Reference
Taxes & VAT
VAT is decided per record, by you. Nigerian VAT is never assumed — a transaction is only taxed when you say so on that request. This keeps non-VAT-registered businesses, zero-rated goods, and exempt sales correct by default.
You choose, per record, with vatRate
Every money-moving endpoint takes an optional vatRate (a percentage, e.g. 7.5). Omit it (or send 0) and no VAT is recorded — the whole amount is treated as net. Send a rate and the ledger separates output/input VAT from the base automatically.
Line-item endpoints (invoices, bills, quotations, credit/debit notes) go one level finer: each line carries a taxable flag (or a per-line taxRate on bills), and vatRate applies only to the taxable lines.
Inclusive vs exclusive — read this before you send amounts
The same numbers mean different things on different endpoints
{ "amount": 10000, "vatRate": 7.5 } records ₦9,302 revenue + ₦698 VAT on a receipt (amount is VAT-inclusive), but ₦10,000 + ₦750 = ₦10,750 on an invoice (amount is VAT-exclusive). Check the table below before wiring up amounts.
| Endpoint | You send VAT via | Amount is… |
|---|---|---|
| Receipts (cash sale) | vatRate | VAT-inclusive (gross the customer paid) |
| Invoices | vatRate + line items | VAT-exclusive (net) |
| Expenses | vatRate, whtRate | VAT-exclusive (net) |
| Bills | per-line taxRate, whtRate | VAT-exclusive (net) |
| Quotations, Credit/Debit notes | line taxable + vatRate | VAT-exclusive (net) |
Receipts are inclusive because a cash sale records the gross amount the customer actually paid. Everything else is built up from net line items with VAT added on top — the way an invoice is quoted.
Worked example — a VATable cash sale
curl -X POST "https://api.finorabusiness.com/v1/receipts?businessId=$BID" \
-H "Authorization: Bearer $FINORA_API_KEY" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{ "amount": 10750, "vatRate": 7.5, "paidBy": "Walk-in Customer" }'Records a ₦10,750 gross sale → ₦10,000 revenue + ₦750 VAT. Drop vatRate and the full ₦10,750 is booked as revenue with no VAT.
Withholding tax (WHT)
Expenses and bills also take an optional whtRate (e.g. 5, 10) when tax is withheld at source. WHT is applied on the same taxable base and tracked separately from VAT, so your withholding position and VAT position stay distinct.