What full eTIMS compliance actually means
eTIMS compliance means every sale your business makes produces a KRA-recognised invoice that reaches the tax authority, with the correct details, codes and tax treatment, and that your records line up with what you file. Registration alone is not compliance; it is the first step. Many businesses register and still fail because invoices are not transmitted, codes are wrong, or records do not reconcile.
KRA can check compliance during an audit or a routine review. What they want to see is consistent, transmitted, correctly-coded invoices and a VAT return that matches your eTIMS data. Gaps, missing invoices, wrong tax types, or sales with no compliant receipt, are what create penalties.
The checklist below covers the full picture: registration, invoicing on every sale, item codes and tax types, real-time transmission, offline handling, credit notes, record-keeping, reconciliation, deadlines and the right software. Treat any unticked item as a task.
The 10-point eTIMS compliance checklist
Tick each item. Anything you cannot tick is a gap to close.
- 1
1. Registered for eTIMS
You have registered for eTIMS against your active KRA PIN with the correct tax obligation. Confirm the account is active and your branch and device are set up.
- 2
2. Compliant invoice on every sale
Every single sale, cash, M-Pesa or card, produces an eTIMS invoice with a control number and QR code. No sale should leave without one.
- 3
3. Correct item codes and tax types
Each product is mapped to the right KRA item code and tax type (16%, zero-rated or exempt), so invoices transmit cleanly and VAT is correct.
- 4
4. Real-time transmission
Invoices reach KRA in real time, not batched later. Confirm your system actually transmits and receives control numbers.
- 5
5. Offline handling
When the connection drops, sales still record and invoices sign locally, then sync to KRA automatically on reconnect. No sale is issued with no record.
- 6
6. Credit and debit notes used correctly
Mistakes are corrected with credit or debit notes referencing the original invoice, never by deleting or editing a transmitted invoice.
- 7
7. Records kept
Your eTIMS invoices and records are stored and retrievable, so you can produce them for an audit at any time.
- 8
8. VAT return reconciles
Your VAT return matches your eTIMS data. If they differ, find and fix the cause (usually a coding or tax-type error).
- 9
9. Deadlines met
You file VAT and remit on time. eTIMS data should make this quick because the figures are already there.
- 10
10. Certified software
You use software listed on the KRA certified page. Uncertified tools cannot make you compliant, whatever they claim.
Where businesses fail the checklist
Registered but not transmitting
A common failure: registered for eTIMS but invoices are not actually reaching KRA, often because of a setup or connection issue. Registration is not enough; confirm transmission.
Some sales with no compliant invoice
Issuing eTIMS for big sales but not small or cash ones leaves a gap. Every sale needs a compliant invoice.
Wrong tax type on items
Charging standard VAT on zero-rated or exempt goods (or vice versa) means your VAT will not reconcile. Fix item codes and tax types.
Editing instead of crediting
Trying to fix a wrong invoice by editing or deleting it breaks the audit trail. Always use a credit or debit note.
Relying on uncertified tools
Software that is not on the KRA certified list cannot make you compliant. Confirm certification.
A Nairobi shop closes its compliance gaps
A shop in Nairobi assumed it was compliant because it had registered for eTIMS. A review found that small cash sales were not being invoiced, a few products had the wrong tax type, and the VAT return never quite matched the eTIMS data.
Working through the checklist, the owner ensured every sale, including cash, issued a compliant invoice, corrected the item codes and tax types, and confirmed transmission and reconciliation.
With every point ticked, the VAT return matched the eTIMS data, an audit would have been a quick export, and the penalty risk was gone. Compliance turned out to be specific and fixable, not vague.
Trading without eTIMS-compliant tax invoices risks KRA penalties, blocked VAT input claims for your customers, and receipts a business buyer cannot expense.
Veira signs every sale to KRA eTIMS automatically, so each receipt is compliant the moment it prints, with no separate device to reconcile.
How Veira makes this automatic
Veira is a KRA-certified eTIMS integrator, listed on the official kra.go.ke certified software page. When you ring up a sale, Veira generates the compliant invoice, applies the right item code and tax type, transmits it to KRA, receives the control number, and prints the receipt with a QR code, automatically and offline-capable. Your VAT return reconciles with your eTIMS data with no manual matching.
It runs on a phone you already own or an affordable terminal from KES 2,999 a month, and it sits in the same app as your M-Pesa payments, stock and reporting. The hardest parts of eTIMS, getting the invoice, the codes and the timing right, become a guided setup step rather than a recurring worry.
Frequently asked questions
What does eTIMS compliance mean?
Is registering for eTIMS enough to be compliant?
How do I know if my VAT return reconciles with eTIMS?
What happens if I fail an eTIMS compliance check?
Does the software I use affect compliance?
How often should I check eTIMS compliance?
eTIMS compliance is a set of specific, checkable points, not a vague worry. Work through the ten above, fix any gaps, and you are covered. Veira ticks them automatically: certified, real-time, correctly coded, offline-capable and reconciled, from KES 2,999 a month. Run the free eTIMS readiness check and book a free demo.