Year: 2013

Duplicate invoices function in SAP

Posted on by Jayanth Maydipalle

In SAP FI module, when checking for duplicated invoices, the SAP system compares the following:

  • Vendor
  • Currency
  • Company code
  • Gross amount of the invoice
  • Reference document number
  • Invoice document date.

SAP OSS Note 305201 clarify this in a more detail below:

The following fields must be identical for Duplicate invoice check

Company code (BUKRS)
Vendor number (LIFNR)
Currency (WAERS)
Reference number (XBLNR)
Amount in document currency (WRBTR)
Document date (BLDAT)

If the SAP document is having any one of the above filled different then the SAP system does not consider it as a duplicate invoice and also It will check duplicate invoice check in vendor master data and in posting key is there check box selected for sales related

The setting you making in OMRDC

SAP Menu Path: Materials management -> Logistics Invoice Verification-Incoming Invoice -> Set Check for Duplicate Invoices

This configuration is only valid for SAP MM module and not FI invoices posted via FB60/FB65.

You should check the F1 help on field “Check double inv.” (LFB1-REPRF) in the relevant vendor master record through SAP transaction code: FK02.

Please also check, that message F5 117 has been set correctly in the SAP IMG using this path:

Financial Accounting -> Financial Accounting Global Settings ->Document -> Default Values for Document Processing -> Change Message Control for Document Control For Document Processing.

Then go to the relevant posting key is defined as sales related in SAP transaction code: OB41. You have to flag this field if the duplicate invoice check should work.

Configure Tax on Sales and Purchases

Posted on by Jayanth Maydipalle

Introduction To Tax Configurations In SAP

Tax configurations are done in SAP at the country level. This is because all businesses in the same country need to follow the same taxation policies and generally accepted accounting principles while preparing their financial statements. Therefore, tax configurations in SAP are done for each country. Any company code which is then created in that country can then automatically use the tax configuration that is done for that country. So tax configurations need not be done for each and every company code again and again. This saves the effort required to carry out the tax configurations for every company code separately.

SAP allows the tax rates to be defined internally or the tax rates may be fetched from an external taxation system like Vertex. The tax configurations are stored in SAP in the form of tax calculation procedures and tax codes. These procedures can then be assigned to different countries. These procedures then become available to any company code which is created in that country.

The tax rates are provided by the tax codes are the different tax types while the method of calculation is defined in the tax calculation procedure. SAP allows the following taxes to be processed while posting documents:

  • Tax on sales and purchases.
  • Additional taxes like VAT which our country specific.
  • Sales and Use tax as in USA.
  • Withholding tax like income tax in India.

Concept Of Tax Jurisdictions

Tax jurisdictions represent the government authorities to which the taxes are paid. SAP allows up to 4 levels of tax jurisdictions representing state, county, city and others. The tax jurisdiction structure needs to be defined before the tax jurisdictions can be created in SAP. As mentioned before, the tax jurisdiction structure can have four levels. The tax jurisdiction structure defines the length of characters which will be used to represent each level in the tax jurisdiction code. The tax jurisdiction code structure needs to be defined for every tax calculation procedure.

Once the tax jurisdiction code structure has been defined, the next step is to create the actual tax jurisdiction codes. The tax jurisdiction codes need to be created for every government authority to which the tax needs to be paid.

Assign Tax Procedure To Country

Step 1: The tax configuration details are stored in the tax procedure. The first step is to assign the tax procedure to the country in which the company code exists. Navigate to the Implementation Guide menu path as shown below or execute the transaction code OBBG.

Navigate To The Img Path Shown


Step 2: Position to the country to which the tax calculation procedure is to be assigned and enter the tax calculation procedure details as shown in the screenshot below.

Assign The Tax Calculation Procedure To The Country


Step 3: Click on the save button to save the changes. A success message showing that the changes have been saved is displayed.

Define The Tax Jurisdiction Code Structure

Step 1:Navigate to the implementation guide menu path as shown in the screenshot below or execute the transaction code OBCO from the SAP easy access menu.

Navigate To The Menu Path Shown


Step 2: Select the tax procedure for which the tax jurisdiction code structure needs to be defined and enter the length for the various jurisdiction levels as shown in the screenshot below. The length chosen should be sufficiently large to accommodate enough tax jurisdiction codes as per the requirement. For e.g. the first level represents the state. If the number of states is large then it is better to have a four letter key to represent it rather than having a two letter key. This is because the number of combinations possible with a four letter key will be much more than those possible with the two letter key.

Enter The Tax Jurisdiction Code Structure


Step 3: Click on the save button to save the changes. A success message indicating that the changes have been saved is displayed.

Define The Tax Jurisdiction Codes

Step 1:Navigate to the implementation guide menu path as shown below or execute the transaction code OBCP from the SAP easy access menu.

Navigate To The Menu Path Shown


Step 2: Enter the work area details in the pop-up as shown in the screenshot below and click on the continue button.

Enter The Work Area


Step 3: Enter the tax jurisdiction code and its description as shown in the screenshot below. On the basis of the configuration for the tax jurisdiction code structure, the first two letters of the tax jurisdiction code will represent the state, the next three letters will represent the county, and the next four letters will represent the city. Therefore, every tax jurisdiction code will be nine characters long. It will be possible to determine the correct taxing authority on the basis of the tax the jurisdiction code described above.

Enter The Tax Jurisdiction Code


Step 4: Click on the save button to save the new tax jurisdiction code. A success message indicating that the new tax jurisdiction code has been saved is displayed.

Define Tax Codes

The tax codes are defined for each and every country. The tax codes contain the actual rates to be used while calculating the tax on the basis of the tax calculation procedure. Each country can have multiple tax codes for different types of taxes like input tax sales and purchases, output tax on sales and purchases, etc.

Step 1:Navigate to the Implementation Guide menu path as shown in the screenshot below or execute the transaction code FTXP from the SAP Easy Access menu.

Navigate To The Menu Path Shown


Step 2: Enter the country in the pop -up as shown in the screenshot below and click on the continue button.

Enter The Country


Step 3: Enter the tax jurisdiction code and the other details on the screen as shown in the screenshot below and press the Enter key. The tax code represents the type of the tax for which the rates are going to be maintained.

Enter The Details As Shown Above


Step 4: Enter the tax rates as shown in the screenshot below. These tax rates can be used to calculate the tax while posting a document in SAP. The method of calculation will be determined on the basis of the tax calculation procedure.

Enter The Tax Rates


Step 5: Click the save button to save the changes. A success message indicating that the changes have been saved is displayed.

Configure Extended Withholding Tax

Posted on by Jayanth Maydipalle

SAP system provides two procedures for processing withholding tax; the “Standard” and the “Extended” withholding tax. We’ll walk you through on the basic configuration steps of the latter procedure.

1. First, Check Withholding Tax Countries:

Path: IMG → Financial Accounting (New) → Financial Accounting Global Settings (New) → Withholding Tax → Extended Withholding Tax → Basic Settings → Check Withholding Tax Countries.

The “Change View Country Key for Withholding Tax: Overview” screen appears. To create new entry, you may copy an existing country key by selecting the Copy button or you may create from scratch by selecting New Entries button.

Fill up the following fields:

  • Country Key (Cty) – e.g. PH
  • Withholding Country Key (WCty) – e.g. PH
  • Description – e.g. Withholding Tax – Philippines

2. Second, Define Withholding Tax Keys. These are codes use to identify the different withholding tax types of each country.

Path: IMG → Financial Accounting (New) → Financial Accounting Global Settings (New) → Withholding Tax → Extended Withholding Tax → Basic Settings → Define Withholding Tax Keys.

A pop-up window “Determine Work Area: Entry” appears. Enter your country code, e.g. ‘PH’. Then select Enter button or press Enter on your keyboard.

The “Change View Official Withholding Tax Key – Descriptions: Overview” screen appears. To create new entries you may copy an existing tax key by selecting Copy button or you may create from scratch by selecting New Entries button.

Fill up the following fields:

  • Official Withholding Tax Key (Off. Key) – e.g. ‘C010′.
  • Text 40 (Name) – Professional talent fee paid to juridical person <=720,000.

3. Third, Define Withholding Tax Type. Note that with “Extended Withholding Tax Procedure”, withholding tax can be computed by the system during invoice processing or during posting of payments. Furthermore, the withholding tax on partial payments can also be computed or determined by the system automatically.

Path: IMG → Financial Accounting (New) → Financial Accounting Global Settings (New) → Withholding Tax → Extended Withholding Tax → Calculation → Withholding Tax Type → Define Withholding Tax for Invoice Posting (or for Payment Posting).

A pop-up window “Determine Work Area: Entry” appears. Enter your country code, e.g. ‘PH’. Then select Enter button or press Enter on your keyboard.

The “Change View Define Withholding tax type: Posting at time of invoice” screen appears. On the said screen, you may create through copy an existing tax type or you may create from scratch. Select the Copy button or New Entries button.

Fill up the Withholding Tax Type and Description fields. All other fields are already standard and more or less fit to your withholding tax requirements in your country.

4. Fourth, Define Withholding Tax Code. The tax code you create in this step should be assigned to the withholding tax type and withholding tax key created from the preceding steps. Furthermore, you enter also the tax rate and the base amount of computation.

Path: IMG → Financial Accounting (New) → Financial Accounting Global Settings (New) → Withholding Tax → Extended Withholding Tax → Calculation → Withholding Tax Code → Define Withholding Tax Code

A pop-up window “Determine Work Area: Entry” appears. Enter your country code, e.g. ‘PH’. Then select Enter button or press Enter on your keyboard.

The “Change View Withholding tax code: Details” screen appears. You may copy an existing tax code or you may create from scratch.

Fill up the following fields:

  • Withholding tax type – assign a withholding tax type you’ve created in step 3.
  • Withholding tax code – create your withholding tax code.
  • Description – Enter description of your withholding tax code.
  • Official Withholding tax key – assign a withholding tax key you’ve created in step 2.
  • Percentage subject to tax (Base amount) – normally, 100% of the base amount is subject to tax.
  • Posting indicator – normally select ’1′ which means, there is one line item entry for the withholding tax and the amount is deducted fromt the line item of customer, vendor, or cash account.
  • Withholding tax rate – enter the tax rate of the tax code. This will use by the system to compute the amount of tax during processing.

5. Fifth, Assign Withholding Tax Types to Company Codes. Here, you assign the withholding tax types created in step 3 to your Company Code.

Path: IMG → Financial Accounting (New) → Financial Accounting Global Settings (New) → Withholding Tax → Extended Withholding Tax → Company Code → Assign Withholding tax type to Company Code.

The “Change View Withholding tax information for company code per w/tax type” screen appears. You may copy an existing company code assignment or you may assign from scratch.

6. Sixth, Activate Extended Withholding Tax for your Company Code. Remember, the activation of this tax procedure is on the company code level. You can’t use this tax procedure to your company code, unless activated.

Path: IMG → Financial Accounting (New) → Financial Accounting Global Settings (New) → Withholding Tax → Extended Withholding Tax → Company Code → Activate Extended Withholding Tax.

The “Change View Enhanced withholding tax functions active: Overview” screen appears. To activate, tick the check box “Ext. w/tax” of your company code.

7. Finally, Define G/L Accounts for Withholding Tax. In this step, you assign the G/L account for Withholding tax posting.

Path: IMG → Financial Accounting (New) → Financial Accounting Global Settings (New) → Withholding Tax → Extended Withholding Tax → Posting → Accounts for Withholding Tax → Define Accounts for Withholding Tax to be Paid Over.

A pop-up window “Enter Chart of Accounts” appears. Enter the Chart of Accounts code then select Enter button or press Enter on your keyboard.

The “Maintain FI Configuration: Automatic Posting – Accounts” screen appears. Select the G/L account you want to assign for withholding tax postings.

Note, for every step above don’t forget to save your work. Select Save button or Ctrl+S after each step.

Configure Default Baseline Date for Payment

Posted on by Jayanth Maydipalle

This article is a quick reference on how to set the default value of baseline date for payment.

A baseline date for payment is the date for which the payment terms apply. It’s the basis of the sytem to determine the cash discount taken (from vendor) or cash discount given (to customer). During entry of customer and vendor invoice transactions, the baseline date field is a required field. You can not proceed with the posting of the transaction not unless the said field is filled-up.

In SAP system, you can customize the default baseline date for payment that appears during transaction entry. You may choose as default either the posting date, document date, entry date or no default date. Do remember you can override the default value of baseline date.

To configure the default value of baseline date for payment, here’s a quick and simple guide:

Transaction Code: OBB8

Path: IMG → Financial Accounting → Accounts Receivable and Accounts Payable → Business Transactions → Outgoing Invoices/Credit Memos → Maintain Terms of Payment.

snag_program-0022

See highlighted items. Select the the default value either posting date, value date, document date or no default. Bear in mind that the default baseline date is applicable for each payment term you maintain. You could have different default baseline date for different payment terms.

“Company Code vs Controlling Area”

Posted on by Jayanth Maydipalle

What’s the difference between Company Code and Controlling Area?

Company Code
It is the smallest organizational unit in FINANCIAL ACCOUNTING (FI) for which a complete set of accounts can be created. It is the central organizational unit of external accounting within the SAP system. Normally, a company code is created for each company (legal entity). It is a mandatory and pre-requisite that at least one company code must be defined before implementing the Financial Accounting component. All business transactions relevant for Financial Accounting are entered, saved and evaluated at company code level. Therefore, it is at company code level wherein a complete set of financial statements (Balance Sheet, Income Statement, Statement of Cash Flows) can be created.

Controlling Area
Controlling Area in SAP is an organization that represents a closed system used for cost accounting purposes. It is an organizational unit in the Controlling (Management Accounting) separate and has different functions with that of the Company Code. One ore more Company Codes can be assigned to a Controlling Area.

Asset Retirement

Posted on by Jayanth Maydipalle

Overview

The following paragraphs and pictures will describe an EXAMPLE in steps of an asset retirement and the functionality of the main fields and buttons.

Asset Retirement with transaction code ABAVN

To retire an asset go to Navigation:  SAP Easy Access -> SAP Menu -> Accounting -> Financial accounting -> Fixed Asset -> Posting -> Retirement -> Asset Retirement by Scrapping

Alternatively: Transaction code ABAVN

1) Fill out Field Asset with your asset number already created and with postings (press enter)
2) Fill out Fields Document Date, Posting date and Asset Values (it cannot be a date prior to this asset capitalization date.

3) If you press Line items , you will see the values generated for each depreciation area.

4) If you press Simulate button you will see the accounts that will be credited and debited. In this case 11000, 11010 and 200010.

5) Double clicking on each line item you can see all details of these transactions.

Asset Acquisition-SAP

Posted on by Jayanth Maydipalle

Overview

The following paragraphs and pictures will describe an EXAMPLE in steps of an asset acquisition and the functionality of the main fields and buttons.

Asset Acquisition with transaction code ABZON

To acquire an asset go to navigation:  SAP Easy Access -> SAP Menu -> Accounting -> Financial accounting -> Fixed Asset -> Posting -> Acquisition -> External Acquisition -> Acquis. w/Autom. Offsetting Entry.

Alternatively: transaction code ABZON

1) Fill out Field Existing asset with an asset number already created. (Press enter)
2) Fill out Fields Document Date, Posting date and Asset Values Date.
3) Fill out Field Amount Posted with any amount.

4) If you press Line items button, you will see the values generated for each depreciation area

5) If you press Simulate button you will see the accounts that will be credited and debited. In this case 11000 and 199990.

6) Double clicking on each line item you can see all details of these transactions.

Asset History Sheet

Posted on by Jayanth Maydipalle

Report Scenario

In order to view all of the different types of asset activity for an asset, or a large number of assets (by company code or class), the asset history sheet allows you to uniquely map any particular transaction type to a specific field in the report.  The main benefit of this is that it provides great visibility into the types of transactions that are being performed on the asset.  Without this, differt types of transactions might be posted to the asset but aggregated into a single figure.

As an example, consider an asset that has many asset transfers occurring where the asset is both the sender and a receiver.  The asset received $500 in transfers from another asset and also transfers $300 to a series of other assets.  In the delivered history sheet versions, the values for the transfers field would be a summation of these values to show a net $200 positive transfer.  But with a properly configured asset history sheet, you can great structures that highlight the Transfers-In and Transfers-Out values.  The same is true if you want to provide more visibility to unique asset transactions such as Write-Ups and Unplanned Depreciation versus regular depreciation.

Report Execution

Menu Path: Accounting > Financial Accounting > Fixed Assets > Information System > Reports on Asset Accounting > Notes to Financial Statements > International > Asset History Sheet

Transaction:  AR02

Program:  RAGITT_ALV01

Selection Values:

  • Usual report criteria such as…
    • Company Code
    • Asset Number
    • Asset Class
    • Depreciation Area
    • Sort version
    • Report List Level – This will determine whether the report output will be in a detailed fashion (i.e., list individual asset records) or summarized based on the sort version.
  • History Sheet Version – see below for more information

Configuration

The configuration for this report requires three items:

  1. Appropriate asset history sheet groups
  2. Proper mapping of all transaction types to the asset history sheet group
  3. A properly configured and “complete” asset history sheet version

The Asset History Version is the core of the Asset History Sheet report and determines how the asset accounting transaction data is displayed.  Most importantly, it defines the column-and-row structure of the report output and how each type of asset activity (acquisitions, transfers in, transfers out, AUC settlement, etc.) is mapped to the appropriate field in the report.  The History Sheet Version is completely customizable for each customer’s purposes.

IMG menu path: Financial Accounting > Asset Accounting > Information System > Asset History Sheet > Define Asset History Versions

  1. SAP has supplied standard asset history versions.  For the custom asset history version creation, we can copy the existing version & make required changes or create it from scratch.
  2. Define 4 character asset history version identification code.
  3. Asset History version can be defined in rows and columns.  We can define maximum 8 rows and 10 columns.  Row and Column ID is made up of two digit integers.  There is a minimum of 1 row and 2 columns (00 and 99) required.
  4. Typical Column Definition:
    1. 00 – Values at the start of FY
    2. 01 to 80 – Transactions during FY
    3. 99 – Values at the end of FY
  5. Within each cell of the report you can map the asset history sheet groups to appear.  Drilldown in order to maintain this.

Basics of Asset Accounting – Asset Explorer

Posted on by Jayanth Maydipalle

Overview

If you use different Financial Versions,you have to post more than one depr area to the General Ledger.

The following paragraphs and figures will describe with EXAMPLE the steps of how to explore an asset and the functionality of the main buttons.

In Asset Explorer by transaction code AW01N, we are able to display depreciation calculation. However, if system uses New depreciation calculation, to be able to simulate Old depreciation calculation, you need to use transaction code AW01_AFAR. 

Exploring an asset with Transaction Code AW01n

Navigation:  SAP Easy Access -> SAP Menu -> Accounting -> Financial accounting -> Fixed Asset -> Asset -> Asset Explorer

Alternatively: AW01N

1)      Fill out fields with asset number/Company Code.

2)      In Planned values tab, you can check all values related to this asset. APC, Acquisition value, Ordinary depreciation, net book value.

3)      If you select transaction line and click on “hat” button, you can check all details related to each transaction.

4) And if you double click in the acquisition / retirement / transfer transaction, you will be able to display the document generated in FI after the acquisition / retirement / transfer.

5) If you click on (display depreciation calculation) button or double click over Ordinary deprec. Value in the ‘Planned values’ tab, you will be able to see the parameter used by the system to calculate the asset depreciation in that depreciation area.

  • New depreciation calculation displays:

  • Old depreciation calculation displays:

6) In the Posted Values tab  you will be able to see how the depreciation will be posted during the year for each period.
PS. In the example below period 1 is missing because it was already posted in time of creation and acquisition posting  in this asset.