X-Cart shopping software provides you with a flexible tool for defining taxes to be used in your store. Simple settings allow you to add as many kinds of taxes as you need. The procedure is different for X-Cart GOLD and X-Cart PRO.
In X-Cart GOLD the provider (who at the same time is the store administrator) defines what kind of taxes should be applied to what products and sets tax rates for different destination zones and membership levels. If you are an X-Cart GOLD provider, here is what you need to do:
Set up destination zones that should have different taxes (Inventory -> Destination zones).
Add taxes and define their rates (Management -> Taxing system).
Define taxes options.
Define what products the created taxes should be applied to.
Click on Taxing system in the Management menu. The 'Taxes' form will be opened.
Picture 1: Taxes form.
Normally this form lists all the taxes defined for your store. If no taxes have been defined so far, the taxes list will be empty.
In the 'Taxes' form click on Add new... The 'Tax details' form will appear.
Picture 2: 'Tax details' form (1).
To create a tax, fill in the 'Tax details' form (The fields marked by a red asterisk (*) sign are mandatory):
• Enter the tax service name (the one that will be used within X-Cart).
• Enter the tax display name (the one that will be shown to your customers). If necessary, you can have different tax display names for the different languages used in your store. To add a tax display name in another language, select the necessary language from the Current language selector, enter the tax display name in this language into the appropriate field and click on Save.
• Enter the tax registration number (needed for some types of taxes, for example, VAT; appears on the invoice)
• Enter the number defining the tax priority.
• Define the status of the tax by selecting Enabled or Disabled from the drop-down box.
• Use the tax formula editor to create the formula according to which this tax will be applied ('Apply tax to' subsection).
• Select if the tax rate should be calculated for Shipping Address or Billing Address.
• If you want your product prices to include this tax while being stored in the database, select the 'Included into the product price' check box.
• If you want your customers to see taxed prices, select the 'Display product price including tax' check box. Leave this check box unselected if you want prices before the application of the tax to be displayed.
• Select the way the tax should be displayed on the products list, product details and cart pages: choose Nothing (if you do not want tax to be displayed on these pages), Rate value (for example, 17.5%), Calculated tax cost (for example, $5), Rate value and tax cost (if you want both to be displayed).
Picture 3: 'Tax details' form (2).
The 'Apply tax to' subsection of the 'Tax details' form allows you to create/edit a formula defining the sphere of application for the tax being edited.
Picture 4: Formula editor.
The formula appears in the top line of the editor as you assemble it from the contents of the 'Add' drop-down box, 'Add' input box and the mathematical signs:
' + ' (plus)
' - ' (minus)
' * ' (multiplication)
' / ' (division)
To add an element from the 'Add' drop-down box, select this element and click on Add next to the drop-down box. The set of available elements includes ST (Subtotal), DST (Discounted subtotal), SH (Shipping) and other defined taxes.
The 'Add' input box below is used to enter numbers. To add a number, type it into the field, then click on Add next to the input box.
To add a mathematical sign, just click on the button with this sign.
For example, if you want your tax to be applied to the sum of discounted subtotal and shipping cost:
Select DST from the drop-down box, click on Add.
Click on the ' + ' button.
Select SH from the drop-down box, click on Add.
You can cancel the latest action by clicking on Undo, re-apply the change after the cancellation by clicking on Redo, and clear the whole formula line by clicking on Clear.
Click on Save. '<Tax name>:Tax rates' form will appear below the 'Tax details' form.
Picture 5: '<Tax name>:Tax rates' form (1).
Scroll down to the 'Add tax rate' subsection of the '<Tax name>: Tax rates' form and complete it:
Enter the tax rate value into the 'Rate value' field. Use the selectbox next to it to define if this value is flat or percent.
Select the destination zone to which this rate will be applied.
Select the membership level to which this rate will be applied.
If necessary, define what the rate should be applied to (Use the tax formula editor to build a formula).
Picture 6: '<Tax name>:Tax rates' form (2).
Click on Add.
The new rate will be added to the list above.
Picture 7: '<Tax name>:Tax rates' form (3).
If you need to add more rates (for other destination zones or membership levels), repeat steps a-e.
If you want to create more taxes, return to the 'Taxes' form (click on the 'Taxes list' link in the top right corner of the 'Tax details' form) and repeat steps 2-6. The new taxes will be added to the taxes list.
The 'Taxes' form shows all the taxes defined for your store. APPLY TAX TO column shows what the tax should be applied to (e.g. 'DST + SH' in this column means that the tax is applied both to Discounted Subtotal and Shipping). PRIORITY column defines the order in which taxes should be applied (the tax with the smallest number in PRIORITY box is applied first). STATUS column shows if the tax is currently enabled or disabled.
Picture 8: Taxes form.
You can go to editing tax details by clicking on the tax name link.
You can change the order in which your taxes should be applied: just change their order numbers in the PRIORITY column and click on Update.
If you need to temporarily disable a tax, select Disabled from the drop-down box in the STATUS column and click on Update. Select Enabled and click on Update to re-enable the tax.
If you need to delete a tax, select the check box next to it and click on Delete selected. You can use Check all / Uncheck all links to select or unselect all the taxes on this page.
Taxes options can be set in the 'Taxes options' form: select the necessary check boxes and click on Update.
Picture 9: Taxes options form.
Basically, taxes are assigned to products individually: the taxes that should be applied to a product must be selected in the 'Apply tax' field of its 'Product details' form. You can either go to the 'Product details' section of every product in your store and set up the 'Apply taxes' field, or - if a certain number of the products must be taxed the same way - use group editing of products and adjust taxes for the whole group of products simultaneously. To assign the same taxes to a group of products, do the following:
Open for modification all the products which should be taxed the same: do product search, select the products you want to modify and click on Modify selected.
In the 'Product details' section of any of the products opened for modification select the check box next to the 'Apply taxes' field (That is done to make the value of this field common for all the products in the group being modified).
Select the taxes which should be applied to the products you are editing (To select more than one taxes, click on the names of these taxes with your mouse, holding down the 'Ctrl' key).
Click on Save.
In X-Cart PRO the store admin sets up taxes, while each of the providers defines their own tax rates and specifies which taxes must be applied to individual products.
If you are an X-Cart PRO admin, here is what you need to do:
Set up destination zones that should have different taxes (Inventory -> Destination zones).
Add taxes (Management -> Taxing system).
Define taxes options.
Then, each of your providers will need to:
Define tax rates.
Define what products the created taxes should be applied to.
Click on Taxing system in the Management menu. The 'Taxes' form will be opened. Normally this form lists all the taxes defined for your store. If no taxes have been defined so far, the taxes list will be empty.
Picture 10: Taxes form.
Click on Add new... The 'Tax details' form will appear.
Picture 11: Tax details.
Complete the 'Tax details' form. The fields marked by a red asterisk (*) sign are mandatory.
• Enter the tax service name (the one that will be used within X-Cart).
• Enter the tax display name (the one that will be shown to your customers). If necessary, you can have different tax display names for the different languages used in your store. To add a tax display name in another language, select the necessary language from the Current language selector, enter the tax display name in this language into the appropriate field and click on Save.
• Enter the tax registration number (needed for some types of taxes, for example, VAT; appears on the invoice)
• Enter the number defining the tax priority.
• Define the status of the tax by selecting Enabled or Disabled from the drop-down box.
• Use the tax formula editor to create the formula according to which this tax will be applied ('Apply tax to' subsection).
• Select if the tax rate should be calculated for Shipping Address or Billing Address.
• If you want your product prices to include this tax while being stored in the database, select the 'Included into the product price' check box.
• If you want your customers to see taxed prices, select the 'Display product price including tax' check box. Leave this check box unselected if you want prices before the application of the tax to be displayed.
• Select the way the tax should be displayed on the products list, product details and cart pages: choose Nothing (if you do not want tax to be displayed on these pages), Rate value (for example, 17.5%), Calculated tax cost (for example, $5), Rate value and tax cost (if you want both to be displayed).
Picture 12: Tax details.
The 'Apply tax to' subsection of the 'Tax details' form allows you to create/edit a formula defining the sphere of application for the tax being edited.
Picture 13: Formula editor.
The formula appears in the top line of the editor as you assemble it from the contents of the 'Add' drop-down box, 'Add' input box and the mathematical signs:
' + ' (plus)
' - ' (minus)
' * ' (multiplication)
' / ' (division)
To add an element from the 'Add' drop-down box, select this element and click on Add next to the drop-down box. The set of available elements includes ST (Subtotal), DST (Discounted subtotal), SH (Shipping) and other defined taxes.
The 'Add' input box below is used to enter numbers. To add a number, type it into the field, then click on Add next to the input box.
To add a mathematical sign, just click on the button with this sign.
For example, if you want your tax to be applied to the sum of discounted subtotal and shipping cost:
Select DST from the drop-down box, click on Add.
Click on the ' + ' button.
Select SH from the drop-down box, click on Add.
You can cancel the latest action by clicking on Undo, re-apply the change after the cancellation by clicking on Redo, and clear the whole formula line by clicking on Clear.
Click on Save. The tax will be added to the list in the 'Taxes' form (you can return to it by clicking on the Taxes list link in the top right corner of the Tax details form).
The 'Taxes' form shows all the taxes defined for your store. APPLY TAX TO column shows what the tax should be applied to (e.g. 'DST + SH' in this column means that the tax is applied both to Discounted Subtotal and Shipping). PRIORITY column defines the order in which taxes should be applied (the tax with the smallest number in PRIORITY box is applied first). STATUS column shows if the tax is currently enabled or disabled.
Picture 14: Taxes form.
You can go to editing tax details by clicking on the tax name link.
You can change the order in which your taxes should be applied: just change their order numbers in the PRIORITY column and click on Update.
If you need to temporarily disable a tax, select Disabled from the drop-down box in the STATUS column and click on Update. Select Enabled and click on Update to re-enable the tax.
If you need to delete a tax, select the check box next to it and click on Delete selected. You can use Check all / Uncheck all links to select or unselect all the taxes on this page.
Taxes options can be set in the 'Taxes options' form: select the necessary check boxes and click on Update.
Picture 15: Taxes options form.
Note. Please refer to 'Managing Products and Orders' -> 'Inventory' -> 'Defining Tax Rates' (in this manual) for information about the provider's actions.
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