Essential Setup
This page walks through each configuration area you need to set up before transacting in Ayiza.
Currencies
Location: Configuration > General > Currencies
Every transaction in Ayiza has a currency. The Currencies master data stores all the currencies you work with (GBP, EUR, USD, etc.) along with their ISO codes and decimal places.
Exchange rates (Forex rates)
Location: Configuration > General > Forex Rates
If your company code operates in multiple currencies, or if you do business with suppliers and customers in foreign currencies, you need exchange rates. Ayiza stores rates by:
- Forex source -- where the rate comes from (e.g. ECB, Bank of England, manual entry)
- Forex type -- what kind of rate it is (e.g. average rate, closing rate, buying rate, selling rate)
- Currency pair and date -- the from/to currency and the effective date
When you post a transaction in a foreign currency, Ayiza uses the exchange rate to convert amounts into the company code currency (and group/functional currencies if configured).
If you use ECB rates, you can configure Ayiza to use the European Central Bank as a forex source. Rates can then be maintained manually or imported.
Countries
Location: Configuration > General > Countries
Country master data is used throughout Ayiza for:
- Company code and business partner addresses
- Tax determination (origin and destination country affect VAT treatment)
- EU membership flags (relevant for EC acquisitions and supplies on VAT returns)
Each country record includes its ISO code, name, and whether it is an EU member state.
Payment terms
Location: Configuration > Finance > Terms of Payment
Payment terms define when an invoice is due and whether early payment discounts apply. Common examples:
| Code | Description | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| NET30 | Net 30 days | Full amount due 30 days from invoice date |
| NET60 | Net 60 days | Full amount due 60 days from invoice date |
| 2/10NET30 | 2% 10 Net 30 | 2% discount if paid within 10 days, otherwise full amount due in 30 days |
Each payment term can define up to four conditions, each with its own number of days, discount percentage, and day-of-month option. You can also set a date basis (e.g. invoice date, delivery date) that determines when the clock starts.
Payment terms are assigned to business partners and invoices. Ayiza uses them to calculate due dates and discount amounts automatically.
Company code terms of payment
Location: Configuration > Finance > Company Code Terms of Payment
You can also assign default payment terms at the company code level. These serve as the fallback when a business partner does not have specific terms assigned.
Bank account types
Location: Configuration > Finance > Bank Account Types
Bank account types classify your company bank accounts. Typical types include:
- Current account
- Savings account
- Credit card account
- Loan account
The type is assigned when you set up a company bank account and helps with reporting and categorisation.
Finance Company Code (VAT & tax settings)
Location: Organisation > Company Codes > Finance Company Code
Before configuring tax codes, you need to set the VAT and tax settings at the company code level. These settings control what tax-related fields appear throughout the entire application — on invoices, journal entries, bank reconciliation, and more.
VAT settings
| Setting | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Is VAT Registered | The master switch for VAT. If false, all tax-related fields are hidden across the application — on invoices, journal entries, and bank reconciliation. |
| VAT Country | The country for VAT purposes. Determines which tax codes are available. |
| VAT Scheme | The VAT scheme (e.g. Standard, Flat Rate). Filtered by the selected VAT country. |
| Flat Rate Tax Code | If using the Flat Rate Scheme, select the applicable flat rate tax code. Filtered by VAT country and the isFlatRate flag. |
| Is VAT Net of Discount | Whether VAT is calculated on the net-of-discount amount (i.e. after early payment discounts). |
| Is Tax Reporting Date Active | Enables a separate tax reporting date field on transactions. Use this when the tax point differs from the posting date (common in the UK for cash accounting). |
| Purchase Out of Scope Tax Code | Default tax code for purchase transactions that are outside the scope of VAT. |
| Sales Out of Scope Tax Code | Default tax code for sales transactions that are outside the scope of VAT. |
The Is VAT Registered flag has a cascading effect. When it is false:
- Tax code fields are hidden on customer and supplier invoices.
- Tax fields are hidden on G/L account settings.
- Tax code is not required during bank reconciliation.
- Out-of-scope tax codes are used automatically where applicable.
Other financial settings
| Setting | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Is Investment Center Active | Enables the Investment Center field on transactions. When true, investment center becomes visible (and sometimes mandatory) on invoices, journal entries, and other documents. |
| Is Withholding Tax Active | Enables withholding tax fields across the application for this company code. |
| Is Cost Center Active | Enables cost center assignment on transactions. |
Tax configuration
Indirect taxes (VAT codes)
Location: Configuration > Products > Indirect Taxes
Indirect tax codes define the VAT rates that apply to your transactions. Each code specifies:
| Field | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Code | Short identifier (e.g. S20, R5, Z0, EX) |
| Country | Which country this tax code applies to |
| Type | Output tax (on sales) or input tax (on purchases). This determines where the tax code can be used — see below. |
| Tax point | When the tax becomes due (invoice date, payment date, etc.) |
| Transaction type | Whether this is a domestic, EC, or non-EC transaction |
| Duty status | Taxable, exempt, or out of scope |
| Is flat rate | Whether this code uses the VAT flat rate scheme |
| Is out of scope | Whether the transaction is outside the scope of VAT |
| Is EU | Whether this relates to EU trade |
Tax type determines availability:
The Type field (Input Tax vs Output Tax) controls where a tax code can be used:
| Context | Available tax types |
|---|---|
| Supplier invoices (Accounts Payable lines) | Input Tax only |
| Customer invoices (Accounts Receivable lines) | Output Tax only |
| G/L journal entries (General Ledger lines) | Depends on the G/L account's "Indirect Tax Type Restriction" setting |
| Bank reconciliation (General Ledger category) | Depends on the G/L account's "Indirect Tax Type Restriction" setting |
Common UK VAT codes:
| Code | Rate | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Standard rate | 20% | Most goods and services |
| Reduced rate | 5% | Some goods and services (e.g. home energy) |
| Zero rate | 0% | Zero-rated goods (e.g. most food, children's clothing) |
| Exempt | -- | Exempt from VAT (e.g. insurance, education) |
Each tax code has tax items that define the actual rate percentages, and GL account mappings that determine which GL accounts the tax amounts are posted to.
Tax GL account mappings
Location: Configuration > Products > Indirect Tax GL Accounts
For each tax code, you need to map it to the correct GL accounts in your chart of accounts. This tells Ayiza which account to post the input VAT, output VAT, or other tax amounts to when a transaction uses that tax code.
Withholding tax
Location: Configuration > Business Partners > Withholding Tax
If you deal with contractors or make payments that are subject to withholding tax (e.g. CIS in the UK), you can configure:
- Withholding tax types -- categories of withholding tax
- Withholding tax codes -- specific rates and rules within each type
- Withholding tax exemption reasons -- for partners who are exempt
Withholding tax settings are assigned to business partners and taken into account when processing payments.
Account determination
Account determination rules automate GL account assignment for specific business processes.
Business reason GL accounts
Location: Configuration > Finance > Business Reason GL Accounts
A business reason represents a specific type of adjustment or write-off (e.g. "Small balance write-off", "Currency rounding", "Cash discount"). Each business reason is mapped to a GL account per chart of accounts, so Ayiza knows where to post the amount automatically.
For example, if you write off a small outstanding balance during payment matching, the write-off amount is posted to the GL account mapped to the "Small balance write-off" business reason.
Payment provider account mappings
Location: Configuration > Finance > Payment Provider Account Mappings
If you use Stripe or another payment provider, you need to tell Ayiza:
- Which company bank account receives the settlement (payout) from the provider
- Which GL account to use for transaction fees charged by the provider
- The fee structure (percentage and/or fixed amount per transaction)
This mapping is set per company code and payment provider. When Ayiza processes a Stripe payout, it uses this mapping to post the fee to the correct GL account and the net amount to the correct bank account.
Due date bucket configuration
Location: Configuration > Finance > Due Date Bucket Configuration
Aging reports (payables and receivables) group outstanding items into "buckets" by how many days past due they are. By default, Ayiza uses standard buckets, but you can customise the boundaries per company code.
Each configuration defines four upper boundaries in days. For example:
| Bucket | Default boundary |
|---|---|
| Current | 0 days (not yet due) |
| Bucket 1 | 1-30 days overdue |
| Bucket 2 | 31-60 days overdue |
| Bucket 3 | 61-90 days overdue |
| Bucket 4 | Over 90 days overdue |
You can set separate bucket configurations for payables and receivables if you want different ranges for each.
Document number ranges
Location: Configuration > Finance > Number Ranges and Document Number Ranges
Ayiza uses automatic numbering for accounting documents, invoices, bank statements, and other records. Number ranges define:
| Setting | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Code | Identifier for the number range |
| First value / Last value | The numeric range (e.g. 1 to 999999999) |
| Prefix | An optional prefix added to the number (e.g. "JE" for journal entries) |
| Company code specific | Whether each company code gets its own sequence |
| Financial year specific | Whether numbering restarts each financial year |
Document number ranges link a specific document type (e.g. supplier invoice, customer invoice, journal entry) to a number range, per company code. This way, different document types can have different numbering schemes.
Company bank accounts
Location: Configuration > Finance > Company Bank Accounts (also accessible under Banking)
A company bank account represents a real bank account held by your company. Key fields:
| Field | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Code | Short identifier for the bank account |
| Company code | Which legal entity owns this account |
| Bank | The bank where the account is held (from the Banks master data) |
| Account holder | Name on the account |
| Bank account type | Current, savings, credit card, etc. |
| Currency | The currency of the account |
| IBAN / Account number | The IBAN or local account number |
| GL account | The GL account this bank account posts to. This links your bank balance to your general ledger. |
| Investment Centre | The investment centre for this bank account (required). |
Payment cards
If the bank account type has the Is Payment Card flag set (e.g. for credit card accounts), the behaviour changes:
- The GL Account field is hidden (determined automatically).
- A Business Partner field becomes visible and mandatory — this is the card provider (e.g. the credit card company), selected from your suppliers.
- During bank reconciliation, only the General Ledger category is available for payment card accounts. The business partner is pre-filled from the bank account master data.
Business partner flags on bank accounts
Company bank accounts have restriction flags that affect operations:
| Flag | Effect |
|---|---|
| Is Restricted | Prevents creation or update of bank statements and bank reconciliation for this account. |
| Is Locked | Prevents creation or update of bank statements and bank reconciliation for this account. |
| Is Sanctioned | Prevents creation or update of bank statements and bank reconciliation for this account. |
All three flags effectively block the same operations. They exist as separate flags to capture the business reason for the restriction (regulatory sanction vs. internal lock vs. other restriction).
Open Banking (GoCardless)
Ayiza integrates with GoCardless (formerly Nordigen) for Open Banking. Once connected, Ayiza can automatically fetch transactions from your bank account, which you can then import as bank statement lines.
To connect:
- Open the company bank account record.
- Initiate the Open Banking connection. You will be redirected to your bank's authorisation page.
- Once authorised, Ayiza stores the connection details (account ID, requisition ID, status, and expiration date).
- Transactions are fetched automatically and can be imported into bank statements.
Open Banking connections typically expire after 90 days (depending on the bank) and need to be re-authorised.
Stripe linking
If your company accepts payments through Stripe, you can link a Stripe account to a company code in the Finance Company Code settings. Once connected, Ayiza can process Stripe payouts and automatically post the settlement amount and fees using the payment provider account mapping.
What to do next
Once your configuration is in place, you are ready to:
- Set up your chart of accounts (GL accounts, account groups, hierarchies)
- Create business partners (customers and suppliers)
- Import bank statements and start reconciling
- Post journal entries and create invoices