Home VAT/Sales Tax Reconciliation What do the Total, Matched and Unmatched cards mean and how is Difference calculated?

What do the Total, Matched and Unmatched cards mean and how is Difference calculated?

Last updated on May 18, 2026

Short Answer: Total shows the full sums for VAT / sales tax and Books; Matched shows summed amounts that paired across both sources; Unmatched shows amounts not paired. Difference = VAT / sales tax minus Books.

PreRequisites

  1. Open the 'VAT / sales tax reconciliation report' page

Steps

  1. Locate the three summary cards labeled 'Total', 'Matched' and 'Unmatched' at the top of the report.
    You can see VAT / sales tax and Books amounts plus transaction counts on each card.

  2. Read each card's lines: 'VAT / sales tax', 'Books', and 'Difference'.
    Each line shows the amount and the transaction count e.g., '160 transactions'.

  3. Understand the 'Difference' value is the numeric difference between the VAT / sales tax and Books amounts.
    A negative Difference for example -13,055.49 indicates Books total is larger than VAT total by that amount.

  4. Use the Matched and Unmatched cards to focus investigation: Matched should reconcile to zero difference; Unmatched shows remaining discrepancies.
    You can target the Unmatched list to resolve the Difference.

Troubleshooting

  1. The 'Difference' is not zero and you need to find why.
    LikelyCause: There are unmatched transactions or value mismatches between Books and VAT.
    Action: Click the 'Unmatched' tab and review the listed entries. Correct the source records books or tax account and run 'Run new reconciliation' again.