I can't add the vat in expenses.

Hello Mee1977,

For you to add VAT to your expenses, you'll need to turn on the Make expenses and items billable function. Here's how to do it:

1. Click the Gear icon in the upper-right corner and select Account and Settings.
2. Select the Expenses tab and go to the Bills and expenses section.
3. Mark the Make expenses and items billable box.
4. Mark the sub-functions if necessary and click Save. 
5. When you turn on the said function, it will also turn on the Track expenses and items by customer function. 
6. Choose OK and click Done.

After that, you can now add VAT when creating the expense transaction. 

I'll get back to you if you need more help with this.

Thanks for getting back to me, Mee1977.

I've already updated the screenshot to be specific for UK region users. 

The Charge Sales Tax box is only available for US region users.

Assuming that you've already set up VAT, you should be able to enter it after following the steps I provided earlier.

If you still need to set up VAT, you can use this article for reference: Set Up and Edit VAT Settings, VAT Codes and VAT Rates.

Let me know if you need anything else.

I don't see to vat column but in the invoice to have.

Hello there, @Caslar.

I'm here to help guide you today so you'll be able to set up your taxes accordingly.

When setting up the Tax Agency, please ensure to select both This tax is collected on sales and This tax is collected on purchases under the Custom tax page. In this case, it's possible that the tax was set up incorrectly. To test if you haven't selected the purchases, you can create a new tax code, you must have the option for both Sales and Purchases. If your option is only for Sales, then the set up is incorrect, you may need to create a new tax agency if this is what happened.

To set up a tax agency correctly, you can follow these steps:

1. Click on Taxes at the left pane.
2. Select Add tax.
3. Go to the Custom tax section.
4. Fill in the required information.
5. Put a check-mark on both This tax is collected on sales and This tax is collected on purchases.
6. Click Save.

Once completed, you have now the option to select Sales or Purchases under the Tax rate page.

For your future and additional reference about VAT, you can check this article: https://quickbooks.intuit.com/community/VAT/Set-up-and-edit-VAT-settings-VAT-codes-and-VAT-rates/m-p....

Let me know if you have any other questions about the steps provided above. I'll always be here to help you.

Hi Angelyn, 

Thanks for the solution - I made the mistake of not making the VAT applicable for purchases. I'll add the custom tax as you suggest, but does this mean I'll now be tracking VAT in two places? 

Hi, Accounting Zengrowth.

Yes, you'll be now tracking VAT in both places in QuickBooks Online.

I'll be sharing with you the following resources to know more about how VAT works in QuickBooks Online. On the same link, you'll find other write-ups about handling VAT codes:

Set up and edit VAT settings, codes and rates.

QuickBooks VAT codes.

Additionally, in case you want to know some "How do I" steps in QuickBooks Online, you can always visit our Help Articles page for reference.

Feel free to drop me a reply below if you have any other concerns. I'll be standing by to answer them for you. Have a good one.