What eTIMS actually is, and why KRA built it
eTIMS stands for the electronic Tax Invoice Management System. It is the upgrade to the older TIMS, which depended on physical control units sitting next to a till. eTIMS moves that control into software, so an invoice can be validated and transmitted from a phone, a POS app, a web portal or a system integration, without a separate hardware box.
The point is simple from KRA’s side: every taxable sale should produce an invoice that KRA can see and verify. When you issue a compliant invoice, it is stamped with a control unit number and a QR code, and the data flows to KRA. Buyers can confirm the invoice is genuine, and KRA can match what you declared against what you actually sold.
For business owners the shift is bigger than it looks. The Finance Act tightened the rule that expenses must be supported by a valid electronic tax invoice to be deductible. That means eTIMS is not just a VAT issue anymore. If a supplier cannot give you a compliant invoice, that cost may be disallowed when your income tax is assessed, which quietly raises your tax bill.
- It replaces hardware control units with software validation that runs on a phone, POS, portal or API.
- Every compliant invoice carries a control unit number and a QR code that anyone can verify.
- Expenses now generally need a valid eTIMS invoice to be tax-deductible, not only VAT claims.
- It applies far beyond VAT-registered firms, reaching small traders, landlords and service providers.
How eTIMS works, from sale to KRA, in seven steps
Strip away the jargon and the flow is the same whether you use the portal, the app or an integrated POS.
- 1
You make a sale
A customer buys goods or a service. You capture the items, quantities, price and the customer details if they need a named invoice for their own records.
- 2
The system builds the invoice
Line items, VAT where it applies, and totals are assembled into the KRA invoice format. A POS does this automatically; on the portal you type it in.
- 3
It is signed by a control unit
A software control unit (OSCU or VSCU) signs the invoice and assigns a unique control number. This is what makes it a valid eTIMS invoice rather than an ordinary receipt.
- 4
A QR code is generated
The signed invoice gets a QR code. Scanning it lets the buyer, or KRA, confirm the invoice exists in the system and was not altered.
- 5
Data is transmitted to KRA
The invoice data is sent to KRA. If you are offline, a compliant system queues it and transmits once the connection returns, so you keep selling.
- 6
You hand over the invoice
The customer gets a printed or digital invoice showing the control number and QR code. For B2B sales this is what your buyer needs to claim the cost.
- 7
It feeds your returns
Because the data is already with KRA, your VAT return and records line up with what you transmitted, which makes filing faster and audits far less stressful.
Five eTIMS mistakes that cost Kenyan businesses money
Assuming it is only for VAT-registered firms
Many sole proprietors and small traders believe eTIMS does not touch them. But buyers increasingly demand a compliant invoice before they pay, and your own purchases need valid invoices to be deductible. Sitting it out shrinks your customer list.
Treating an ordinary receipt as compliant
A till slip without a control number and QR code is not an eTIMS invoice. If your buyer is a company, they cannot use it, and KRA will not accept it as proof of your sale or their expense.
Ignoring the deductibility rule on purchases
Owners watch their own invoicing but forget the other side. If a supplier gives you a plain quotation or handwritten note, that cost can be disallowed, raising your income tax. Insist on eTIMS invoices from everyone you buy from.
Manually retyping every invoice on the portal
The portal works for a handful of invoices a month. A busy shop doing hundreds of sales a day cannot keep up, and manual entry breeds errors. That volume is exactly what an integrated POS is for.
Going quiet when the internet drops
Some systems simply stop issuing invoices offline. A compliant POS keeps selling and queues the invoices to transmit on reconnect, so a power cut or a dead line never stops your trading or your compliance.
A worked example: Mama Njeri’s minimart in Nakuru
Mama Njeri runs a minimart turning over about KES 1.4 million a month. She is VAT registered. A customer buys goods worth KES 2,320 inclusive of VAT. On a compliant POS, the system records the line items, calculates that KES 320 of the total is VAT at 16 percent, signs the invoice, prints the QR code and queues the data for KRA. She did nothing extra beyond ringing up the sale.
At month end her VAT return is mostly pre-filled because the data already sits with KRA. She claims input VAT only on purchases where her suppliers gave her valid eTIMS invoices. One supplier sent a handwritten delivery note for KES 40,000 of stock. Without a compliant invoice, she cannot claim the roughly KES 5,517 of input VAT inside that figure, and the cost is shaky for income tax too. She calls the supplier and asks them to reissue it through eTIMS.
The lesson is that compliance is a two-way street. Issuing clean invoices protects your sales record; collecting clean invoices protects your deductions. You can sanity check any VAT-inclusive figure with the VAT calculator before you file.
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 eTIMS invisible
Veira is a point-of-sale built for Kenya with eTIMS compliance native to the till. When you ring up a sale, the compliant invoice, control number and QR code are produced automatically and the data is queued for KRA. There is no second device to babysit and no separate app to reconcile at the end of the day.
Because Veira keeps working offline, a dropped line or a power cut never stops you selling or staying compliant; queued invoices transmit the moment you reconnect. Every paid plan includes a free handheld terminal, and the same account runs on iOS and Android, so a shop, a restaurant and a landlord can all issue compliant invoices from day one.
If you are still weighing your options, see how Veira stacks up against other eTIMS-ready POS options.
Frequently asked questions
What is eTIMS in Kenya, and what does eTIMS stand for?
What are eTIMS devices, transmission and APIs?
Is eTIMS mandatory in Kenya?
Do I need to be VAT registered to use eTIMS?
What is the difference between eTIMS and TIMS?
What does a valid eTIMS invoice look like?
Can I issue eTIMS invoices offline?
How do I start with eTIMS?
How much does eTIMS cost in Kenya?
Can I use eTIMS on my phone?
What happens if I do not register for eTIMS?
eTIMS is not a form you file once; it is how every sale and every purchase now talks to KRA. Get the basics right, insist on compliant invoices from your suppliers, and put the issuing on autopilot with a POS that handles it for you. Book a free demo, or check exactly where you stand with the readiness checker, and turn compliance into something you never think about again.