# Tax Settings The Tax Settings control how taxes are calculated and displayed within the POS application. ![Tax Settings in the POS Store Settings](/img/tax-settings.png) Tax Settings Important On initial load, the POS will get the default tax settings from WooCommerce. In general, users should keep the same settings as WooCommerce unless they have a specific need. Having different tax settings than the server will almost certainly cause the POS and WooCommerce to calculate different tax values, which can lead to discrepancies and problems with order synchronization. ## View All Tax Rates[​](#view-all-tax-rates "Direct link to View All Tax Rates") Click the **View all tax rates** button to see all tax rates that have been downloaded to the POS. This shows: * Tax rate names * Tax rate percentages * Applicable regions/locations This is useful for verifying that the correct tax rates are loaded and for debugging tax calculation issues. ## Tax Calculation Settings[​](#tax-calculation-settings "Direct link to Tax Calculation Settings") ### Prices Entered With Tax[​](#prices-entered-with-tax "Direct link to Prices Entered With Tax") Determines whether product prices include tax: | Option | Description | | ------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | **Yes** | Product prices include tax. The POS calculates tax by working backwards from the total price | | **No** | Product prices do not include tax. The POS adds tax on top of the entered price | ### Calculate Tax Based On[​](#calculate-tax-based-on "Direct link to Calculate Tax Based On") Determines the address used for tax calculation: | Option | Description | | ----------------------------- | -------------------------------------------------- | | **Customer shipping address** | Tax rates based on where the order will be shipped | | **Customer billing address** | Tax rates based on the customer's billing address | | **Shop base address** | Tax rates based on your store's physical location | ### Shipping Tax Class[​](#shipping-tax-class "Direct link to Shipping Tax Class") Determines how shipping costs are taxed: | Option | Description | | ------------------------------------------ | ---------------------------------------------------------------------- | | **Shipping tax class based on cart items** | Shipping tax is calculated based on the tax class of items in the cart | | **Standard** | Shipping is taxed at the standard tax rate | | **Reduced rate** | Shipping is taxed at a reduced tax rate | | **Zero rate** | No tax is applied to shipping costs | ### Rounding[​](#rounding "Direct link to Rounding") | Option | Description | | ------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | | **Round tax at subtotal level** | Tax is calculated for the entire subtotal and then rounded, rather than rounding tax for each individual line item | ## Display Settings[​](#display-settings "Direct link to Display Settings") ### Display Prices in the Shop[​](#display-prices-in-the-shop "Direct link to Display Prices in the Shop") | Option | Description | | ----------------- | -------------------------------- | | **Including tax** | Prices shown include tax amounts | | **Excluding tax** | Prices shown do not include tax | ### Display Prices During Cart and Checkout[​](#display-prices-during-cart-and-checkout "Direct link to Display Prices During Cart and Checkout") | Option | Description | | ----------------- | ------------------------------------ | | **Including tax** | Cart and checkout prices include tax | | **Excluding tax** | Cart and checkout prices exclude tax | ### Price Display Suffix[​](#price-display-suffix "Direct link to Price Display Suffix") Text that appears after prices to indicate tax status (e.g., "inc. VAT" or "ex. VAT"). ### Display Tax Totals[​](#display-tax-totals "Direct link to Display Tax Totals") | Option | Description | | --------------------- | ---------------------------------------------- | | **As a single total** | All taxes are combined into one total line | | **Itemized** | Each tax rate is shown as a separate line item | ## Restore Server Settings[​](#restore-server-settings "Direct link to Restore Server Settings") Click to fetch and apply the current WooCommerce tax settings from your server. How and when to use it WooCommerce is the source of truth for tax settings — the POS should mirror it. **Restore Server Settings** is the safe way to pull the latest configuration from your store, and is the right action whenever you've changed tax settings in `WP Admin > WooCommerce > Settings > Tax` and want the POS to pick them up. The only time to think twice: if you've **deliberately** overridden a POS-side tax setting to differ from the server (an advanced setup), Restore Server Settings will overwrite that override. If you're not sure whether you've done that, you almost certainly haven't. ## Common Issues[​](#common-issues "Direct link to Common Issues") ### POS and WooCommerce Showing Different Totals[​](#pos-and-woocommerce-showing-different-totals "Direct link to POS and WooCommerce Showing Different Totals") The most frequent tax problem is a mismatch between POS tax settings and WooCommerce tax settings. When these diverge, the same order will calculate different totals depending on where it's placed. Always keep POS settings in sync — use **Restore Server Settings** after changing anything in `WP Admin > WooCommerce > Settings > Tax`. ### Tax-Inclusive Pricing Confusion[​](#tax-inclusive-pricing-confusion "Direct link to Tax-Inclusive Pricing Confusion") If "Prices Entered With Tax" is set to **Yes** but "Display Prices in the Shop" is set to **Excluding tax**, the displayed price will be lower than the entered price. This is correct behaviour — the POS is stripping the tax component for display — but it can surprise cashiers if they're expecting to see the sticker price. ### Customer Address and Tax Calculation[​](#customer-address-and-tax-calculation "Direct link to Customer Address and Tax Calculation") When "Calculate Tax Based On" is set to **Customer shipping address** or **Customer billing address**, the POS needs a valid address to look up the correct rate. If a walk-in customer has no address on file, WCPOS falls back to the **shop base address** for calculation. This is usually the right behaviour for in-store sales, but if you see unexpected rates for specific customers, check their address details. ## Troubleshooting[​](#troubleshooting "Direct link to Troubleshooting") ### Tax Amounts Are Incorrect[​](#tax-amounts-are-incorrect "Direct link to Tax Amounts Are Incorrect") 1. Go to **Tax Settings** in the POS and click **Restore Server Settings** to pull the latest configuration from WooCommerce. 2. Click **View all tax rates** and confirm the expected rates appear. If rates are missing, check that they're properly configured in `WP Admin > WooCommerce > Settings > Tax > Standard rates`. 3. Verify the product's tax class — products assigned to a "Zero rate" tax class won't have tax applied regardless of settings. ### Tax Is Showing as Zero[​](#tax-is-showing-as-zero "Direct link to Tax Is Showing as Zero") * Check that tax is enabled in WooCommerce (`WP Admin > WooCommerce > Settings > General > Enable tax rates and calculations`). * Use **View all tax rates** in the POS to confirm rates have been downloaded. If the list is empty, try a full sync. * Confirm the product's tax status is set to "Taxable" (not "None" or "Shipping only"). ### Rounding Discrepancies[​](#rounding-discrepancies "Direct link to Rounding Discrepancies") Small rounding differences (a penny or two) between POS and WooCommerce can occur when "Round tax at subtotal level" is enabled in one system but not the other. Ensure this setting matches in both places.