What’s new in Zetadocs Expenses – June 2017 update

Journals

This article describes the new features and other improvements in the June 2017 release of the Zetadocs Expenses service.

Changes in this update

Feature enhancements

Support for NAV World 1 database

We have added support for the NAV World 1 (W1) database, for export using the connector and OData.  The database type list on the Export Settings page now includes W1, and we have included an additional set of codeunits in the connector installation package.

If you are already using the system with a NAV W1 database, then we recommend changing the database type setting on the Export Settings page to match this.  There is no need to reinstall the NAV codeunits in this case, as the codeunits for GB and W1 databases are currently the same.

Improvements to payment card report matching

We have added a “Skip” option to the transaction matching screen on payment card reports.  This enables you to skip over a transaction which you do not recognize, without having to return to the report screen.

The matching screen now remembers the transaction which was being matched when you view an expense from that screen, rather than returning to the first unmatched transaction.  This simplifies use when matching large numbers of transactions.

Specify expense type for vehicle report mileage

The vehicle type settings screen now enables you to configure the expense type for mileage expenses.  This enables the finance team to ensure that expense submitters use the correct expense type on systems which have multiple mileage expense types configured, and makes it easier for the submitter to enter the expense.

Export credit card payments as NAV journals

You can now choose to export company credit card expenses as NAV journals rather than purchase invoice lines.  This enables the finance team to export payment card transactions as journals using a control account to track payments.  The control account can be a NAV GL account or NAV Bank account.

This feature was previously available for preview on selected accounts, and has now been released for use on all accounts

Preview features

The following enhancements are enabled on selected accounts only.  This allows channel partners and other users to understand the feature and to give feedback on its use before general release.  Please contact Equisys if you wish to use any of these preview features.

NAV OData integration

This preview feature adds an option to export to NAV using standard OData integration instead of using the Zetadocs Expenses Connector for NAV and NAV codeunits.  This reduces the need to update the NAV system to make new features or other improvements available and simplifies the integration process for new implementations.

This feature is supported with NAV 2015 and later.

We have implemented a new runtime discovery mechanism to determine the OData service definition during export.  This improves use with customized NAV pages and will simplify support for additional NAV database types in future.

This new mechanism is available as a separate preview feature, and currently supports export to purchase invoices only.

NAV Jobs and Tasks

This preview feature adds the capability to set NAV job fields when exporting expenses to NAV.  This enables companies to track expenditure on a project basis and recharge to their customers simply if required using standard NAV functionality.

Reclaim VAT on mileage allowances

This preview feature enables VAT to be reclaimed on mileage allowances, and on business mileage where the company pays for fuel instead of paying a mileage allowance.  This enables companies to reclaim VAT on business mileage without having to enter the VAT amount in NAV manually.

We have added a new setting to the Vehicle Type to reclaim VAT.  You can specify the mileage rate on which VAT can be claimed (typically the government advisory fuel rate in the UK) and the VAT rate to use for the reclaim (typically the standard VAT rate).

When VAT is to be reclaimed, the system exports the mileage record with the correct VAT amount.  If the mileage rate to be reimbursed is higher than the amount on which VAT can be reclaimed then the system exports an additional adjustment line with no VAT for the remainder, in the same way as when exporting an expense.  If mileage is not to be reimbursed – eg if the company pays for fuel for the vehicle instead – then the system exports a single adjustment line after all expenses to correct the reimbursable gross amount.

UK VAT regulations require companies to check that the amount of VAT being reclaimed on mileage is lower than the amount of VAT which has been paid on fuel.  To help with that check we have added these totals on the Expense Report and Vehicle Report forms.  The forms display a warning message if the VAT being reclaimed is higher than the VAT paid for fuel, though the finance team can still choose to export the reclaim amount if they are aware of additional VAT payments to justify this.

Reclaim for personal mileage

This preview feature enables a new reimbursement option for a vehicle type, where the company pays for fuel then reclaims the cost of personal (non-business) mileage at a fixed mileage rate.  It enables the business to reclaim this cost as part of the expenses process without requiring separate calculation and processing of the reclaim.

We have added a new reimbursement setting to the vehicle type, for “Fuel Less Personal Mileage”.  This causes the system to calculate the reclaim amount for personal mileage, based on the odometer (milometer) readings for the month and the business mileage records.

The reclaim amount is exported with other expenses on the Vehicle Report.

Export non-chargeable mileage expenses

This preview feature enables mileage expenses which are not chargeable to the company to be exported to NAV.  This enables users whose fuel is paid by the company to recharge mileage to NAV jobs and tasks, using standard NAV functionality to apply the correct markup amount.

We have added a new setting to the Vehicle Type to export mileage expenses.  If mileage is not chargeable to the company (eg where the company pays for fuel), the system adds an offset line to the exported report which cancels the gross total for the fuel so that the reimbursable amount is correct.

Quality and performance improvements

This update includes a number of quality and performance improvements.

Additional upgrade steps

Zetadocs Expenses Connector for NAV

This release is compatible with older versions of the Zetadocs Expenses Connector and NAV codeunits.

Some features in this release require the Zetadocs Expenses Connector and NAV codeunits to be upgraded.  This is noted against each feature above.  Please contact Equisys for further information.

Mobile apps

Installed mobile apps will be updated automatically on mobile devices where this is enabled.

Known issues with released features

Set sales tax fields in NAV North American databases

We have corrected an issue which caused export to fail if a Sales Tax export code was set when using NAV 2009 R2 with a North American NAV database.

When using a North American NAV database, the system supports setting the sales tax rate with NAV 2013 or later only.  With NAV 2009 R2 the sales tax rates are now ignored on export.

Exporting report negative total amount

The system currently exports reports as purchase invoices in most cases.  If the total value of the report is negative (eg if it contains a large refund) then this results in a purchase invoice which cannot be posted in NAV.

This is unlikely to occur in real usage.  However, if it does occur the finance processor can correct the exported NAV records by removing the refund expense from the purchase invoice (so the total amount becomes positive), then manually creating a credit memo and adding the refund expense to that.

This will be corrected in the next release.

Known issues with preview features

Exporting NAV journal lines with OData integration

When exporting as journals using OData integration, the journal batch and journal template configuration settings in the Expenses admin site are ignored.  Instead the NAV default batch and template are used.

Setting jobs and tasks on exported expenses is not supported when exporting to NAV journals using OData integration.  Any job settings on exported expenses will be ignored if using this combination.

Exporting journals is not yet supported when using the new runtime discovery OData mechanism.

Setting NAV jobs and tasks on export

When using the Zetafax Expenses Connector, exporting a job or task setting for an expense will cause any dimension setting for that expense to be ignored, and the default dimension setting for that job (if configured in NAV) will be used instead.

Setting jobs and tasks on exported expenses is not supported when exporting to NAV journals using OData integration.  Any job settings on exported expenses will be ignored if using this combination.

Exporting a NAV job job line type (recharge setting) fails with NAV 2017 when using the Zetadocs Expenses Connector.

Reclaim for personal mileage

The system does not currently export negative value reports correctly, as described above.  In businesses which issue fuel cards then reclaim personal mileage, Vehicle Reports will usually have negative values so will not be exported correctly with the current release.  We recommend this feature is not used for live systems until the next release when this issue will be corrected.