Open the return and choose the period
Under Books open Reports, then VAT return. Set From and To and press Run, or press a quarter button such as Q3 (1).
Three figures sit at the top. Output VAT is what you charged on your sales, Input VAT is what you paid on your purchases, and the difference is Payable to ZATCA (2) or Refundable.
Review the boxes
The section The return as ZATCA asks for it shows the boxes with their numbers: Sales (output VAT), then Purchases (input VAT).
- The figures come from the invoices and notes issued in the period, by their date, plus bank lines and vouchers you gave a VAT rate. They do not come from the VAT accounts.
- Drafts are left out, and so are opening balances.
- The Out of scope line is for information and carries a Not declared chip.
If a note raised in this period relates to a document from a period already filed, a Corrections from previous periods card appears and the note stays out of this period's boxes, so nothing is declared twice. If the correction is over what ZATCA takes on a later return, the card tells you the filed return itself has to be amended.
Compare the return with your books
On the Return versus ledger card, the first column comes from the documents, the second from the VAT accounts, and the third is the difference. You want that difference to be zero.
If there is a difference, the usual cause is a manual journal that touched the VAT accounts without a document. Review it before you file.
File on the Fatoora portal
Books files nothing with ZATCA. Filing and paying happen on the Fatoora portal. Copy the figures box by box. You also have Export CSV, Export XLSX, Export PDF and Print at the top of the screen.
- Your documents
- Review the boxes
- File on Fatoora
- Record as filed
Record the filing in your books
After filing, go back to the Filing card, press Record as filed and accept the confirmation. This needs the tax-filing permission. Two things happen:
- A settlement entry dated the last day of the period moves the output and input balances into one account, VAT payable (net).
- The months of the period close, so no new document can be posted into them and change a return you have filed.
| Account | Debit | Credit |
|---|---|---|
| VAT output | 15,000.00 | |
| VAT input | 6,000.00 | |
| VAT payable (net) | 9,000.00 |
If you made a mistake, press Undo the filing. Books reverses the settlement with a mirror entry dated today, never erasing it, and reopens the months. This changes nothing on the Fatoora portal.
Record the payment
Once recorded, the status reads Filed with the Settlement entry number beside it. The amount stays in VAT payable (net) until you pay it on the Fatoora portal and record the money leaving the bank with a payment voucher against that account, so its balance shows what you really still owe.
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