Integrations / KRA eTIMS
KRA eTIMS integration for ERPNext, running in production
Coale Tax signs every sales invoice with KRA in real time, protects your input VAT before payment, and reconciles daily. This is a shipped module, not a roadmap item.
Why this matters now
Since March 2024, every Kenyan business needs eTIMS invoices for expense deductibility, and the 2026 rules tighten input-VAT further. An invoice that is not fiscalised is money lost twice: your customer cannot deduct it, and your VAT position weakens.
ERPNext and compliance in KenyaWhat the integration covers
Every sales invoice is signed and transmitted to KRA eTIMS on submit; receipt signatures and control-unit timestamps are stored, and a fiscal QR code prints on A4 invoices and thermal POS receipts.
Purchase invoices are verified against KRA before payment. Payment Entry submission is blocked on an unverified invoice, with a logged, authorised manual override.
Failed submissions queue and auto-retry every 5 minutes; the circuit breaker opens after 5 failures and auto-resets. Zero lost receipts, even when the KRA server is down.
Company PIN, connectivity test, device initialisation, branch assignment, item classification, tax templates, bulk item registration and verification, in order.
Administrator, Manager, Operator, Auditor, Sales Clerk, Purchase Clerk and Store Keeper roles scope every fiscal action to the right branch and person.
Daily automated reconciliation between ERPNext and KRA flags variances; monthly compliance scoring, X/Z daily reports and a VAT-return preview assemble filing data automatically.
How we deliver
From discovery to verified go-live
Discovery and compliance mapping
We map your document flows, branches and item catalogue to KRA's eTIMS requirements, and confirm registration status and credentials with the authority.
Sandbox integration
ERPNext is connected to the eTIMS test environment. Sales invoices, credit notes and debit notes are generated and validated against the authority's schema before anything touches production.
Resilience engineering
Failed transmissions queue and retry automatically, with a circuit breaker for authority downtime. The pattern is proven in our KRA eTIMS module: zero lost receipts when the tax server is down.
Go-live and verification
Production credentials are registered, the first live documents are verified end to end, and your team is trained on exception handling and the eTIMS verification workflow.
Support and rate-change watch
We monitor authority notices and ship configuration updates when rules change, under a support agreement with defined response times.
Frequently asked questions
Is this a certified, working integration?
Yes. Coale Tax is in production across Kenyan businesses, signing invoices in real time with KRA eTIMS. The Toysam Distributors and Kimzone Autospares case studies run it live, including thermal POS receipts with fiscal QR codes.
What happens when KRA's servers are down?
Invoices queue and retry automatically every 5 minutes. A circuit breaker opens after 5 consecutive failures and resets itself, so your tills keep trading and every receipt is eventually fiscalised. Nothing is lost and nothing needs manual re-entry.
How does it protect input VAT?
Supplier invoices are verified against KRA before payment, and Payment Entry submission is blocked on unverified invoices with a logged override for authorised users. You find out about a non-compliant supplier before paying them, not at filing time.
How long does eTIMS onboarding take?
The guided 8-step wizard takes a typical single-branch business through PIN setup, device initialisation, item classification and verification in days, not weeks. Multi-branch rollouts are scoped per branch with bulk item registration.
Scope your eTIMS integration
A discovery call covers your document flows, registration status with KRA, and a delivery plan with verification criteria. We reply within one working day.