Use this routine to maintain tax information by tax jurisdiction. The system uses this routine with the Zip Code file to determine the sales tax percentage for all taxable sales transactions. The Sales Order Processing module uses the Zip Code file to calculate sales tax amounts according to the codes and their respective tax rates as established in this file.
You must create sales tax codes for all states and/or provinces in which you do business and in which your vendors reside.
Also, you MUST use the standard two-digit post office state code for all states and/or provinces, for example:
NY = New York
CA = California
ON = Ontario
You can create sales tax codes for all counties and municipalities in your business area that charge additional tax percentages above the state tax rate for sales that occur in their jurisdiction. For example, you can create a record with a tax jurisdiction code of NYC for New York City if your company does business in that jurisdiction. Specify the additional flat rate charged by that tax jurisdiction.
The Sales Tax file provides for alternate calculation rules to be used if STORIS' standard rules do not apply. These alternate rules are programmed by STORIS.
When setting up tax jurisdictions, note that county and municipal rates are additional tax percentages charged within a tax jurisdiction. For example, if New York State's tax rate is 6% and New York City charges an additional 3%, you must create a tax code for each using different tax jurisdiction codes. Use the Additional Tax Code fields in the Zip Code record to indicate additional taxes for the state/province associated with the zip code.
Until you complete a sale and your customer takes possession of the merchandise, all monies remain in deposits liability and still belong to the customer. Once you complete the order, you earn the monies and owe the taxes.
If you add a new tax rate, the system does not automatically add the tax to existing sales orders. You must access the orders and update the tax manually - either by
Enter the code of the tax jurisdiction you want to create or edit. When creating state or provincial codes, you must use the standard two-letter post office abbreviation, for example:
- NY = New York
- CA = California
- ON = Ontario
You can also create tax codes for county, municipal and national taxes. For these codes, you can enter up to 10 alphanumeric characters. Note that you must create a unique code for each jurisdiction you set up.
Enter the code of the tax jurisdiction you want to create or edit. When creating state or provincial codes, you must use the standard two-letter post office abbreviation, for example:
- NY = New York
- CA = California
- ON = Ontario
You can also create tax codes for county, municipal and national taxes. Note that you must create a unique code for each jurisdiction you set up.
General
DescriptionEnter text that describes this tax jurisdiction. For example, if the Tax Jurisdiction is NJ, enter NEW JERSEY in this field.
Enter the percent of sales tax you want to charge for this jurisdiction. You can enter up to 4 decimal places. For example, for "six and one half percent", enter either
6.5 or 6.5000
Enter the General Ledger account you want to charge for sales tax in this tax jurisdiction. If you click on the Action button, the TPA GL Account Entry screen appears from which you can choose an account. GL AccountEnter the General Ledger account you want to charge for sales tax in this tax jurisdiction. If you click on the Action button, the TPA GL Account Entry screen appears from which you can choose an account.
Select the method by which you want to charge taxes on orders. You have the following options:
Not Applicable- this option is the default setting for new tax jurisdictions and must always be assigned to the Local and National tax types. This setting cannot be assigned to the State/Province tax type.
Point of Sale - charge tax based on the Selling Location (where sales order was entered), regardless of where the goods are delivered from or where the customer takes possession of the goods. The system looks at the location record to identify the zip code for that location, which determines the sales tax to be calculated. For out of state sales, where the selling store state and possession state do not match, different rules apply. See the Selling Store Tax Exception field below.
Ship From Location - charge tax based on the Shipping Location (location from which the items were delivered), regardless of where the goods are sold from or where the customer takes possession of the goods. The system looks at the location record to identify the zip code for that location, which determines the sales tax to be calculated.
Point of Possession - charge tax based on the location to which the items were delivered (where customer takes possession of the goods), regardless of where the goods are sold from or where the goods were delivered from. The system looks at the customer's ship to address to identify the zip code, which determines the sales tax to be calculated.
Examples:
Point of Sale
If Selling Store Tax Exception is unchecked:
The zip code for the selling store is used for all delivery types.
If Selling Store Tax Exception is checked:
Customer Pickup Orders - the zip code for the pickup location is used.
Delivery / Direct Ship Orders - the zip code for the customer's address is used.
Ship From Location
Take With Orders - the zip code for the selling store is used.
Customer Pickup Orders - the zip code for the pickup location is used.
Delivery / Direct Ship Orders - the zip code for the shipping location is used.
Point of Possession
Take With Orders - the zip code for the selling store is used.
Customer Pickup Orders - the zip code for the pickup location is used.
Delivery / Direct Ship Orders - the zip code for the customer's address is used.
Delivery TaxableTo apply this tax to the sales order delivery amount for this jurisdiction, check the box at this field. Otherwise, leave this field blank.
Installation TaxableTo apply this tax to the sales order installation amount for this jurisdiction, check the box at this field. Otherwise, leave this field blank.
To have the system check and recalculate the sales tax on open sales orders each time you access an open order for this jurisdiction, check the box at this field. If you leave this box blank, the system retains the tax rate initially applied to the order, even if rate changes were made.
It is possible to choose this option for each jurisdiction individually, so that a state sales tax can be retained while additional jurisdictions within that state can be automatically recalculated (and vice-versa).
When a tax jurisdiction record is initially created, the setting for this field automatically defaults from the Update Tax Rate Changes field on the Advanced tab of your Point of Sale Control Settings. If the box in the control settings field is checked, this field is automatically checked. If you do not want tax validated and re-calculated in this jurisdiction, remove the check from this field.
Alternately, if your control settings default is not checked, when you create jurisdiction records, this Validate Tax field is not checked and no validation takes place. You can check the box for any jurisdictions in which you want the system to validate and re-calculate the tax.
To charge tax on out-of-state sales, check the box at this field. Otherwise, leave the field blank. If you check the box at this field, the program performs normal tax calculations based on either the point of sale, point of shipment, or point of possession location, as specified at the Charge Tax By field.
If you leave this field blank, and the Sales Order Entry process determines the sale is out-of-state, the program overrides (that is, zeroes out) the calculated tax.
If you select National at the Type of Tax field, you inactivate this field.
This field is active only when the Charge By field is set to Point of Sale. Use this field for pickup, delivery, and direct ship orders to assign tax jurisdictions for out of state sales.
When the selling store state and possession state do not match and this field is checked, the state and local tax jurisdictions are assigned based on the zip code of where possession of the merchandise occurs (i.e. for pickups, the zip code of the warehouse where the merchandise is picked up; for deliveries and direct ships the zip code of the order’s shipping address), regardless of whether or not the possession state is set to charge tax by Point of Possession.
If this field is not checked, the state and local tax jurisdictions are set based on the selling store’s location.
This field does not affect in-state orders.
If the assigned tax jurisdictions are NOT set to tax out of state sales via the Tax Out of State Sales setting, the system calculates $0.00 tax.
If using the Alternate Tax Interface, use this field to bypass the interface for the selected tax jurisdiction and use STORIS' standard tax routines. If not using the Alternate Tax Interface, this field is inactive. This field is active only if the Alternate Tax Interface is active and the current tax jurisdiction is defined as a State/Province.
If you leave this field blank, the system uses the Alternate Tax Interface, transmitting a record to the tax provider and receiving tax information in return. If you check this box, the system uses the standard STORIS tax routines to calculate the tax for the specified jurisdiction.
If using CCH and you choose the bypass option, tax liability reporting from CCH is not available for the selected state and the local jurisdictions within that state. You must manually maintain the proper tax rates for these states and any local jurisdictions within these states.
If this jurisdiction is eligible for sales tax adjustments when open item or revolving balances are manually charged off via the Bad Debt tab of Maintain Customer Balances, check this box. Otherwise, leave the box blank.
If you use a third party tax provider via the Alternate Tax Interface, this field is not used. Sales tax adjustments are calculated by the alternate tax provider and returned to STORIS for G/L posting. For new jurisdictions returned by the tax provider, this field is automatically set to NOT checked when the records are created.
Enter the maximum sales amount (if any) you want to tax for orders entered within the selected tax jurisdiction. If you enter a dollar amount here, then for taxable line items on a sales order, the system exempts tax on the portion (if any) of the order price that exceeds this amount.
If the order contains multiple line item types such as a delivery and a pickup, the system applies the cap separately to the totals of each line item type on the order. For example, assume you specify a gross taxable price cap of $500. Further assume you have an order for $2,000 worth of merchandise, and the order contains two delivery line items and three customer pickup line items. If the total of the delivery items is $600, the system taxes $500 of that amount. Then, for the $1,400 worth of pickup items, the system taxes $500 of that amount.
This field is primarily used for local taxes (municipal, etc.).
Use this field to apply a tax rate cap (if any) for this tax jurisdiction. Enter the number (up to four decimal places) that represents the maximum percentage you want to use. For this field to be active, you must select State/Province at the Type of Tax field.
For example, if you enter 10 here, order entry programs allow a maximum sales tax of 10% for orders placed in the current tax jurisdiction, excluding national tax. That is, if the combination of all taxes (for example, state, county, local, etc.), not including national tax, exceeds 10%, the system adjusts the tax so that total tax does not exceed the cap percentage. The system reviews all pertinent jurisdictions, noting the order in which they were added to the tax list, and reduces the tax amount from the jurisdictions on the bottom of the list. The general taxing order is as follows:
national tax code (if one exists)
state tax code
local jurisdictions in the order they appear in the Zip Code file
So, assume the jurisdiction in our example applies the following taxes :
National Tax = omitted from this calculation
State Tax = 7%
Local Tax 1 = 2%
Local Tax 2 = 2%
Local Tax 3 = 2%
for a total of 13%. The system adjusts the calculation accordingly:
State Tax = 7%
Local Tax 1 = 2%
Local Tax 2 = 1%
Local Tax 3 = 0%
for a total of 10%. When the tax cap is reached (see Local Tax 2), the system adjusts that tax amount to maintain the cap level, then adds no tax from any subsequent jurisdictions (see Local Tax 3).
Tax Override ClassEnter the codes of the tax classes (if any) you want to use to override the tax status of certain sales order line items. If you click on the Search button, a list of tax classes appears from which you can choose one or more.
For sales order line items with a tax class specified at the Tax Class field in the Advanced Product Settings, the system searches all tax jurisdictions associated with the sales order. If one or more of those tax jurisdictions has a tax class that matches the tax class of the sales order line item, the program reverses the tax status of the sales order (that is, from taxable to not taxable, or vice versa).
If using the Alternate Tax Interface and Vertex is your provider, this field affects the system only if STORIS is selected at the Product Taxable Status field in the Alternate Tax Interface Control Settings. If using the Alternate Tax Interface and CCH is your provider, this field does not affect the system.
Alternate Calculations
STORIS' standard tax calculation rules may not be appropriate for all situations or for all users. Therefore, STORIS provides alternate calculation processes to accommodate users' needs.
The processes can exist for any combination of the three steps in the sales tax calculation process (Local Tax Jurisdiction determination, Taxable Merchandise calculation, and Sales Tax calculation). A drop-down box displays the available calculation codes for each of the three steps.
Use the Alternate Calculations portion of the screen to indicate and maintain these alternate tax calculation rules for the current tax code.
The alternate calculation processes are identified by specific calculation codes that were assigned by STORIS and contain user-defined settings. Contact your STORIS representative for further detail on the availability of these alternate calculation processes.
The Miscellaneous Fee/Charge field provides an additional way to apply fees or charges to orders.
Local Jurisdiction(LOCKED Field – STORIS access only!) To use a different set of rules from the STORIS standard when determining which tax jurisdictions apply, enter a calculation code. If you click on the Arrow, a list of alternate local jurisdiction processes appears from which you can choose. If codes have been established, use the Action button to access a window in which you can indicate specific criteria.
(LOCKED Field – STORIS access only!) Use this field to specify a tax system different from STORIS' standard set of rules for determining taxable merchandise amounts. If you click on the Arrow, the following alternate taxable merchandise calculations are available:
TN Single Item Price Cap
TN Single Item Price Range
AR Full Order Tax Cap
Imbedded Tax
If you select TN Single Item Price Cap or TN Single Item Price Range, you can click on their associated Action buttons to access the Alternate Taxable Merchandise Calculation window.
To apply a tax cap when an order is invoiced multiple times, choose AR Full Order Tax Cap. This option reviews previous invoicing to determine the amount of tax to calculate for a selected jurisdiction and prevents the total tax from all invoices for that order from going over the cap.
To imbed national tax amounts in line item prices, choose Imbedded Tax. Imbedded tax can be used for national tax only.
Sales Tax(LOCKED Field – STORIS access only!) Use this field to specify a tax calculation method other than the standard method (that is, Tax Rate x Taxable Merchandise). If you click on the arrow, a list of alternate sales tax calculation codes (if any) appears, from which you can make a selection. If you click on the Action button, you can enter specific criteria.
Miscellaneous Fee/Charge Use this field to specify one or more miscellaneous fee/charges you want to associate with this tax jurisdiction. You can enter a fee code directly, or if you click on the Search button, a list of fees/charges appears from which you can choose one or more. If you click on the Action button, the Multiple Miscellaneous Fee Selection window appears from which you can choose one or more fees.
The order entry process identifies the tax jurisdiction associated with the point of customer possession of merchandise. Use this field to specify the miscellaneous fees (if any) you want to apply to orders whose point of possession occurs within the selected tax jurisdiction. Note that you can restrict the application of fees associated with this tax jurisdiction to a list of stores via the Apply Only When Written at Store(s) field in the Miscellaneous Fee Settings.
The total of the fees applied appears at the Fees/Charges field on the Payment tab of the selected order entry routine. Note that the fee total can include fees associated with one or more locations.
PercentEnter the percentage to be used when calculating a service charge. This field is maintained with two (2) decimal places. The percentage you enter here works in conjunction with the Service Charge Days field in the Accounts Receivable Control Settings. When a transaction is overdue by the number of days found in the Service Charge Days field, a service charge is generated.
GL AccountIndicate the General Ledger Account to be credited when service charges are generated. Click the Action button to access the GL Account Entry Screen, where you can choose an account number.
The Revolving tab is accessible only if Revolving Receivables is active on your system and the Type of Tax field in this file is set to State/Province.
Late Fees
Calculated as aIndicate whether you are assessing late fees as a Percentage of the amount due or as a Fixed Amount. The default is Percentage. If you select Percentage, the Standard % and Minimum $ fields are active. If you select Fixed Amount, the Fixed $ field is active.
Standard %Use this field when the "Calculated as a" field is set to Percentage, indicating you assess late fees as a percentage of the amount due. Specify the standard percentage rate you use when calculating late charges on delinquent revolving plans in this jurisdiction.
Minimum $You can use this field to establish the minimum late charge amount that can be assessed in this jurisdiction.
Maximum $You can use this optional field to establish the maximum late fee amount that can be assessed on a plan or account (depending on Assess At setting above). Enter a dollar amount of .01 to 99.99.
Fixed $ If you assess late fees based on a fixed amount ("Calculated as a" field), use this field to enter the late fee amount. You can enter a value of .01 to 99.99.
Grace DaysUse this optional field to indicate the number of days that a revolving payment can be late before late fees are assessed. If you need to establish different late grace days for different states, use this field.
If you leave this field blank, the system uses the Number of Grace Days field in your Account Statement Cycling Control Settings to determine the customer's late fee "as of" date. The "as of" date is calculated by adding the grace days, established here or in the Account Statement Cycling Control Settings, to the current cycle's payment due date.
Select how you want to assess late fees. Your options are:
Per Payment Plan - Choose this option to assess late fees per revolving plan. This is the default for this setting. If you select the Per Payment Plan option, each revolving plan that has an unpaid payment is assessed the late fee amount.
By Customer Account - Choose this option to assess late fees per revolving customer account. You can select this option only if a Master Plan has been indicated in your Revolving Receivables Control Settings. When this option is selected, the customer's master plan is assessed the late fee amount if any of their revolving plans has an unpaid payment.
Only one late fee, not to exceed the state statutory amount, can be applied to the master revolving plan per billing cycle.
If MMP is PaidUse this field to indicate whether or not to assess additional late fees when at least the minimum MMP amount has been paid for this cycle period. To assess late fees when an MMP is past due, regardless of the payment amount received, check the box at this field. If the box is not checked and at least the minimum MMP amount has been paid prior to the late "as of" date (see Late Fee Grace Days), no additional late fee is assessed. The default for this field is checked.
To Existing Finance ChargesIf you include finance charges in the balance that the late fee is calculated against, check this box. Otherwise, leave the box blank.
To Unpaid Finance Charge FeesIf you include finance charge fees (additional fees assessed on finance charges) in the balance that the late fee is calculated against, check this box. Otherwise, leave the box blank. This field is only active if a Finance Charge Fee Rate has been specified.
On Insurance PremiumsIf you include insurance charges in the balance that the late fee is calculated against, check this box. Otherwise, leave the box blank.
Existing Late ChargesThis setting is available to you only if the "Calculated as a" field (above) is set to Percentage and you have checked the box at the Compound Late Fees field (below).
If you include unpaid late charges in the balance that the late fee is calculated against, check the box. Otherwise, leave the box blank.
This field is used during the late fee calculation routine that runs as part of End of Day.
If you check this box, late fees are calculated on all unpaid MMP's even if a prior late fee was calculated, provided the plan is not in dispute. (See note below.)
The amount that the late fee is calculated against includes the unpaid MMP amount, and can also include unpaid Finance Charges, Insurance Premiums, Late Charges and/or Finance Charge Fees, depending on the Late Fee Rules above.
If you leave the box blank, and a late fee was previously calculated and added to an unpaid MMP, late fees are not calculated for that MMP.
The default for this setting is unchecked.
If any portion of the customer's revolving plan balance has been placed in dispute, the system does not assess late fees (compound or otherwise) on any unpaid MMP's for that plan.
Charge Interest
Maximum%Use this field to enter the maximum interest percentage rate that this jurisdiction allows. The rate you enter in this field overrides the Percentage Rate % in the Revolving Receivables Payment Plans, provided the payment plan rate is higher than the rate you entered here.
Include Paid in Full in Average Daily BalanceTo calculate the Average Daily Balance for the cycle even if the customer's plan is paid off by the cycle date, check this box. To override the Average Daily Balance to zero if the customer's plan is paid off by the cycle date, leave the box blank.
Use this setting to determine if interest should be assessed during the first cycle for an order added to a revolving plan. Click the Arrow button to select one of the following options:
Never - Customers are not assessed interest on the completed order's revolving balance during the first cycle.
Always - Always charge interest on completed orders that were added to the revolving plan since the last cycle.
Only if previous statement balance - Assess interest during the first cycle for an order added to a revolving plan if the customer had a balance on the last generated statement.
If you check the box, the customer's finance charges are calculated based on one or more interest rates, depending on the settings in the Percentage Break Level Table. The amount subject to finance charges is compared against the table and each portion of the customer’s balance greater than or equal to a break level in the table is charged the associated interest rate.
If you do not check the box at this field, the interest rate is determined using the current plan balance that is subject to finance charges and the associated interest rate from the Percentage Break Level Table.
Click this button to access the Statement Notification Days screen, where you specify when the customer is to receive automatic notification on their statement regarding promotional interest expiration, no payment period expiration, waived interest charge-backs, and plan transfers. You also use this screen to indicate the section of the statement where the notification message is to appear.
Finance Charge Fee
RateIf this state allows an additional fee to be assessed on finance charges, use this field to indicate the rate. The field accepts a numeric entry of up to 4 decimal places. Once you enter a rate here, the (Applicable to) Finance Charge Fee and GL Account fields become active. If you leave this optional field blank, no additional fee is added.
GL AccountTo track finance charge fees added during the cycling process, enter the GL account number in this field. To access the Read-Only Lookup Window where you can select a specific GL account number, click the Search button. To access the GL Account Entry Screen, click the Action button.
Installment
The Installment tab is accessible only if Advanced Receivables is active on your system and the Type of Tax field in this file is set to State/Province.
Activate a Setting by Selecting a Checkbox
LATE FEE - Compound Delinquent Late Charges Check the box at this field if late fees can be assessed on delinquent late fee amounts (i.e. compounded) in this tax jurisdiction. Otherwise, leave this check box blank. The default setting is unchecked.
Non-Filing Fee Table Use this optional field to establish and maintain a table of default non-filing fees to be automatically assigned based on financed amount during Installment Worksheet entry. Click the Action button to access the Non-Filing Fee Table.
Interest Table You can use this optional field to establish and maintain a table of default interest rates for this jurisdiction based on financed amount. The interest rates defined in this table are used if there is no interest rate defined in the installment plan settings. Click the Action button to access the Interest Rate Table window, where you can define the rules for interest calculations in this jurisdiction.
Minimum Finance Charge Table You can use this optional field to establish and maintain a table of minimum finance charge amounts for this jurisdiction based on financed amount. Click the Action button to access the Minimum Finance Charge Table.
Standard Late Charge You can use this field to specify a standard late fee amount to be charged on late installment payments in this jurisdiction. If you enter an amount in this field, the Standard Late Percent, Minimum Late Charge, and Maximum Late Fee fields become inactive. If you do not enter a value in either the Late Charge or Late Percent field, no late fees are assessed on contracts in this jurisdiction.
Standard Late Percent To specify a standard late fee percentage to be used to calculate late fees on installment contracts in this jurisdiction, enter the percent here. If you enter a percentage in this field, the Standard Late Charge field becomes inactive. If you do not enter a value in either the Late Charge or Late Percent field, no late fees are assessed on contracts in this jurisdiction.
Minimum Late Charge Use this field to define the minimum late fee amount that can be assessed on installment contracts in this jurisdiction. If you do not establish a minimum late fee amount, a late fee of as little as one penny can be assessed.
Maximum Late Fee Use this field to define the maximum late fee amount that can be assessed on installment contracts in this jurisdiction. If you leave this field blank, no maximum late fee amount is established.
Late Fee Grace Days Enter the number of days an installment payment can be late before late fees are assessed for contracts in this jurisdiction.
When setting up tax jurisdictions, note that county and municipal rates are additional tax percentages charged within a tax jurisdiction. For example, if New York State's tax rate is 6% and New York City charges an additional 3%, you must create a tax code for each using different tax jurisdiction codes. Use the Additional Tax Code fields in the Zip Code record to indicate additional taxes for the state/province associated with the zip code.
