Financial Controller Only

Transaction e-mail is a way of sending and receiving orders, invoices and other trading documents by e-mail instead of on paper.

The advantage of using e-mail is that it saves a lot of time, it reduces stationery costs and if you receive transactions by e-mail it can eliminate re-keying errors. The sender does not need to print and post the documents, and the recipient does not need to type the information in to their accounts as it is instantaneously transferred.

Transaction e-mail contains basically the same information that you would otherwise send on paper so it is suitable for trading purposes and it satisfies the VAT regulations. The information is structured so that it can be passed straight from one accounting system to another.

Who can I trade with using Sage Transaction e-mail?

Anyone with an e-mail address!

It doesn't need to be a special e-mail address, an existing one will do, although you may decide to set one up that is dedicated to Transaction e-mails.

What if the other company doesn't have Transaction e-mail themselves?

No problem! You can send Transaction e-mails instead of paper documents to any company that has an e-mail address and still save time and cut stationery and processing costs yourself, so standard paper invoicing & transaction email are compatible and sit happily side by side.

• They don't need a special e-mail address, an existing one will do.
• They don't need to have Transaction e-mail themselves.
• They don't need to be a Sage user, in fact they don't need to use accounting software at all.

If their accounting system doesn't support Transaction e-mail they can view or print the transaction from their e-mail system and then enter it into their accounting system in the normal way.

Of course, if your customer or supplier does have Transaction e-mail set up themselves there is an extra benefit - they can post the transaction straight through from the e-mail to their accounts with no re-keying.

How secure is Transaction e-mail?

Transaction e-mail is designed to replace paperwork that you would normally send in the post. The structured e-mail contains a security code to make it difficult for tampering to go undetected, rather like the seal on an envelope.

You have the opportunity to review all transactions, both sent and received, and they are only posted to your accounts when you want them to be.

As with the post, there is no absolute guarantee of security and if you have sensitive transactions to exchange you should consider extra security measures.

What is the legal position concerning Sage Transaction e-mail?

We have discussed with HM Customs and Excise the rules governing VAT invoices and they have approved the following statement:

You may use Sage Transaction e-mail providing the following statements are true:

1. The company that you want to trade with electronically has agreed to this arrangement and will, if VAT registered, comply with HM Customs & Excise rules for VAT record keeping.
   
   
2. Both parties to the transactions are in the domestic market - that is, both parties are under the jurisdiction of UK Customs and Excise. HM Customs & Excise is, however, prepared to consider the use of Sage Transaction e-mail for electronic trading between UK businesses and trading partners outside the UK, provided that this is acceptable to the relevant tax authorities in the trading partners' own countries.

If you have any questions about the legal implications for you of Sage Transaction e-mail we recommend that you contact your local VAT office.

How long do I need to keep records of the transactions?

All the existing rules concerning trading records and VAT details apply whether you are using paper records or electronic records.

For VAT purposes, records (including copies of all invoices issued/received) should normally be kept for a period of six years, unless a shorter retention period has been granted by HM Customs & Excise. Your records do not have to be retained in any prescribed manner, but must be capable of being produced to HM Customs & Excise, on demand, normally at your principal place of business.

The software keeps a record of each transaction automatically and you should not delete transactions unless you are sure they are no longer required for statutory purposes. The software documentation explains how to organise your stored records.

Can I trade with Sage using Transaction e-mail?

Yes. Purchase orders or sales invoices should be sent to the following e-mail address:

To be set up as - transactionemail@sage.com

Will Sage start sending Transaction e-mails to me?

Sage Line 50 is the first Sage accounting system to support Transaction e-mail but here at Sage we actually use Sage Line 500 for our business. We will be implementing Transaction e-mail in our Sage Line 100, Line 200 and Line 500 products over the course of the next year and then we will start asking our customers and suppliers for permission to trade electronically.

It sounds very useful - how do I start?

It's easy! You need Sage Line 50 Version 9 Financial Controller, then follow the steps below:

To send orders and invoices by e-mail:

1. The program contains a customisable letter that you can e-mail to customers and suppliers asking for their agreement to trade this way. You don't have to send it to everyone that you trade with. For example, to start with you might choose to send it to everyone for whom you have an e-mail address. The letter contains an example transaction so that they can see immediately what Transaction e-mails from you will look like.
   
   
2. Go through the Transaction e-mail set-up options in Sage Line 50 to link your e-mail system to your accounts.
   
   
3. That's it! Now when you create an order or invoice, instead of clicking on "Print" click on "Send Transaction e-mail". No printing required, no envelope and no postage!

To receive orders and invoices by e-mail from other users of Transaction e-mail:

1. Go through the Transaction e-mail set-up options in Sage Line 50 to link your e-mail system to your accounts.
   
   
2. If you receive a Transaction e-mail, just go to your Transaction e-mail screen in Sage Line 50 where you can view and process incoming messages.

How do I distinguish between Transaction and normal e-mails if I have one e-mail address?

Both types of e-mail will appear in your e-mail Inbox. If the e-mail has a transaction attached, Sage Line 50 will spot this and transfer it into the Transaction e-mail Inbox in your accounts program. You can then process it straight through to your accounts. Sage Line 50 keeps a copy of every Transaction e-mail, so once processed, you can delete them from your e-mail Inbox to avoid clutter.

Are there any restrictions?

Very few. At the moment, you can only process automatically invoices for orders that you have raised in Purchase Order Processing - that's why the feature is only available initially in Sage Line 50 Financial Controller. In future the capability will be extended to simplify the automatic processing of all orders and invoices, whether or not you use Sales Order Processing and Purchase Order Processing to create them.

In practice, this just means that for now you may still have to type in a proportion of the transactions you receive by e-mail.

See pricing information of Sage Line 50 accounts software at our pricing information page.
For any further information please call us on 020-8900 8400 or E-mail us.