Tax troubleshooting
The messages you can meet in Tax, what they mean and how to fix them.
Messages and fixes
| Message | What it means | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| 'Somebody other than the person who prepared this return must decide it.' | You are trying to review or approve a return you prepared (or, for approval, reviewed). | Ask another person with the right permission. |
| 'Somebody other than the person who prepared this determination rule must decide it.' | You are activating a master you prepared. | Ask another administrator to press Activate. |
| 'Somebody other than the person who prepared this adjustment must decide it.' | You are posting an adjustment you proposed. | Ask a different person with tax.return.approve. |
| 'The return differs from the tax accounts by <x>. Explain the difference before approval.' | The ledger difference is above the form's tolerance. | Check Documents against the ledger, correct the documents, or use Explain difference, then prepare again. |
| 'n posted lines carry no tax code and fit no box.' | Posted lines in the period have no tax code. | Correct the documents and prepare again. |
| 'Registration <CODE> does not cover the whole period.' | The registration ends or starts inside the return period. | Check the registration dates. |
| 'An approved or submitted return is not edited. Amend it: a new version is linked to this one.' | You tried to change a locked return. | Amend it. |
| 'Send the return back to draft to change it.' | You tried to explain a difference on a reviewed return. | A reviewer presses Send back. |
| 'VAT-0001 already covers part of this period. Amend it instead.' | The new return overlaps an existing one. | Choose a period that does not overlap, or amend the existing return. |
| 'Box amounts come from the posted documents. Correct the documents and prepare again.' | Box amounts cannot be typed. | Correct the documents, then Prepare. |
| 'Enter the authority's reference: this company requires it on submission.' | The Fields rule is set to Required. | Type the authority reference. |
| 'A draft return cannot be approved.' / 'A reviewed return cannot be submitted.' | The step is out of order. | Follow the rail: prepare, review, approve, submit. |
| 'A UAE tax registration number is 15 digits.' | The TRN has the wrong length. | Type exactly 15 digits. |
| 'Enter the registration number.' | The TRN is empty at activation. | Type the TRN. |
| '<CODE> already covers these dates for this tax and branch.' | Another active registration covers the same dates. | Archive the other or change the dates. |
| 'An active tax registration is not edited. Archive it and create a new one.' | An active master is locked. | Archive it, or send it back to draft. |
| 'A country package rests on at least one active legal source of its country. Record and activate the source first.' | No active legal source of that country. | Create and activate a legal source. |
| 'SR already has a rate covering 2026-01-01. Close the existing window first.' | A new rate overlaps. | Set the To date of the current rate first. |
| 'SR has no rate for <date>. ...' | A document is dated where the code has no rate. | Add a rate covering that date. |
| 'No rule decides line 1 and it names no tax code. Nothing is defaulted.' | No rule matched and no code was picked. | Choose a tax code or add a rule. |
| 'Rules A and B both decide line 1 at priority 10. Resolve the conflict; no rule is picked arbitrarily.' | Two exclusive rules match. | Change a priority or conditions. |
| 'Rule EXPORT needs ship_to_country to decide line 1. Give it rather than letting the tax be guessed.' | A deciding fact is missing. | Supply the fact, for example the ship-to country. |
| 'Relief can be claimed from <date>: 6 months after the date of supply (<date>).' | Bad-debt relief is too early. | Wait until the date, or fix the invoice date. |
| 'Nothing written off on this invoice is left to relieve. Write the debt off in Accounting first.' | The invoice has no unrelieved write-off. | Write off the debt in Accounting. |
| "The declaration's VAT 900.00 is not 5.0000% of 20000.00 (1000.00); check the value or the tax code." | Import VAT does not match value x rate. | Correct the value, code or VAT. |
| 'That customs declaration is already recorded.' | The declaration number was used. | Check the number. |
| '1 workpaper(s) are not approved yet. Approve them first.' | Cannot switch off Corporate tax. | Approve the workpapers first. |