Standard rate	Reduced rate
Cameroon	19.25%
Gabon	18%
Congo	18.9%
Chad	18%	9%
Central African Republic	19%
Equatorial Guinea	15%	5%

Each country also has the Export (zero rate), Exempt and Out of scope regimes. For a company outside CEMAC, the grid is empty: create your rates in the catalogue.

Note

Rates change with finance laws. Check the rate that applies to your business with your tax authority; if it changes, let support know.

Adding a rate

1. In VAT rates & accounts, click Add a rate.

2. Enter the Label, the Rate %, the Direction (collected or deductible) and the VAT account (family 44).

3. Enter a Code. It identifies the rate and cannot be changed after creation.

4. If needed, choose the Regime (Standard, Reduced, Export, Exempt…), the Suggestion classes (e.g. 6,7 to suggest this rate on expense and income accounts during entry) and tick Suggest by default.

5. Click Save.

A rate provided by SynkriaOps (System origin) cannot be deleted: untick Active so it is no longer suggested. A Custom rate can be edited or deleted.

Caution

Changing a rate does not affect invoices and entries already posted: they keep the rate applied when they were created. To correct an invoice issued with a wrong rate, see Create a credit note.

Linking a rate to a product

In Operations → Catalog, open the product or service and choose its VAT rate. When you create a customer invoice, SynkriaOps applies that rate to the line; you can change it line by line.

SYSCOHADA accounts used

Account	Label	Used by
4431	VAT invoiced on sales	Each posted customer invoice
4432	VAT on exports (zero rate)	Export sales
4452	Recoverable VAT on purchases	Each posted supplier invoice
4451	Recoverable VAT on fixed assets	Purchase of a fixed asset
444	State, VAT due or VAT credit	VAT return

Example: a consulting service of XAF 650,000 excluding VAT in Cameroon.

Account	Debit	Credit
411001 (customer)	XAF 775,125
706 (services sold)		XAF 650,000
4431 (VAT invoiced)		XAF 125,125

Tip

Before each return, compare the balance of 4431 with that of 4452 in the general ledger: the difference is the VAT to pay.

See also

• Create a customer invoice →
• Record a supplier invoice →
• Filing the VAT return →
• Accounting settings →
• Export the FEC →