Hi there
I would love to push the use of Manager for a lot of my clients in Namibia, because it’s generally brilliant, but I have some serious concerns about the reporting required for the Ministry of Finance here in Namibia for VAT purposes. Like most tax authorities, the staff on the ground are overworked, and sometimes under-qualified, so keeping things simple and straightforward is the preemptive answer to the problem.
The ideal report categorizes output (VAT on income) and input VAT (VAT on expenses) by type (15%, 0%, exempt) and includes the following columns:
- date
- reference number (i.e. invoice number)
- customer/supplier name
- description
- VAT inclusive amount
- VAT exclusive amount
- VAT amount
So in this report you have the output VAT, separated by type, and then the input VAT, separated by type. Each of the totals of these sub-categories would agree to the required information furnished on the VAT return, submitted with the Ministry of Finance.
My problem with Manager’s Tax Transactions Report, being the closest readily-available report, is that these categories are not neatly separated and as a result are difficult to review, not only by the tax authority but also by the relevant admin staff. It’s fine for a small business, but when things get bigger and more complex, you need the system to work for you and not against you.
On top of that, the descriptions inserted in the “Description” field don’t carry through to the Tax Transactions report, meaning that we’re left with very little to go on in terms of description. (You can get more detail by going to the Tax Summary report and clicking the detail for each tax type, but this is cumbersome.)
While we’re on the subject of the report, the “Payee” information also doesn’t reflect on the Tax Transactions Report for cashbook payments, which doesn’t make a lot of sense. It’s not a bug, it’s a functionality issue.
I’ve been getting away with all of these problems by copying the Tax Transactions report into a spreadsheet and manipulating it, but I don’t really think that’s the answer for a larger business and thus I’d like to hear from you all about potential solutions to the shortcomings of this report. As I’m sure you know, another problem with this method of solving the problem is also the potential for human error to arise, which must always be avoided or at the very least mitigated.
Disclaimer: I have found the custom reports to be clunky and time-consuming to work with, so if the answer is in there then I don’t know about it.
Looking forward to hearing your views!
Kind regards,
Ruth, Miss PennyCounter’s