VAT 201 FAQ

Frequently asked questions on the VAT 201 in Sage Accounting.

How do I resolve the error: Your VAT 201 Return has already been submitted for this period?

This error normally occurs when you have already submitted through the Sage Accounting software. The South African Revenue Service only allows you to submit the report once through Sage Accounting.

You’ll need to use SARS E-filings online functionality to resubmit.

Can I reopen any VAT Period and submit it to SARS using the VAT 201 Wizard?

No. SARS won't allow you to resubmit any VAT 201 report that you've previously submitted to them (whether by hand, eFiling or electronically).

How do I include changes made in Sage Accounting in a partially run VAT 201 report?

The first time you run the VAT 201 Wizard the data uploads accordingly.

The VAT 201 Wizard will therefore always continue where you previously exited the report generation. 

Click Restart to re-initiate the data upload.

For transactional changes you’ll need to reopen the VAT Period, process amendments to transactions, close the VAT Period again and re-initiate the VAT 201 Wizard.

I’m receiving a message that another user is generating this VAT Periods’ report but they aren't currently in the system?

This happens when you try to complete a VAT 201 report that another user started.

You can check this on the VAT Returns and Reports screens Report Last Access By column.

Click Yes to restart the VAT 201 wizard from scratch or have the other user complete the report.

What happens if I reopen a VAT Period when the generation of a VAT 201 report has already occurred?

The Period Status will change to Open and the system resets any Submission Status to allow you to re-create the report.

The system deletes the VAT 201 and recreates it when you close and rerun the VAT 201 Wizard for that period.

If the user resets and restarts all VAT Periods, the system deletes and recreates all reports accordingly.

 NOTE: SARS allows you to submit any report once through Sage Accounting. While you can rerun the VAT 201 wizard, you'll need to resubmit manually using eFiling. 

I tried to continue with a partially generated VAT 201 report, but it restarted the wizard?

We upload your data from Sage Accounting to Sage Compliance Cloud when you run the wizard for the first time.

Sage Compliance Cloud retains this data for 30 days thereafter they delete it and you'll need to start from scratch.

When initiating the VAT 201 Wizard, I’m prompted to Allocate VAT Types?

This occurs when the user created a new VAT Type on the VAT Settings screen and processed using this VAT Type.

The user needs to update Sage Accounting to indicate where to add this VAT type using the SARS VAT 201 Fields.  

1. Click Yes then Add the new VAT Type to the preferred Output or Input VAT.
2. Click View VAT 201 Wizard to continue generating your report.

When initiating the VAT 201 Wizard, I’m prompted to complete/correct my VAT Number?

This occurs when the user has a missing or invalid VAT Registration Number.

1. Click Yes then enter the VAT Number accordingly.
   • A valid VAT Number will contain 10 numeric characters.
2. Click Save.

While running the VAT 201 Wizard, I get a Late Transactions message?

This message only appears if Out of Period values exist in Sage Accounting for the selected VAT Period.

If you're unsure about the late transactions, click Cancel.

In Sage Accounting, on the VAT Returns and Reports screen, click the Out of Period value and reconcile the transactions included.

Make any corrections needed before re-initiating the VAT 201 Wizard.

If you must include these late transactions in the selected VAT Period, click Continue.

This will allow Sage to include these late transactions in the VAT Period as displayed on the VAT Returns and Reports screen.