SAF-T
{{Short description|Data interchange standard}}
SAF-T (Standard Audit File for Tax) is an international standard for electronic exchange of reliable accounting data from organizations to a national tax authority or external auditors. The standard is defined by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). The file requirements are expressed using XML, but the OECD does not impose any particular file format, recommending that (para 6.28) "It is entirely a matter for revenue bodies to develop their policies for implementation of SAF-T, including its representation in XML. However, revenue bodies should consider data formats that permit audit automation today while minimising potential costs to all stakeholders when moving to new global open standards for business and financial data such as XBRL, and XBRL_GL in particular."
The standard is now increasingly adopted within European countries as a means to file tax returns electronically{{citation needed|date=February 2014}}.
The standard was adopted in 2008 by Portugal{{cite web | url=http://info.portaldasfinancas.gov.pt/pt/apoio_contribuinte/NEWS_SAF-T_PT.htm | title=SAF-T (PT) news from Portuguese Tax Authority (Autoridade Tributária e Aduaneira) | language=Portuguese | date=2013-10-01 | accessdate=2014-02-19 | archive-date=2017-10-21 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171021141256/http://info.portaldasfinancas.gov.pt/pt/apoio_contribuinte/NEWS_SAF-T_PT.htm | url-status=dead }} and has since spread to other European countries, e.g. Luxembourg,{{cite web | title=Computerized File Audit AED - FAIA v2.01 March 2013 (based on SAF-T v2.0) | url=http://www.aed.public.lu/FAIA/FAIA/index.html | publisher=Luxembourg Tax Administration (Administration de l’Enregistrement et des Domaines (AED)) | date=2013-03-13 | accessdate=2014-02-19 }} Austria, Germany and France. From 1 January 2022 SAF-T is also rolled out in Romania, where large Romanian-resident companies and certain foreign companies.
Although SAF-T is formally standardized, both with respect to syntax (format) and semantics (meaning) to allow for and fulfill automatic data interchange and tools support, e.g. across country borders or common computerized systems, it does include some room for revenue bodies (tax administrations) to add individual elements, e.g. to cover special needs in a taxation or audit system. For example, in Portugal the SAF-T (PT) v1.04_01 standard{{cite web|url=http://info.portaldasfinancas.gov.pt/apps/saft-pt04/SAFTPT1.04_01.xsd|title=SAF-T (PT) v1.04_01 XML Schema .xsd file (download from Portuguese Tax Authority (Autoridade Tributária e Aduaneira) as adopted 2016-12-02.|last=|first=|date=2013-10-01|website=|publisher=Portuguese Tax Authority (Autoridade Tributária e Aduaneira)|archive-url=|archive-date=|accessdate=2017-09-27}} – based on SAF-T v1.0 – includes some special elements and types relevant to the standard in Portugal.
Standards
In May 2005, the OECD Committee on Fiscal Affairs (CFA) published the first version of the SAF-T guidance. Version 1.0 was based on entries as found in a General Ledger Chart of Accounts, together with master file data for customers and suppliers and details of invoices, orders, payments, and adjustments. The standard describes a set of messages for data exchange between accounting software and national tax authorities or auditors. The syntax is proprietary and based on XML. There are multiple localized versions available which are compatible with the general v1.0 standard. Schema was originally defined in old DTD format – a precursor to today's XML Schema.
The revised version (2.0) extended the standard to include information on Inventory and Fixed Assets. The opportunity was also taken to enhance the original SAF-T specification to take account of suggestions from OECD member countries and others. Schema is changed to XML Schema format and new information covering Inventory and Fixed Assets added. The schema is not fully backward compatible with v1.0.{{cite web|title=Guidance for the Standard Audit File – Tax Version 2.0|url=https://www.oecd.org/tax/administration/45167181.pdf|publisher=OECD|accessdate= 2022-10-10}}
| class="wikitable" | ||||
| Version | Introduced | XML Schema | Annotated | File Package |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| v1.0 | May 2005 | SAF-T.xsd | style=white-space:nowrap | SAF-T-map.html | style=white-space:nowrap | [http://www.oecd.org/ctp/taxadministration/34910277.zip SAF-T v1.0 package] |
| v2.0 | April 2010 | style=white-space:nowrap | SAF-T_Schema_v_2.00.xsd | style=white-space:nowrap | [http://www.oecd.org/tax/taxadministration/45167181.pdf Annotated SAF-T Schema v2.pdf]{{cite web|title=Guidance for the Standard Audit File - Tax, Version 2.0: Appendix B: SAF-T Schema version 2.00|url=http://www.oecd.org/tax/taxadministration/45167181.pdf|publisher=OECD|accessdate= 2013-01-09}} |
Country adoptions
The following countries/organizations have laws adopting SAF-T:
See also
| title = The SIE format
| url = http://sie.se/sie/home/showpage.php?page=english
| accessdate = 7 July 2012
| archive-date = 31 March 2012
| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120331192156/http://www.sie.se/sie/home/showpage.php?page=english
| url-status = dead
}}
External links
- SAF-T v2.0 XML schema [http://www.oecd.org/ctp/taxadministration/45167181.pdf CTP]
- OECD [http://www.oecd.org Better policies for better lives]
- [http://www.xbrl.org/ XBRL]
- [http://www.unece.org/cefact/about.html UN/CEFACT]
- [http://www.sie.se/sie/home/showpage.php?page=english SIE] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110719024202/http://www.sie.se/sie/home/showpage.php?page=english |date=2011-07-19 }}
References
{{reflist}}
[https://books.google.com/books?id=jrClDwAAQBAJ&dq=saft&pg=PA178 Saf-t para faturação] Portuguese Edition, Edited 7 July 2019.