What should I check on a VAT report before filing?
Three things. First, output and input tax by rate — a category sold at the wrong rate shows up as a rate line that does not belong. Second, reverse-charge and export sales as their own group, since they are declared separately. Third, entries with no document: they belong in profit but not in the input tax total, and the gap between profit and the tax base should be explainable rather than mysterious.
The three usual mismatches
A rate that should not exist. A product sold at 20% that should have been 10%, or vice versa. It shows up as a rate line with an amount nobody expected.
Reverse charge mixed into standard sales. The total is right and the return is wrong, because the groups are declared separately.
Entries without documents. A cost recorded because it happened, with the invoice still to come. It belongs in profit now and in input tax later.
Why undocumented entries should be visible
The alternatives are both worse. Leaving the cost out makes profit look better than it is. Entering it as documented makes the tax figures wrong and the error is invisible.
Counted, flagged and excluded from input tax is the honest third option — and it makes the profit-to-tax-base difference explainable.
This is a review, not a filing
A summary report is for checking before the return is prepared. It does not replace an accountant, and it does not submit anything.
Checklist
- Is tax broken down by rate on both sales and purchases?
- Are reverse-charge and export sales in their own groups?
- Are undocumented entries counted but excluded from input tax?
- Can you explain the difference between profit and the tax base?
Frequently asked questions
What should I check before filing VAT?
Output and input tax by rate, reverse-charge and export sales as separate groups, and any entries recorded without a document.
Why would profit and the tax base differ?
Legitimately, because of entries without documents, non-deductible items and zero-rated sales. The difference should be explainable line by line.
Does software file the return for me?
Cirometre prepares the summary for review. Filing happens where you file today — with your accountant or in the authority’s own system.