Overview
Preparing an annual Return of Trading Details means reconciling twelve months of VAT figures by hand. For a practice, that is two hours or more per client, every year.
Xero Compliance Ireland prepares your clients' VAT 3 and RTD from a single set of Xero data, handles Irish reverse charges without a workaround, and produces a submission ready report to submit through Revenue Online Service.
What it does
- Generates your client's VAT 3 return, pre-populated from their Xero transactions
- Compiles their annual RTD across the full twelve-month period, rather than asking you to reconcile it yourself
- Handles Irish reverse charges without manual adjustment
- Supports Irish VAT rates: standard 23%, reduced 13.5% and 9%, zero-rated and exempt
- Produces VAT figures on either a cash or accrual basis
- Exports a file formatted for submission for RTD and VAT 3 through ROS
- Keeps a record of what was prepared, reviewed and exported for each period
- Caters to Monies Received basis accounting (VAT on sales recognised on cash receipt, whilst VAT on purchases recognised on supplier bills)
- Option for 4 monthly VAT reporting periods
- Tracks Late Claims (once a period is closed - late entries will have their VAT impact carried into the next open VAT period)
- Deep links into Xero (clicking on a transactions in the VAT/RTD reports takes you to the source transaction in Xero)
- Enhanced Filtering by VAT/RTD field type (know exactly where everything is going)
- Export to Excel (for in depth review if needed)
For accountants and bookkeepers
The RTD is where the hours go, and it is where this saves them. Prepare VAT 3 returns and RTDs for every Irish client through one consistent workflow instead of a mix of spreadsheets and third-party tools, with reverse charge treatment applied the same way every time.
For small businesses
Speak to your accountant and bookkeeper to see if they can use Xero Compliance for your VAT or RTD returns. This app is not available to small businesses.
Available on Starter, Standard and Premium plans, at no extra cost.
Xerο Compliance Ireland + Xero
Xero Compliance is built by Xero and reads directly from your Xero organisation. There is no export to a spreadsheet, no import, and no second copy of your data to keep aligned.
How the connection works
- You connect Xero Compliance to a Xero organisation once, using your existing Xero login. Access follows the user permissions already set in that organisation.
- The app reads your transactions, VAT rates and chart of accounts for the period you are filing.
- It applies Irish VAT treatment, including reverse charges, and builds your VAT 3 from the underlying transactions rather than from a summary report.
- For the RTD, it looks back across the full twelve-month period in one pass, instead of requiring you to pull and reconcile twelve separate reports.
- Nothing is written back into Xero.
What this means in practice
Every figure on the VAT 3 and RTD traces back to a transaction in Xero that you can open and check. If something looks wrong, you correct it in the ledger and re-run, rather than patching it in a spreadsheet and hoping the two stay in step.
Reverse charges are the reason many Irish practices cannot rely on a standard VAT report. Because Xero Compliance applies the treatment at transaction level, you do not need to adjust the output afterwards.
Submitting to Revenue
At this release, Xero Compliance prepares your return and exports a submission ready report for you to submit through ROS. It does not file on your behalf.
Working across several Xero organisations
Connect each client's Xero organisation and move between them without signing in again. VAT settings and filing history are held separately per organisation.
Data that flows out of Xero
Transactions and their VAT treatment, VAT rates, chart of accounts, and organisation details.
Data that flows into Xero
Tax rates are importable from Xero Compliance into Xero
Getting started
Setting up takes about 10 minutes for your first organisation.
Before you start
- Have your Xero organisation set to Ireland, with your VAT registration details recorded
- Know which basis you file on, cash or accrual
- Have your ROS access ready for the submission step
Setting up
- Select Get this app at the top of this page.
- Sign in with your existing Xero login and choose the organisation you want to connect. You can add more at any time.
- Authorise the connection.
- Check your VAT settings, including registration details, filing frequency and basis. These carry through to every return you prepare.
- Choose the period you want to file and generate your VAT 3. Figures come through pre-populated from your Xero transactions.
- Review the return. Any figure can be traced back to the transactions behind it.
- Export the file, then populate in ROS.
Preparing your annual RTD
- Select the RTD and the year you are filing for.
- Xero Compliance compiles the return across the full twelve-month period.
- Review it, export the file, and populate through ROS.
If you need help
Setup guidance is on Xero Central, and Xero Support can help with connection and configuration questions. If you work with an advisor, they can set this up on your behalf.
