Ok, so now that my MEd program is officially finished (holyshitIcan’tbelieveit), my time is now my own. What am I going to do to fill the hours, you ask? Why tend to all of the little niggly things that have been piling up over the course of a year. Not the least of which is claiming the VAT (value added tax) reimbursement. You see, we are in the enviable position of not having to pay 10% or 18%VAT on our purchases within Russia but the only catch (and there is always a catch) is that we need to keep receipts and claim the VAT back.
Mr. U has motivated me to take on the task by donating the reimbursement to a good cause...my bank account! A girl needs her own source of income and short of getting a job (I need to take time to settle, breathe and get my head together after this past year) this is next best thing. Or so I thought.
It seems that the Russians love their paperwork as much as the French. In order to reclaim the VAT I need to gather my receipts, staple each one to a blank page and make stacks of 9 receipts. Each receipt must have printed on it the name of the company that owns the establishment (not just the name of the store as these are often different -Starbucks is actually ООО “Кофе Сирена”), the date of purchase, amount of purchase and transaction completion confirmation. The bill isn’t enough, you need the receipt with proof of payment. Restaurant receipts need a фискальный чек (fiscal receipt) and purchases of items and services rendered need the same. Often smaller establishments will provide you with hand-written receipt, stamped and copied in triplicate for records “just in case”. Complicated enough for you, yet?
Once the receipts are neatly stapled and organized in groups of 9, then you need to fill out a spreadsheet for each pile. The info required there is type of purchase, date of purchase, receipt type, establishment name (company, not store), and total purchase with VAT amount if indicated. Thank goodness for control+C/control+V!
They used to be so picky that receipts would be rejected if they were torn, not stapled correctly or even crumpled. Thankfully regulations have relaxed a little bit but there is still the expectation that the “paperwork be in order”. Yikes.
After a day’s work, I’ve managed to create and complete 8 piles. The estimate so far is a return of about 12,616.00 руб. At 32.2459 руб/1 CAD my slush fund will now be $391.24 IF the receipts are all in order and IF the spreadsheet calculations are correct and IF all of the receipts are accepted. What I have managed to do so far represents only about 1/8 of the receipts I have to claim. A year’s worth of paperwork is no laughing matter, friends. Now I have a better understanding of what accountants have to go through when they are faced with a shoebox full of errant receipts. I’m going to stay on top of this and do it every quarter from now on.
I figure it will take me the better part of a couple of days to organize and log everything. Then I will have to come up with something else to fill my time.
Any suggestions?
Mr. U has motivated me to take on the task by donating the reimbursement to a good cause...my bank account! A girl needs her own source of income and short of getting a job (I need to take time to settle, breathe and get my head together after this past year) this is next best thing. Or so I thought.
It seems that the Russians love their paperwork as much as the French. In order to reclaim the VAT I need to gather my receipts, staple each one to a blank page and make stacks of 9 receipts. Each receipt must have printed on it the name of the company that owns the establishment (not just the name of the store as these are often different -Starbucks is actually ООО “Кофе Сирена”), the date of purchase, amount of purchase and transaction completion confirmation. The bill isn’t enough, you need the receipt with proof of payment. Restaurant receipts need a фискальный чек (fiscal receipt) and purchases of items and services rendered need the same. Often smaller establishments will provide you with hand-written receipt, stamped and copied in triplicate for records “just in case”. Complicated enough for you, yet?Once the receipts are neatly stapled and organized in groups of 9, then you need to fill out a spreadsheet for each pile. The info required there is type of purchase, date of purchase, receipt type, establishment name (company, not store), and total purchase with VAT amount if indicated. Thank goodness for control+C/control+V!
They used to be so picky that receipts would be rejected if they were torn, not stapled correctly or even crumpled. Thankfully regulations have relaxed a little bit but there is still the expectation that the “paperwork be in order”. Yikes.
After a day’s work, I’ve managed to create and complete 8 piles. The estimate so far is a return of about 12,616.00 руб. At 32.2459 руб/1 CAD my slush fund will now be $391.24 IF the receipts are all in order and IF the spreadsheet calculations are correct and IF all of the receipts are accepted. What I have managed to do so far represents only about 1/8 of the receipts I have to claim. A year’s worth of paperwork is no laughing matter, friends. Now I have a better understanding of what accountants have to go through when they are faced with a shoebox full of errant receipts. I’m going to stay on top of this and do it every quarter from now on.I figure it will take me the better part of a couple of days to organize and log everything. Then I will have to come up with something else to fill my time.
Any suggestions?
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