Batch Expense Input

Batch input is designed for those who need to rapidly input significant volumes of expense transactions. It may be useful to quickly enter transactions from a bank account or credit card statement, particularly as a feature exists to enter a gross value and allow the system to calculate the net and vat amounts (see comments in red italics below). It may be that a catch up of transaction data is necessary or that volumes of transactions are such that the a large number need to be input. Batch input simply means that a number of expense transactions can all be entered at once. The Information needed is the same as that for any expense transaction (see below), and as such in order for the process to be as easy and simple as possible a few minutes spent setting up payee / supplier and other details in advance is well spent. If an entity is not registered for VAT, then there will be no references to VAT in the screen, also therefore ignore references to VAT in the guide below.

You can add as many transactions to the screen as you wish, however we recommend that no more than 20 lines per batch be entered for optimum efficiency. The system has a session time-out period of 40 minutes, so please be sure to submit a batch before leaving your computer for a period or the information may be lost and will need to be re-input.

This screen is used for batch input of purchases and expenses made from bank or credit card accounts. It can be useful if input source is a bank or credit card statement.

Screen Navigation

As well as using the mouse you can navigate around the batch screen using key strokes. The only exception is the SUBMIT button. Press the access Key (ALT or CTRL) at the same time as the bracketed letter on the button.

In the Windows environment use the ALT key, for Apple Mac use CTRL+ALT or CTRL depending upon the browser.

Types of Expense Transaction

The types of expense transaction that can be included in a batch input are:

• Payment
• Cheque payment
• Debit or Credit Card payment
• Direct Debit
• Standing Order
• Online payment
• Cash Expense (out of Undeposited funds on hand in the business)

Account

Select the Bank Account associated with the transaction.

A default may be displayed if it has been set on a Bank Account Details Record. This default may be overwritten.

To set a default, if it has not already been done, navigate to the Bank menu and hover over the Bank Account that is to become the default and click Configure Account.

Tick the Default Box and then SUBMIT.

Note there can only be one default so if another Bank Account was previously set as the default its status will be reset to be not the default.

Note that the last bank account selected remains as the default unless changed by the user.

Document Type

Select an appropriate document type to ensure the transaction is listed appropriately.

Transaction Date

The date of the transaction. Dates can either be entered manually or selected from the pop-up calendar by clicking on the  icon. Dates must be entered in the format DD/MM/YYYY, for example, 21/1/2000.

For batch input items the tax point for VAT purposes will be the same as the transaction date.

When entering dates manually, a date guessing routine speeds up the input by taking the user input and assuming the missing month and or year based on the current date as the user leaves the field i.e.

the date today is 30th October 2009

• User enters 15 or 15/ and tabs - field displays 15/10/2009
• User enters 15/9 or 15/9/ and tabs - field displays 15/9/2009

Payee

The payee list contains any external entity, such as customers or suppliers, that are associated with the entity.

Auto-complete field names

Rather than a drop-down to select from a list, simply start typing and the system will identify any occurrences of the combination of characters entered and you select from that shorter list. As an example, type 'able' and the system will offer:

Able Contractors

Capable Cleaning

Reasonable Roofers

etc.

Adding new customers / suppliers

If the combination of characters you enter does not provide any results, press tab and the system will know you need to add the customer/supplier and ask you to confirm the details. At this point add address, email contact etc if required.

Departments, Activities and Funds

Line item entries may be analysed to Departments and/or Activities where this has been activated. In addition, for Not-for_profit Organisations a Fund must be selected.

In each case use the drop-down to choose the analytical area appropriate to the line item. If no selection is needed just leave the field or select Not Applicable.

For information about analysis areas see Sites, Departments and Activities

Employee for P11d Purposes

Visible only if Personnel P11D Expense & Benefit Tracking has been selected in the optional features tab on the Organisation Profile.

Select an employee/director to whom this transaction is to be associated for P11D purposes.

Reference

Enter the document reference, usually a document number or equivalent. To tie one or more line items together as a complete document make sure the Reference is exactly the same for each item. If no reference is entered then each line is created as a separate and unique document.

Reference

The reference to be associated with the transaction.

When creating items in the Batch Input screens all items with the same reference will be grouped together and treated as a single transaction when submitted.

Account

The account drop down list is used to associate the line item of a transaction with an account from the chart of accounts.

If nothing is displayed either

simply start typing an account name or ledger code and the system will provide a list of potential selections; choose the required account by clicking on it.

or click the  icon

to display a list of document-type sensitive account possibilities. Note to change to other account-type options click the small down arrow at the base of the screen

If an account is displayed

In many instances once a counterparty (customer, supplier or employee etc) has been selected the account box will display a default learned account. For other associated learned accounts click the  icon. Note to change to other account-type options click the small down arrow at the base of the screen

Net Amount

The net amount associated with the item. If you only have the gross amount (e.g. you are entering from a bank or credit card statement) you may enter the gross amount. After you have selected the appropriate VAT rate you can force a reverse calculation of the Net and VAT amounts by typing 'g' in the VAT amount field.

VAT Rate

The appropriate VAT rate for the account must be selected. Default VAT rates can be associated with an account via the Account Maintenance screen which is available from the chart of accounts view.

If the business is on the HMRC Flat Rate VAT Scheme, as defined on the VAT details tab of the Business Profile, the VAT rate will default to "Out of Scope" for all purchase transactions. This can be changed if necessary. Exceptions may apply for purchases of capital assets of significant value, please consult your professional advisor.

Current VAT Rates

17.5%, 5% & zero, used for normal UK VAT transactions.

Exempt

Used when a transaction is an exempt supply; such as the purchase of insurance. See the VAT Guide (Notice 700) for more details or visit the Revenue and Customs site at www.hmrc.gov.uk

EU Acquisition

Used when you purchase from a VAT registered business in an EU member state. Make sure that the VAT code is set to EU Acquisition, and that the VAT amount shows the VAT which would have applied if the purchase had taken place in the UK.

EU VAT

Only used if you have you have incurred VAT in an EU member state, (i.e. local VAT). This CANNOT be recovered as input tax for UK VAT. You may make a claim for refund from the member state. A scheme exists to do this known as "Refunds of VAT in the European Community for EC and non-EC businesses" The details are in notice 723, refer to the Revenue and Customs site at www.hmrc.gov.uk Use of this VAT code is described more fully in the "VAT and Liberty Accounts" user guide.

Out of Scope

Used when a transaction is not in the VAT system at all. For example payments into a money purchase pension scheme are out of scope because they are equivalent to savings. Using this code will result in no VAT reporting impact.

None

This code is used where there is no VAT on a transaction. This is not the same as zero rated, exempt or out of scope. The impact is that the value of either the supply or purchase is included in the VAT 100 return.

Special Note - Reverse Charge for Purchases From Non EU Countries

Typically this is required for a purchase from a non-EU country where no VAT has been paid. It simply provides a means of accounting for the VAT that would have been paid if the good or service was purchased in the UK. Applying a reverse charge VAT process will have no impact on your VAT liability.

Reverse Charging for non-EU purchases is not currently supported in the batch input screens. To apply the reverse charge VAT procedure on a purchase created via batch input simply open the transaction in the normal screen after it has been created and set the reverse charge flag.

If you subsequently view the item you will notice that the VAT rate has been set by the system to "Out of Scope". This is correct. If you need to make changes to the transaction you must reset the VAT codes to the appropriate code so that the Reverse Charge can be created again using the correct VAT amounts.

VAT Amount

The amount of VAT charged on this item is automatically calculated but can be changed. If you have entered the gross amount in the net amount field, simply type 'g' in this field to have the net and VAT amounts reverse calculated based on the selected VAT rate.

Editing an Expense Transaction

After a batch of expense transactions has been entered, each individual expense may be edited (Note that the original batch screen is not available to be edited). If an expense has been included in a VAT return then the details of the expense may only be viewed or certain details re-analysed, they cannot be changed or deleted. Likewise if an expense is dated in a closed financial year it also cannot be changed.

Locate the individual expense transaction from the Expenses menu.

Expenses - Payments and Transfers - Edit the relevant document