Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 18, September 16, 2024
(a) A true copy of all sales slips, invoices,
receipts, statements, memoranda of price, cash register tapes, or guest checks
issued to any customer by a seller who is required to be registered pursuant to the
provisions of the Sales and Use Tax Act,
54:32B-1 et seq. and records of every
purchase, both retail and wholesale, must be available for inspection and
examination at any time upon demand by the Director or his or her duly authorized
agent or employee and shall be preserved for a period of four years from the filing
date of the quarterly period for the filing of sales tax returns to which such
records pertain.
(b) Photocopies or
electronically stored copies of general books of account, such as cash books,
journals, voucher registers, ledgers, etc., are not acceptable in lieu of original
records. However, photocopies or electronically stored copies of supporting records
of details, such as sales invoices, purchase invoices, credit memoranda, etc., may
be maintained provided the following conditions are met:
1. Appropriate facilities are provided for
preservation of the copies for the periods required.
2. Copies are indexed, cross referenced, labeled
to show beginning and ending numbers or beginning and ending alphabetical listing of
documents included, and are systematically filed.
3. The taxpayer agrees to provide transcriptions
of any information contained in copies, which may be required for purposes of
verification of tax liability.
4. Proper
facilities are provided for the ready inspection and location of the particular
records, including computer hardware and software for viewing and copying the
records.
(c) A posting
reference and date of issuance must be on each invoice. Credit memoranda must carry
a reference to the document evidencing the original transaction. Documents necessary
to support claimed exemptions from tax liability, such as bills of lading and
purchase orders, must be maintained in an order by which they can be readily related
to the transactions for which exemption is sought.
(d) An automatic data processing tax accounting
system must have built into its program a method of producing visible and legible
records, which will provide the necessary information for verification of the
taxpayer's tax liability.
1. Machine-readable data
media, such as punch cards, magnetic tape, and disks are deemed to be records within
the meaning of 54:32B-16 and must be retained in
accordance with said statute.
2.
Automatic data processing records must provide an opportunity to trace any
transaction back to the original source or forward to a final total. If printouts
are not made of the transaction details at the time they are processed, then the
system must have the ability to reconstruct these transactions.
3. A general ledger with source references will be
maintained to coincide with financial reports for tax reporting periods. The general
ledger should coincide with the financial reports. In cases where subsidiary ledgers
are used to support the general ledger accounts, the subsidiary ledgers should also
be maintained periodically.
4. The
seller's records should be designed so that the details underlying the summary
accounting data may be identified and made available on request. The system should
be so designed that supporting documents, such as sales invoices, purchase invoices,
credit memoranda, etc., are readily available.
5. A description of the automatic data processing
portion of the accounting system should be available. The statements and
illustrations as to the scope of operations should be sufficiently detailed to
indicate the following:
i. The application being
performed;
ii. The procedures employed
in each application (which, for example, might be supported by flow charts, block
diagrams, or other description of the input or output procedures); and
iii. The controls used to ensure accurate and
reliable processing.
6.
Important changes, together with their effective dates, should be noted in order to
preserve an accurate chronological record.
