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redbigfoot
redbigfoot
January 30, 2023
Question

Turn off "Based on location" sales tax feature

  • January 30, 2023
  • 3 replies
  • 0 views

Like many others, I use a third-party tool to calculate sales tax for clients. When an invoice is generated from the other system (Connectwise PSA) we can see it correctly sends all info to QBO except the sales tax. Even if I simplify a customer to using a single tax code, it still doesn't work. When I open the invoice, I can see that it's being calculated based on location. If I manually set the client in QBO to use a specific tax amount it will still default to the "based on location" option.

 

Clearly, there's some issue with the QBO integration side that's overriding both the integration data and the Customer tax setting to use "based on location" instead.

 

I've seen the other tickets suggesting that the agency be marked inactive. That doesn't solve the issue. I've triple-checked the mappings.

 

If "Based on location" sales tax isn't something that can be disabled, then how do we configure QBO to accept third-party tax info? Again, I'm able to show it's sending to QBO so the adjustments should be focused on the QBO side. Thanks!

    3 replies

    G
    Giovann_G
    January 31, 2023

    Hello there and thanks for posting here in the Community space, redbigfoot.

     

    QuickBooks Online calculates sales tax based on location using the criteria below:

     

    • Your customer's tax-exempt status
    • Where you sell and where you ship
    • What you sell

     

    This is the reason why it is impossible to turn off the Based on Location tax feature. It is performing as intended. You'll have the option to set up a custom rate as an alternative if the third-party program doesn't have this default function.

     

    Here's how:

     

    1. Open the Taxes menu.
    2. Click on Sales tax settings.
    3. From the Custom rates section, choose Add rate.
    4. Click on Single or Combined.

     

    Once done, you can manually select the tax rates from the Based on location dropdown on the invoices created from the other system. Feel free to visit this link for more details: Use custom rates to manually calculate taxes on invoices or receipts in QuickBooks Online.

     

    I'm also including the following useful guides to assist you to keep track of and manage your reports in QBO:

     

     

    If have further questions about taxes, please let us know. We're available to help you at any time.

    redbigfoot
    redbigfootAuthor
    January 31, 2023

    Good afternoon!

     

    Even with a custom rate set against the client, that rate isn't being honored. QBO keeps trying to use the "Based on Location" option. If I create an invoice directly from QBO, the custom rate is honored. But never if I push an invoice from the PSA.

     

    The issue seems to be that QBO forces the "Based on location" option despite the custom rate when third-party invoicing is used. Can we force QBO to reliably honor the custom rate with third-party invoicing?


    Thanks!

    Candice C
    Candice C
    January 31, 2023

    Hey there, @redbigfoot.

     

    I appreciate you coming back and letting us know how those steps went for you and your business. 

     

    I can see how beneficial this could be for your business. However, there isn't a way to force QBO to reliably honor the custom rate. 

     

    I suggest submitting feedback to our Product Developers so they can consider this as an option in the near future. 

     

    Review our Updates site to keep up with what's new in the system. 

     

    I hope this helps answer your question. Wishing you and your business continued success! 

    S
    samcurran59
    January 3, 2024

    I don't have the capability to interact with specific software or platforms in real-time, so I can't directly assist you with turning off a "Based on location" sales tax feature. However, I can provide you with general guidance on where to find such settings. I know all of this because this happens with me sometimes.

    1. Account Settings:

      • Log in to the platform or software where you are managing your sales tax.
      • Look for an "Account" or "Settings" section in the main menu.

    2. Sales Tax Settings:

      • Within the account settings, find a section related to sales tax or taxation.
      • Look for options related to location-based sales tax.

    3. Disable Location-Based Tax:

      • Once you are in the sales tax settings, check for an option to disable or turn off the "Based on location" feature.
      • This option might be labeled differently depending on the platform, so look for terms like "Location-Based Tax" or "Geographical Tax."

    4. Save Changes:

      • After making changes, be sure to save the settings to apply the updates.

    5. Contact Support:

      • If you can't find the option or are unsure, consider reaching out to the platform's customer support for assistance. They should be able to guide you through the process.
    T
    TMcNamara
    January 3, 2024

    Have you changed over to the AST in QBO? If you have you will notice you cannot turn it off or change it.

    Q
    quibbly
    January 2, 2025

    Our tax rate is 7.25 as we are outside Houston city limits as we are Annexed, so we don't pay the 8.25%.    

    I've informed Intuit multiple times and they promise "We will fix this".  Two years later, I have to modify hundreds of invoices on the first of each month.  

    Moving to Xero. 

    A
    accountingjr
    January 2, 2025

    We have a custom solution built to auto update invoices to the correct rate. Feel free to reach out to us. Google Advisorjr and send us a message if interested. Thanks

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