Would it be possible to lock transactions when a VAT return has been made to ensure that no subsequent entries dated in this return period are made. Even if the period was not "locked" could a warning message be flagged if a pre-VAT Return date is entered.

The reason I ask this is that one of my bookkeeping clients has a habit of holding on to supplier invoices until they are paid and often I don't receive some of them until after the quarterly return has been made. This means that when these are entered up in the current period one has to date them in this period. If the actual invoice date is inadvertantly entered it means that the input VAT on this invoice is not claimed.

If such a function could be introduced one would have the option to enable and disable it in case corrections have to be made in the earlier periods.

Great idea. No company is perfect and often purchase invoices 'appear' after a return has been submitted. It is better to post them in the correct period but still include them on the next vat return. Flagging items included on a return would enable the next return to include unflagged items from earlier VAT periods.

Was this ever introduced or are the VAT periods still free? As i just checked this function before coming onto the forums to make sure solar accounts locks the quarter or its entries in some way and am worried that it doesnt appear to. Can you lock the entries already input? Also is there a way to tell what entries have been made in a vat quarterly period after the last vat return (for said period) was made? Hope this makes sense.

Hello Benjamin,

No, Solar Accounts has not changed in this regard - you cannot lock periods. If you make a change to a transaction in a previous VAT return you will need to note the VAT amount and manually adjust the figures on your next return.

Unfortunately it is not easy to see if a VAT period has been altered after the return has been submitted. When you submit your VAT return you should print (or save to PDF) the VAT Return Detail report which lists the transactions that affect the return. Later you can run the report again and compare it to the original version to see if there have been any changes.

Regards,