## Documentation Index

Access the complete documentation index at:
https://www.zoho.com/ke/books/help/llms.txt

Use this file to discover all available documentation pages before proceeding.

# eTIMS - Overview

The Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) introduced a new system of online tax invoicing called eTIMS to make the tax compliance and invoicing processes easier for businesses. This allows them to issue invoices online through the KRA and helps improve tax accuracy.

When you connect the eTIMS portal with Zoho Books, you can set up branch-wise e-Invoicing in your organization. You can easily push items, customers, invoices, bills, and users to the eTIMS portal and upload them to the KRA.

**Note:** The KRA mandates that all businesses, whether VAT-registered taxpayers or non-VAT-registered taxpayers, must switch to eTIMS by 31 March 2024.

## Enable Taxpayer Portal in KRA

**Prerequisite:** You will have to generate the device serial number in your Zoho Books organization to connect with your eTIMS taxpayer portal.

### Generate Device Serial Number

If you’re using eTIMS for the first time, you will require a device serial number to set up e-Invoicing in your organization. This number will be generated for each branch in Zoho Books. To generate the device serial number:

*   Go to **Settings**.
*   Select **e-Invoicing** under _Taxes & Compliance_.
*   Click **Generate Device Serial Number** next to the branch for which you want to set up e-Invoicing.

The device serial number will be generated for the selected location. Once it’s generated, the Steps to Integrate Zoho Books With eTIMS pop-up will appear. Simply follow the instructions provided and click **Okay, Got It** to complete the setup.

* * *

## Set Up eTIMS Taxpayer Portal

To set up the eTIMS taxpayer portal, you must fill the service request form. Here’s how:

*   Sign up into the [eTIMS taxpayer portal](https://etims.kra.go.ke/basic/login/indexLogin) and select the sign up type as **Pin**.
*   Enter your organization’s pin, verify the other details.
*   Once the sign up process is complete, access the eTIMS portal using the credentials(**KRA Pin** and **Password**).
*   Click **Service Request** in the portal and select **eTIMS** as the required service.
*   The Service Request form will be displayed. Enter the **Device Serial Number** and the **Integration Token**, and select the _eTIMS_ Type as **OSCU (Online Sales Control Unit)**.
*   Click **Send**.

**Note:** To generate the integration token, contact our support team at [](support.africa@zohobooks.com)[support.africa@zohobooks.com](mailto:support.africa@zohobooks.com) and share your KRA PIN and Device Serial Number.

After processing your service request form, you’ll receive an SMS within 24 hours, and you can integrate your Zoho Books organization with eTIMS.

* * *

## Set Up e-Invoicing in Zoho Books

Once the processes on the KRA website are complete, you can set up e-Invoicing in your Zoho Books organization. Here’s how:

*   Go to **Settings**.
*   Select **e-Invoicing** under _Taxes & Compliance_.
*   Click **Connect Now** next to the respective branch.
*   In the pop-up that appears, the **VAT Registration Number** and the **Device Serial Number** will be auto-populated.
*   Enter the **Stock Update Time** at which you want to push the end-of-day inventory details to the eTIMS portal.
*   Click **Connect Now**.

Your Zoho Books organization is set up with eTIMS, and you now can start pushing your items, contacts, and transactions to the eTIMS Taxpayer portal.

* * *

## Functions in e-Invoicing

There is a list of actions that you will be able to perform in Zoho Books as part of e-Invoicing.

*   [Create Items](/ke/books/help/etims/#item-create)
    *   [Push Items to eTIMS](/ke/books/help/etims/#item-push)
    *   [Fetch Items from eTIMS](/ke/books/help/etims/#fetch-item)
    *   [View Fetched Items](/ke/books/help/etims/#view-item)
*   [Create Transfer Order](/ke/books/help/etims/#transfer)
*   [Create Customers](/ke/books/help/etims/#customer-create)
*   [Create Invoices](/ke/books/help/etims/#inv-create)
*   [Create Bills](/ke/books/help/etims/#bill-create)
    *   [Fetch Bills from eTIMS](/ke/books/help/etims/#fetch-bill)
    *   [View Fetched Bills](/ke/books/help/etims/#view-bill)
    *   [Fetch Imported Items](/ke/books/help/etims/#fetch-imp)
    *   [View Fetched Imported Items](/ke/books/help/etims/#view-imp)
*   [Create User](/ke/books/help/etims/#user)
    *   [Push User to eTIMS](/ke/books/help/etims/#push-user)
*   [Statuses in e-Invoicing](/ke/books/help/etims/#status)

* * *

## Create Items

Apart from the fields available by default while creating an item, the government mandates additional fields for e-Invoicing.

The mandatory fields for the Items module are:

Fields

Description

**Product Type**

Select whether the item you created in Zoho Books is a **Raw Material** or a **Finished Product**. Note that the Product Type under eTIMS Additional Information appears only if the item you created in Zoho Books is classified as **Goods**.

**Packaging Unit**

Select the packaging unit for the item.

**Item Classification Code**

Select the item classification code for the item.

**Origin Country**

Select the country of origin for the item.

Once you create the item with the required details and save it, the item’s status will be marked as Pushed.

**Note:** You can create transactions for the item only after it is pushed to the eTIMS portal.

### Push Items to eTIMS

If the item is not automatically pushed to the eTIMS portal, you must push it manually. Here’s how:

*   Go to _Items_ on the left sidebar and select **Items**.
*   Select the item you want to push to the eTIMS portal.
*   Click **Push to eTIMS** in the top right corner of the item’s details page.

The item’s status will be changed to **Pushed**.

If the push fails, resolve all the errors listed in the item’s details page and try pushing it to the eTIMS portal again.

**Note:** Similarly, you can also push **Composite Items** to eTIMS. Ensure that your Zoho Books organization is integrated with Zoho Inventory to create composite items.

You can also push items to eTIMS in bulk. Here’s how:

*   Go to _Items_ on the left sidebar and select **Items**.
    
*   Click the dropdown next to _All Items_ filter at the top of the page and select **Not Pushed for e-Invoicing**.
    
*   Select the items you want to push to the eTIMS portal and click **Push to eTIMS** at the top of the item’s list page.
    
    ![Push Items in Bulk](/ke/books/help/images/e-invoicing/bulk-push-items.png)

The selected items will be initiated to be pushed to eTIMS. You’ll receive an email when the push succeeds or fails, including the failure reason if any.

### Fetch Items from eTIMS

If you have migrated to Zoho Books from a different accounting software and had previously pushed items to the eTIMS portal, you will be able to fetch those items into your Zoho Books organization.

To do this:

*   Go to _Items_ on the left sidebar and select **Items**.
*   Click the _More_ icon in the top right corner of the page and select **Fetch Items From eTIMS** from the dropdown.

The items will be fetched into your Zoho Books organization from the eTIMS portal.

### View Fetched Items

To view the items fetched from the eTIMS portal:

*   Go to _Items_ on the left sidebar and select **Items**.
*   Click the _More_ icon in the top right corner of the page and select **View Fetched Items** from the dropdown.
*   The list of items fetched from the eTIMS portal will be displayed. You will be able to perform two different actions on the fetched items in your Zoho Books organization.
    *   **Create**: You can create the fetched item as a new item in your Zoho Books organization.
    *   **Match**: You can match the fetched item with a similar item that you’ve created in your Zoho Books organization.

Once you create or match the fetched item, it will be automatically pushed to the eTIMS portal.

If the push fails, resolve all the errors listed on the item’s details page and try pushing it to the eTIMS portal again.

* * *

## Create Transfer Order

**Prerequisite:** This module will be available in Zoho Books only if you have integrated your Zoho Books organization with Zoho Inventory.

When you create a transfer order in Zoho Books, it will be marked as **Initiated Transfer** and the first branch’s details are pushed to the eTIMS portal. Once the transfer order’s status is changed to **Marked as Transferred**, the second branch’s details are pushed to the eTIMS portal.

* * *

## Create Customers

Apart from the fields available by default while creating a customer, the government mandates additional fields for e-Invoicing.

The mandatory field required for the customers module is:

Field

Description

**Branch Code**

Enter the branch code where you record the customer’s transactions in your Zoho Books organization.

Once you create a customer with the required details and save it, the customer’s status will be changed to **Pushed**.

If the push fails, resolve all the errors listed in the customer’s details page and try pushing it to the eTIMS portal again.

You can also push customers to eTIMS in bulk. Here’s how:

*   Go to _Sales_ on the left sidebar and select **Customers**.
    
*   Click the dropdown next to _All Customers_ filter at the top of the page and select **Not Pushed for e-Invoicing**.
    
*   Select the customers you want to push to the eTIMS portal.
    
*   Click the _More_ icon at the top of the page and select **Push to eTIMS** from the dropdown.
    
    ![Push Customers in Bulk](/ke/books/help/images/e-invoicing/bulk-push-customers.png)

The selected customers will be initiated to be pushed to eTIMS. You’ll receive an email when the push succeeds or fails, including the failure reason if any.

* * *

## Create Invoices

Once you’ve created an invoice, if transaction approval is enabled, ensure that the approvers have approved it before pushing. To push an invoice to eTIMS:

*   Go to _Sales_ on the left sidebar and select **Invoices**.
*   Select the invoice that you want to push to the eTIMS portal.
*   On the details page of the invoice, click **Push to eTIMS**.

![Push to eTIMS](/ke/books/help/images/e-invoicing/push-etims.png)

The invoice will be pushed to the eTIMS portal. The invoices pushed to the eTIMS portal will additionally contain **SCU Information** and a **QR Code** at the bottom of the transaction PDF page. If the push has failed, resolve all the errors listed in the invoice’s details page and try pushing the invoice again.

If you’ve previously pushed invoices to the iTax portal manually or pushed them to eTIMS, they may still appear in your organization. To prevent pushing them again through eTIMS again, you can mark them as pushed. Here’s how:

*   Go to _Sales_ on the left sidebar and select **Invoices**.
*   Select the required invoice.
*   Click the _More_ icon at the top of the invoice’s Details page and select **Mark as Pushed** from the dropdown.

![Mark as Pushed](/ke/books/help/images/e-invoicing/mark-as-pushed.png)

*   In the _Associate Push Details_ pop-up, enter the **Receipt Number**, **Receipt Signature**, **Date**, and **Internal Data** of the invoice.
*   Click **Save**.

![Associate Push Details](/ke/books/help/images/e-invoicing/asscoiate-push-details.png)

The invoice’s status will be changed to Marked as Pushed. Similarly, you can also mark a credit note as pushed.

* * *

## Create Bills

Once you’ve created a bill, if transaction approval is enabled, ensure that the approvers have approved it before pushing. To push a bill to eTIMS:

*   Go to _Purchases_ on the left sidebar and select **Bills**.
*   Select the bill that you want to push to the eTIMS portal.
*   On the details page of the bill, click **Push to eTIMS**.

![Push to eTIMS](/ke/books/help/images/e-invoicing/push-to-etims.png)

The bill will be pushed to the eTIMS portal.

If you’ve previously pushed bills to the iTax portal manually, they may still appear in your Zoho Books organization. To prevent pushing them again through eTIMS, you can mark them as pushed. Here’s how:

*   Go to _Purchases_ on the left sidebar and select **Bills**.
*   Select the required bill.
*   Click the _More_ icon at the top of the bill’s details page, and select **Mark as Pushed** from the dropdown.
*   In the _Associate Push Details_ pop-up, enter the **Receipt Number** of the bill that is pushed to eTIMS.
*   Click **Save**.

![Associate Push Details](/ke/books/help/images/e-invoicing/assciate-bill-details.png)

The bill’s status will be changed to Marked as Pushed. Similarly, you can also mark a vendor credit as pushed.

### Fetch Bills from eTIMS

If you have migrated to Zoho Books from a different accounting software and had previously pushed bills to the eTIMS portal, you will be able to fetch those bills into your Zoho Books organization. Then, you can either match the fetched bills to the bills you’ve created in Zoho Books or create them as new bills.

To do this:

*   Go to _Purchases_ on the left sidebar and select **Bills**.
*   Click the _More_ icon in the top right corner of the page and select **Fetch Bills from eTIMS** from the dropdown.

The bills will be fetched from the eTIMS portal.

### View Fetched Bills

To view the bills fetched from the eTIMS portal:

*   Go to _Purchases_ on the left sidebar and select **Bills**.
*   Click **View Bills** at the top of the page to view the bills fetched from the eTIMS portal.
*   The list of bills fetched from the eTIMS portal will be displayed. You will be able to perform the following actions on the fetched bills:
    *   **Create**: You can create the fetched bill as a new bill in your Zoho Books organization.
    *   **Match**: You can match the fetched bill with a similar bill that you’ve created in your Zoho Books organization.

Once you create or match the fetched bills, they will be pushed to the eTIMS portal.

### Fetch Imported Items

You can fetch the imported items from the eTIMS portal and create a bill of entry for them.

To fetch the imported items:

*   Go to _Purchases_ on the left sidebar and select **Bills**.
*   Click the _More_ icon in the top right corner of the page and click **Fetch Imported Items** from the dropdown.

The imported items will be fetched from the eTIMS portal and you can view them along with the list of fetched bills in your Zoho Books organization.

### View Fetched Imported Items

You can view the imported items that are fetched from the eTIMS portal and create a bill of entry for them.

To do this:

*   Go to _Purchases_ on the left sidebar and select **Bills**.
*   Click the _More_ icon in the top right corner of the page and select **View Fetched Bills** from the dropdown.
*   Click **Create** if you want to create a new bill for the item, or click **Match** if you want to match the line item with an item you had created in your Zoho Books organization.
*   Create a bill of entry for the line items. Learn more about the [conditions](/ke/books/kb/general/create-bill-of-entry.html) to create a bill of entry.

To create a bill of entry:

*   Go to _Purchases_ on the left sidebar and select **Bills**.
*   Select the bill for which you want to create a bill of entry.
*   Click the _More_ icon at the top of the bill’s details page and select **Create Bill of Entry** from the dropdown.
*   In the bill of entry creation page, enter the required details and click **Save**.

Once you create a bill of entry for the imported item, the bill of entry will be marked as **Pushed**. If the push fails, resolve all the errors listed in the bill of entry’s details page and try pushing it to the eTIMS portal again.

* * *

## Create User

Apart from the fields available by default while inviting a user to your organization, the government mandates additional fields for e-Invoicing.

The mandatory fields for inviting a new user to your organization include:

Fields

Description

**Address**

Enter the address of the user.

**Contact Number**

Enter the contact number of the user.

**Remarks**

Enter remarks for the user you want to invite to your organization.

Once you provide these details, select the branch for which you are inviting the user and click **Invite**.

### Push Users to eTIMS

Once the user is invited to your Zoho Books organization, you must push the user to the eTIMS portal. Here’s how:

*   Go to **Settings**.
*   Select **Users** under _Users & Roles_.
*   Select the required user you want to push to the eTIMS portal.
*   Click **Push to eTIMS** in the top right corner of the page.
*   Click **Push**.

The user will be marked as **Pushed** in your Zoho Books organization, and will be able to access the eTIMS portal you had set up for e-Invoicing in your organization.

* * *

## Statuses in e-Invoicing

Here are the statuses related to e-Invoicing in Zoho Books:

Fields

Description

**Pushed**

The transaction has been pushed to the eTIMS portal, and a QR code has been generated.

**Yet to be Pushed**

The transaction is yet to be pushed to the eTIMS portal for e-Invoicing.

**Failed**

The transaction could not be pushed to the eTIMS portal. Resolve the errors listed in the transaction’s details page and try pushing it again.

* * *

## Other Actions

Let us have a look at the various actions that can be performed on the e-Invoicing page.

*   [View Notices](/ke/books/help/etims/#vn)
*   [View Details](/ke/books/help/etims/#vd)
*   [Fetch Code Lists](/ke/books/help/etims/#fcl)
*   [Fetch Item Classification Code](/ke/books/help/etims/#ficc)

* * *

## View Notices

You can view the notices sent by the KRA or the eTIMS portal within your Zoho Books organization.

To view the notices:

*   Go to **Settings**.
*   Select **e-Invoicing** under _Taxes & Compliance_.
*   Click **View Notices** next to the respective branch ID for which you want to view notices.

A list of notices will be displayed in the right pane. Click **View** next to the respective notice to view it on the KRA website.

* * *

## View Details

To view other details about the e-Invoicing set up in your Zoho Books organization with the eTIMS portal:

*   Go to **Settings**.
*   Select **e-Invoicing** under _Taxes & Compliance_.
*   On the e-Invoicing page, click the _More_ icon next to the respective branch ID and select **View Details** from the dropdown.

* * *

## Fetch Code List

The code list includes codes for as taxation type, country, payment type, quantity unit, etc., that are part of the transaction details pushed to the eTIMS portal. You can fetch and view the code list in your Zoho Books organization. Here’s how:

*   Go to **Settings**.
*   Select **e-Invoicing** under _Taxes & Compliance_.
*   On the e-Invoicing page, click the _More_ icon next to the required branch ID and select **Fetch Code List** from the dropdown.

The code list will be fetched from the eTIMS portal. To view the fetched code list:

*   On the e-Invoicing page, click the _More_ icon next to the required branch ID and select **View Details** from the dropdown.
*   Switch to the **Additional Details** tab.
*   Click the required section to view the list of codes fetched from the eTIMS portal.

* * *

## Fetch Item Classification Code

The item classification code includes different codes for VAT Act, Goods, Exempt Goods, etc. used for pushing item details to the eTIMS portal. You can fetch and view these codes in your Zoho Books organization. Here’s how:

*   Go to **Settings**.
*   Select **e-Invoicing** under _Taxes & Compliance_.
*   On the e-Invoicing page, click the _More_ icon next to the required branch ID and select **Fetch Code List** from the dropdown.

The item classification codes will be fetched from the eTIMS portal. To view them:

*   On the e-Invoicing page, click the _More_ icon next to the required branch ID and select **View Details** from the dropdown.
*   Switch to the **Additional Details** tab.
*   Click **Item Classification Code**.

You can now view the list of codes fetched from the eTIMS portal.