Kenya TIMS VS E-TIMS, What's the difference?
Kenya has implemented fiscal law for decades, and FISCAT as a professional fiscal device manufacturer, has entered this market for more than ten years. From the earliest Fiscal Signature Device ESD certification, to the new fiscal law in 2021, FISCAT took the lead in passing the ETR TYPE A (NEON, SUPER) and TYPE D (IPALM) certified by KRA TIMS, however this year KRA began to fully implement ETIMS and FISCAT has also begun working on suitable machines (POS-ALL-IN-ONE, POS PRINTER...) to allow our users to connect seamlessly.
What is TIMS
KRA (Kenya Revenue Authority) is implementing a Tax Invoice Management System to achieve validations and authentications of tax invoices at trader tills before generation of invoice along with their real time or near real time transmission. TIMS is an information technology integration system that will integrate trader systems (Electronic Tax Registers, Point of Sale, and ERP-Billing/Invoicing system) with iTax to monitor the generation of electronic tax invoices and their transmission through the internet to it. TIMS will enable KRA to make enhancements to iTax so as to increase its efficiency and effectiveness in tax administration through simplification of its user’s interaction.
This is accomplished by use of a Control Unit connected or integrated to existing trader systems. The Control Unit will perform the functions of tax invoices validation, encryption, signing, transmission and storage. The communication between the Control Unit and the TIMS Application server at KRA will be over the Internet. However, the connection between the Control Unit and the Trader System does not have to be over the Internet as it can either be integrated into the Trader System or attached to it.
What is eTIMS (Electronic Tax Invoice Management System)
eTIMS is a newer version of TIMS that offers a convenient technology solution to help taxpayers meet their compliance requirements through a software solution, a new electronic feature.
Kenya Revenue Authority is currently using an Integrated Software that collects and manages domestic tax revenues. The said tax system handles the internal taxpayer registry and other tax processes but doesn’t manage taxpayers’ business transactions as they occur in real time. The Electronic Tax Invoice Management System has introduced a supply chain management capability and integration with other KRA systems.
KRA seeks to introduce the usage of Online and Virtual Sales Control Unit (OSCU & VSCU) capable of handling a richer dataset than the traditional Electronic Tax Register system.
TIS specification for Virtual SCU
1. A Trader Invoicing System (TIS) can be any electronic cash register, any terminal with cash register software, any computer using invoicing software, or any other similar system used for registration of outbound transactions.
2. A TIS shall not be able to receive importation and purchase data or produce invoices unless connected to a functional Virtual Sales Control Unit assigned for the same PIN. This OSCU/VSCU preserves in an irrevocable and secure manner all relevant data of the outbound transactions, uses this data to calculate an encrypted value that must be printed on the final receipt, in accordance with this guideline.
3. HostDevicesCompliance-ShallbeapprovedbyKenyaBureauofStandardsorcompliant with the international safety standards for electronic equipment
4. The Trader Invoicing System functionalities shall not be affected or interrupted by any other accessory or electronic equipment connected to the same host device.
No matter you are Kenya distributor or end-user who are using TIMS or planning to use eTIMS, Fiscat is always here to provide professional idea and support for you!