Custom Tax + Invoice layout

[taliesyn]

I need to be able to have custom taxes for certain products due to the odd way actinic handles VAT rounding. We previously had no tax set, just to avoid the rounding problem on certain prices, but now it's become necessary for us to handle non EU VAT properly, so I have to implement taxes.

By the way, I'm an Actinic cover customer and I have to say that I'm highly unimpressed to say the least at telephone support's unavailability today.

However, having spoken to support yesterday, I was advised to set custom taxes for each of the problem prices. Not ideal, but OK, fine. I'll accept that if it works. I spent almost a full day going through the products and setting custom taxes for the ones that need it, and it works.

On testing the site today, before uploading it, I find that every invoice I print that includes an edited product has a custom tax figure on it as well as the 17.5% normal figure for other products. I would have thought that it would have been prudent for support to advise me of the potential invoice problem (as I can see that it's been brought up on here before).

I can't send invoices like that to my customers showing VAT rates of 17.5056% and such like. Somebody *please* tell me I don't have to dig up an ancient copy of Crystal Reports.

[jont]

I have to say that I'm highly unimpressed to say the least at telephone support's unavailability today.

They are out on their jollies http://community.actinic.com/showthread.php?t=24229

[cdicken]

Sorry Phil

You were unfortunate to require telephone support on the one working day of the year we cannot provide it.

This odd tax rate problem is an unfortunate side effect of using custom tax. You can get around it online by editing the 'Including...' message. This doesn't work on the reports though. I wish I could suggest something other than unearthing your old copy of Crystal reports. One alternative might be to contact Jan Strassen at http://www.mole-end.biz/ who specialises in report customisations and is very helpful.

[taliesyn]

Thanks Chris.

Well I did speak to Mole End, and they were very helpful. Unfortunately they are up to their eyes in work at the moment, and although they could do the work for us, they couldn't do it in the timescale needed, so that was out of the window (through no fault of theirs). However, they were very professional as always, and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend them to anyone.

So out came the ancient copy of Crystal Reports 8.5, and I managed to adjust the Tax Code logic within the invoice so that it identifies custom tax and gives it the same code as normal tax within the invoice. I didn't have time to get my head around the VAT breakdown logic (as there's a huge amount of it in there), so I just ripped the VAT breakdown out. I may look at it again (and fix it properly) if I have time.

We now have functional invoices, although it's far from an ideal solution.

[Jan]

Thanks Phil

Regards,