Set up taxes for the USA, UAE or Pakistan

GetFoodTruckPOS applies the tax you set up and reports on it. It does not decide your rate or file returns for you, so confirm the rate with your accountant or tax authority first, then enter it here. Once set, every sale calculates tax the same way, and the tax report adds it up for your filing.

Before you start

• Your confirmed tax rate or rates, and your tax registration number if you have one.
• Whether your menu prices include tax or have tax added on top. UAE consumer prices are normally shown including VAT. US trucks usually add sales tax at the window. In Pakistan it varies by province and how you price.
• Admin access to Settings.
• If you have trucks in more than one tax area, a list of which truck works where.

Steps

1. Open Settings > Tax rates and tap Add.
2. Enter a clear name and the rate as a percentage. Examples of how to name them, not rates to copy: “State sales tax”, “City sales tax”, “VAT”, “Provincial sales tax”.
3. If you owe more than one tax on the same sale, such as a state rate plus a local rate in the US, add each one, then tap Add tax group, name it after the place (for example “Austin combined”), and select the rates that belong in it.
4. Open Settings > Business settings > Tax and enter your tax registration number in Tax name and Tax number. UAE trucks registered for VAT should use the label “TRN”. Leave blank if you are not registered.
5. In the same screen, set the Default sales tax to your rate or group.
6. Choose whether your menu prices are inclusive or exclusive of tax. Inclusive means the price on the board is what the customer pays. Exclusive means tax is added at checkout.
7. Open Products > List products, bulk select items, and apply the tax to any items that were imported before you set the default.
8. If some items are taxed differently, such as cold groceries versus hot prepared food in some US states, edit those items one by one and pick the right rate.
9. Ring a test sale and look at the receipt: it should show the tax line and, where set, your registration number.

Check it worked

• A test sale shows tax on screen and on the receipt, with the right percentage.
• For inclusive pricing, the total equals the menu price; for exclusive, the total is the menu price plus tax.
• Reports > Tax report for today shows the tax collected on your test sale. Void the test afterwards.

Common problems

Tax is being added twice

The item has its own tax and a tax group that already includes that rate. Set the item to use the group only.

UAE prices show VAT on top of the board price

The price is set to exclusive. Switch the business, or the affected items, to inclusive so a board price of AED 25 rings up as AED 25 with VAT shown inside it.

The US rate changed

Rates in US cities change from time to time. Edit the rate in Settings > Tax rates. New sales use the new rate; past sales keep the rate they were rung at, which is what your records need.

One truck works in two cities

Create a tax group per city and switch the default on the location for the day, or ring the sale with the right group selected. If this happens often, ask your accountant which rate applies to mobile vendors in your state, because some states use the vendor’s base and some the point of sale.

I am in Saudi Arabia

There is a ZATCA e-invoicing add-on for Saudi Arabia. Talk to us through the contact page before setting up, since the steps differ from this guide.

Related

• Countries we support
• Food truck POS in the USA
• Food truck POS in the UAE
• Food truck POS in Pakistan