Amanda beat me to it - it's as she says, you should have the corresponding VAT invoice from your freight carrier, but you need to keep the C79 to support your claim for the Input Tax.
(Assuming you have posted the Carrier's invoice correctly and are reclaiming the VAT)
You will definately need the invoice that it relates to.
It won't say on there who the invoice belongs to it will have the agents ref number and the amount and the date I think.
You will have to tie it up with the invoice to make sure the amount that's on there is correct. If he can't find the invoice I suggest he contacts the courier and asks for a copy. I wouldn't put it through without the invoice but its up to you at the end of the day. The invoice may also have on it duty and an admin charge plus the VAT, so you really do need the invoice.
The way Sage recommend is as follows (Using £100 tax as an example). Post the invoice as normal to the following nominal code.
IMPORTS
5101
Import VAT
0.00
T9
100.00 This keeps it out of the VAT return
When the C79 arrives raise a journal and DR 2201 £100 with a T1 tax code and CR 2201 £100 with a T9 tax code. This reverses the original entry above, and brings it in to the VAT return.
If import duty is involved you would also add that to the invoice on 5101 with the duty at T0 and vat at T9, then add the VAT as above when the C79 arrives
Thank you Amanda... Looking at the invoice it's difficult to see who the supplier is.
There is A/C info and a date... so I'll try to dig a little deeper...
The client has Sage One... so even if I find the Invoice I'm not sure where to input it... was thinking 'Other Expenses' ??? (I'm more familiar with Sage 50)
The way Sage recommend is as follows (Using £100 tax as an example). Post the invoice as normal to the following nominal code.
IMPORTS
5101
Import VAT
0.00
T9
100.00 This keeps it out of the VAT return
When the C79 arrives raise a journal and DR 2201 £100 with a T1 tax code and CR 2201 £100 with a T9 tax code. This reverses the original entry above, and brings it in to the VAT return.
If import duty is involved you would also add that to the invoice on 5101 with the duty at T0 and vat at T9, then add the VAT as above when the C79 arrives
HTH
Bill
Thank you too Bill, But at the moment the actual invoice to which it relates is missing... Argh!
Amanda beat me to it - it's as she says, you should have the corresponding VAT invoice from your freight carrier, but you need to keep the C79 to support your claim for the Input Tax.
(Assuming you have posted the Carrier's invoice correctly and are reclaiming the VAT)
If it is just based on the C79 I would not claim it until it can be associated with an invoice.
Just occassionaly the courier gets it wrong and may have used the wrong company reference, and it may not be your companies VAT to claim back.
Do you have regular imports and couriers? I am pretty sure that the last number on the detail line is the couriers VAT number, so you may be able to check back from that, using the VAT number check facility at
A couple of ideas - I had an entry on the C79 the other day which i couldn't identify - I googled the VAT number and found out which carrier it was !
Failing that, you could put the Agents VAT number on here and someone might be able to tell you who it is (if it's one of the big ones).
Also, as an alternative to Bill' suggestion, here's how I deal with this kind of thing.
When the invoice for the goods comes from the supplier, code it with a VAT Code number used specifically for imports (we use T6, making sure it's included in the VAT return). Then, when the invoice for the freight comes in, enter it with a net value of zero, code T6 (or whatever code you use), and enter the VAT only in the VAT column. This will then get picked up on the VAT return. if there is duty or handling charges as well, they can be coded to T0 in the usual way.
I googled the VAT number and identified the company which enabled me to request a copy invoice. I based my enquiry on the net value of the invoice as I had the VAT figure.
Upon receipt of the invoice it became apparent that there was also another charge as Amanda had mentioned... a static value duty of 1.7%
The invoice is for an electronic part shipped from Indonesia. The invoice is detailed in the following way:
Statistic value duty £ 5000.00 1.7% £85.00 Statistic Value VAT £ 5085.00 20% £1017.00 Other Levy £ 5000.00 0% £ 0.00
Total for shipment Duty £ 85.00 Vat £ 1017.00 Other Levy £ 0.00 Special Clearance Services £ 0.00 Admin Fee £ 22.04 £ 1124.04
My question now is... Please can you advise which code to post the statistical value duty of 1.7% to, or am I over analysing and should just put through the net value including this?
All advice would be most welcome and then I can finally complete the VAT return! Thank you.
