Understanding data validation in SAF-T
Essential first steps to ensure compliant and accurate tax reporting.
After you import your data into Sovos SAF-T, validate it to ensure the tax authorities will accept your submission. This validation process helps identify potential issues before they result in rejected submissions or additional tax authority inquiries.
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Technical validation checks that your file meets the required format and structure
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Content validation examines the actual data for accuracy, completeness, and compliance
If your submission fails at either stage, you'll need to correct the issues and resubmit, which might cause missed deadlines, compliance problems, and increased scrutiny from tax authorities.
Two-pronged validation approach
- Automated audit rules
- When data is imported into the system, Sovos SAF-T automatically runs hundreds of pre-configured audit rules against your data. Issues are flagged with severity levels of Critical, High, Medium, or Low to help you prioritize resolution efforts. Critical issues prevent file generation entirely, while High issues might allow generation but likely cause rejection by tax authorities. Audit rules check for:
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Format compliance
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Required field population
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Data consistency
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Logical relationships between data elements
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Regulatory compliance requirements
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- Report-based verification
- While audit rules focus on specific data elements and relationships, reports provide a broader view that helps verify overall data completeness and accuracy. Sovos SAF-T provides numerous reports tailored to each country's SAF-T requirements, including Sales by Product, Sales by Customer, Balance Sheet, Profit and Loss, and various Trial Balance views. By comparing report totals with your source systems, you can ensure that:
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All required transactions are included
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Totals match your financial records
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Classifications are consistent
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Period boundaries are properly respected
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The validation workflow
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Review audit results: After data import, examine any audit issues flagged by the system, prioritizing Critical and High severity items.
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Address source data issues: Return to your source systems to correct any data problems identified in audit results.
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Re-import corrected data: Upload the corrected data, which will automatically be validated again.
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Document exceptional cases: For valid exceptions that continue to trigger audit flags, add explanatory notes to document your compliance position.
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Verify with reports: Use the reporting tools to compare totals and summaries with your source systems, ensuring completeness.
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Perform final checks: Complete a final review before generating your SAF-T file for submission.
Understanding severity levels
- Critical
- These issues must be resolved before a SAF-T file can be generated. They typically indicate significant compliance problems or missing mandatory information.
- High
- While you may be able to generate a file with these issues, there's a high likelihood it will be rejected by tax authorities. These should be addressed before submission.
- Medium
- These issues represent potential compliance risks or data quality concerns. Resolution is recommended but may not be absolutely required for submission acceptance.
- Low
- Minor issues or recommendations that primarily affect data quality rather than compliance. Address these as part of ongoing improvement efforts.
By focusing first on Critical and High severity issues, you can efficiently work through validation problems in order of importance.
Validation beyond compliance
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Identifying underlying data issues in your financial systems
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Improving data quality across your organization
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Building confidence in your financial reporting
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Creating an audit trail that demonstrates due diligence
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Reducing the risk of tax authority inquiries or audits