Documentation Index

Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.dualentry.com/llms.txt

Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

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Non-US Taxes

DualEntry’s non-US tax engine covers two distinct regimes: Value Added Tax (VAT) across the EU, UK, and other VAT countries, and Goods and Services Tax (GST) across Australia, India, and other GST countries. Both regimes calculate tax at the line level, post directly to the General Ledger, and feed the data you need for periodic returns. VAT and GST are implemented as two related but separate engines.

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How non-US tax works in DualEntry

The two models share four foundational concepts. Company configuration. Each company that operates in a VAT or GST country must carry its full company address, tax registration country, and tax registration numbers (VAT ID, GSTIN, PST number, etc.) on its record. These details are the source of truth for who is filing the tax; they flow onto every invoice and return the company issues. Configure under Company → Company before creating any nexuses. Nexus. A country where one or more of your companies is registered to collect and remit tax. Configure under Configuration → Tax Setup → Nexuses, the same place as US sales tax nexuses. A non-US nexus links companies to a country and carries the tax agency (a vendor record), the tax liability account, and the tax asset account. Tax registration numbers on counterparties. Customers and vendors carry their own registration numbers (VAT IDs, GSTINs, PST numbers) in a unified registration field on their record. DualEntry uses these to determine reverse-charge eligibility, B2B treatment, and to populate audit references on invoices. Supply date. A separate field from the transaction date that captures when the supply actually happened. VAT and GST returns use the supply date (not the posting date) to determine which reporting period a transaction belongs to.

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Setting up VAT rates

Navigate to Configuration → Tax Setup → VAT Rates. To get started quickly, click Import VAT Rates. DualEntry pre-loads the standard rates for all supported countries (for example, UK Standard 20% and Reduced 5%, France Standard 20% and Reduced 10%, Germany Standard 19% and Reduced 7%). For most setups, importing is all you need. If you need a rate that is not in the standard table (a country-specific reduced rate, a transitional rate during a rate change, or a stacked rate with multiple components), click New VAT Rate and fill in:

• Country - the country this rate applies to
• Name - a descriptive label (for example, “France Reduced 5.5%”)
• Rate (%) - the percentage
• Tax Treatment - Standard, Reduced, Zero Rated, Exempt, or Reverse Charge
• Components - optional, for stacked rates that combine multiple sub-rates
• Valid From / Valid To - the date range the rate is effective; leave Valid To blank for an open-ended rate
• Description - optional notes for your team

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Setting up GST rates

Navigate to Configuration → Tax Setup → GST Rates. Click Import GST Rates to pre-load the standard rate set for all supported countries, including Australia GST 10%, GST Free, Input Taxed, Import GST, and Reverse Charge; Singapore GST 9%; New Zealand GST 15%; Malaysia SST; and the full India GST slab structure (5%, 12%, 18%, 28% across intra-state and inter-state). Importing is the recommended starting point. If you need a custom rate, click New GST Rate and fill in:

• Country - the country this rate applies to
• Name - a descriptive label (for example, “GST 18% Intra-State”)
• Rate (%) - the percentage
• Tax Treatment - Standard, Zero Rated, Exempt, Reverse Charge, Import GST, or Out of Scope
• Components - optional, for rates that combine multiple sub-rates (used for India’s CGST + SGST split, for example)
• Valid From / Valid To - the date range the rate is effective
• Description - optional notes for your team

The two models then diverge in how the user interacts with them. With VAT, the user picks a Tax Rate (Standard, Reduced, Zero, or Exempt) and the system auto-applies reverse-charge logic based on customer attributes. With GST, the user picks a Tax Code that already encodes the rate, treatment type, and reporting category. No auto-determination is needed.

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VAT: EU, UK, and other VAT countries

VAT is a consumption-based tax applied at each stage of the supply chain and ultimately borne by the final consumer. DualEntry currently supports VAT across EU member states, the United Kingdom, and additional jurisdictions like Tanzania and Mexico.

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How VAT works on transactions

When a registered company sells or buys in a VAT country, the tax engine applies VAT based on the seller’s registration status and country, the customer or vendor’s type (business or consumer) and registration status, the location where the supply is delivered, and the Tax Rate selected on each line. Output VAT (charged on sales) is a liability you owe to the tax authority. Input VAT (paid on purchases) is a receivable you reclaim. At period end, the net difference is what you remit. For example: a French-registered company invoices a French B2C customer for two items at €1,000 each. The France standard VAT rate is 20%, so DualEntry calculates €400 of VAT. The GL impact on the invoice is:

• Debit Accounts receivable: €2,400.00
• Credit Revenue (€1,000 per line): €2,000.00
• Credit VAT payable (France output): €400.00

When you record a vendor bill in the same country, the entries flip: input VAT lands as a receivable instead of a liability.

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Reverse charge

Reverse charge shifts the VAT liability from the seller to the buyer. It applies on B2B cross-border transactions where the buyer is VAT-registered in a different country than the seller. DualEntry auto-determines reverse-charge eligibility when these conditions are all met:

• The customer is a business, not a consumer
• The customer has a valid VAT ID
• The customer’s VAT country differs from your VAT registration country
• The product or service is eligible for reverse charge
• The transaction is B2B

When reverse charge applies, the seller invoices at 0% VAT, the buyer self-assesses both an output VAT liability and an input VAT receivable in their own country, and the net impact is zero for fully recoverable purchases. DualEntry stamps a reverse-charge flag on the transaction for audit reference.

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VAT-specific data points

A few fields support VAT compliance beyond the basic Tax Rate selection:

• VAT Reporting Country on each transaction, the country whose VAT return this entry should appear in. Defaults from the customer or vendor but can be overridden per record.
• Supply Date, the date the supply occurred, used for period assignment on returns.
• Multiple VAT IDs per counterparty, a single customer or vendor can carry separate VAT IDs for different countries (for example, a France VAT ID and a Germany VAT ID for the same group entity).

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GST: India and Asia-Pacific

GST is implemented as a simplified tax mode separate from VAT. It currently supports India, Australia, Singapore, Malaysia, and New Zealand. The key architectural difference from VAT: GST uses Tax Codes as the user-facing concept rather than Tax Rates. Each Tax Code already encodes the rate, the treatment type (domestic, import, or export), and the reporting category for the country’s return. The user picks the Tax Code that matches the situation; the system does not try to auto-determine intra-state versus inter-state, domestic versus export, or reverse-charge eligibility. This is an intentional simplification that keeps GST predictable across the supported countries.

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How GST works on transactions

When a registered company creates a transaction, the user selects a Tax Code from the dropdown. DualEntry derives the rate, calculates the tax, and posts the GL. For example: an Australian company invoices an Australian customer for a service worth AU$10,000. The user selects the **GST (10$1,000 of GST. The GL impact on the invoice is:

• Debit Accounts receivable: AU$11,000.00
• Credit Revenue: AU$10,000.00
• Credit GST payable: AU$1,000.00

On a vendor bill with a creditable GST Tax Code, GST posts as a receivable (GST Receivable / Input Tax Credit), the equivalent of input VAT.

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Cross-border GST

GST cross-border transactions use two dedicated treatment types instead of reverse-charge logic:

• Import GST. Money-out treatment. When you purchase services from a foreign vendor (for example, a US SaaS subscription), the vendor doesn’t charge your country’s GST. You self-assess by selecting an Import GST Tax Code. DualEntry posts a dual entry: GST Receivable (debit) and GST Payable (credit). The net cash impact is zero for fully creditable inputs, but both lines must flow through the GST return.
• Export GST. Money-in treatment. Sales to foreign customers are typically zero-rated. The user picks an export Tax Code; no GST is charged on the invoice, but the company retains input tax credit on related purchases.

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India GST: additional considerations

India operates a dual-levy GST structure that splits tax between the Central and State governments:

• CGST + SGST apply on intra-state transactions, split evenly (an 18% intra-state supply resolves to 9% CGST + 9% SGST)
• IGST applies on inter-state and export transactions as a single tax
• UTGST applies in Union Territories without a legislature, in place of SGST

Each tax type posts to its own GL account (CGST Payable, SGST Payable, IGST Payable on the output side; receivable accounts on the input side). The user selects the Tax Code that matches the place of supply: intra-state codes resolve to CGST + SGST, inter-state codes to IGST. India GST also supports HSN (Harmonized System of Nomenclature) codes for goods and SAC (Services Accounting Code) codes for services on item records, GSTIN registration numbers on customers and vendors, and the Reverse Charge Mechanism (RCM) for purchases from unregistered domestic vendors or imported services. RCM is implemented through dedicated Tax Codes that create the dual GL entry: selecting an RCM Tax Code posts both a GST receivable and a GST payable in the same transaction.

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Cross-cutting concepts

A few capabilities apply across both VAT and GST. Multi-currency. Tax calculations work in the transaction currency. For reporting, tax amounts are converted to the company’s base currency using the FX rate on the supply date. This matters for cross-border AR and AP where you bill in customer currency but report in company currency. Exemptions and zero-rating. Both VAT and GST distinguish between exempt supplies (no tax, no input recovery on related purchases) and zero-rated supplies (no tax charged, but input recovery is preserved). The distinction is encoded in the Tax Rate or Tax Code selected, and the GL treatment follows automatically. Audit trail. Each posted transaction records the Tax Rate or Tax Code used, the registration numbers on both sides, and the supply date. This is enough to reconstruct the tax decision later for an auditor.

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Period-end and remitting tax

The remittance workflow for VAT and GST follows the same pattern as US sales tax:

1. Review your liability. Open the General Ledger and filter your output VAT/GST and input VAT/GST accounts by company and period. The net of output and input is what’s owed (or refundable) for that country.
2. File your return externally. Each country has its own filing portal (HMRC for the UK, the GST portal for India, the ATO Business Activity Statement for Australia, IRAS for Singapore, and so on). DualEntry does not file returns directly today. Prepare and submit through the country’s portal.
3. Record the payment. Once you’ve paid the tax agency, post a vendor bill (or direct payment) to the tax agency vendor for the amount remitted. The GL impact is a debit to the relevant tax payable account and a credit to bank, closing out the period’s net liability.

After the payment posts, the country’s net VAT/GST balance for that period should zero out, with any portion not yet due carrying forward.

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Supported countries

As of May 15, 2026. If your country is not listed, please consult your customer support representative.

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VAT countries

DualEntry supports VAT calculation and reporting for the following countries. For each, DualEntry ships with standard, reduced, zero-rated, and exempt rates pre-loaded, accessible via Configuration → Tax Setup → VAT Rates → Import VAT Rates.

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GST countries

DualEntry supports GST calculation and reporting for the following countries. For each, DualEntry ships with standard, zero-rated, exempt, import, and export rates pre-loaded, accessible via Configuration → Tax Setup → GST Rates → Import GST Rates.

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Where to go next

If you operate in the US, see US Taxes for sales and use tax. For an overview of how tax management fits together across regions, see the Tax Management index. For how tax postings flow into the books, see General Ledger.