[GNC] Determining HST Amounts from bank postings

[Pat Buckley]

I'm reading some more about gnuCash. a Few internet users suggest using 
"_split transaction csv input file_" or _"multi-split transaction csv 
file_" to resolve problems like those I've outline here. These 
_"multi-split transaction csv file_"s contains values for both sales-tax 
and item-value and potentially  a number of other sub-accounts. Is there 
a detailed example somewhere of a user who has used a _"multi-split 
transaction csv file_"?

Now, I was keeping track of my accounts on a spreadsheet so converting 
the spreadsheet to a multi-split csv file looks feasible. It would be 
great to see an example.

There's some discussion of how to do this @ 
https://gnucash.org/docs/v5/C/gnucash-manual/trans-import.html#trans-import-csv 

------------------------------------------

My further thoughts on how to resolve this issue:

The incorporation of sales-tax-table into the splitting of Expenses is 
accomplished by adding the Action of "Split Transaction By Sales Tax" to 
the list of "Actions" available for the transactions on Expense accounts.

"Split Transaction By Sales Tax" splits a transaction into item-value 
and sales-tax.

For example in Ontario the HST sales tax is 13%. The value of sales tax 
is 13/113 times transaction-value; the item-value is 100/113 times 
transaction value.

Pseudo-code:

sales-tax = transaction-value * ( sales-tax-percent / ( 100 
+ sales-tax-percent ) )

item-value = transaction-value * ( 100 / ( 100 + sales-tax-percent ) )

The value used for sales-tax-percent comes from the Sales-tax-table. 
Specific sales-tax-tables are attached to each expense account so that 
the sales-tax for each expense account can be different.

Regards,

*Pat Buckley*

______________________________________________

Thanks for your reply Liz. Your description is of a manual process that 
I'm quite aware of. I'm hoping to somehow integrate the sales-tax table 
into some more automated method of splitting items with sales tax 
because there are so many thousands of items like this and doing manual 
entries is rather time consuming and should be unnecessary effort as the 
process is so repetitive. I'm hoping to: 1. automate process using Sales 
Tax table rather than needing to type in value each time an item is 
split 2. get this to happen automatically when do splits on all items of 
many sub-accounts of Expenses, like, say, Expenses::Car, or, even better 
yet for items assigned to Expenses::Car have automatic splits of each 
item's total into (1) total-minus-tax and (2) tax - since almost all 
items assigned to Expenses::Car are split into (1) total-minus-tax and 
(2) tax. 3. get splits on existing items in, say, Expenses::Car to keep 
initial total when do splits on them - right now when do a split on an 
item in Expenses::Car, value assigned to split is added to the prior 
total of the item, rather than having original total for item and 
ideally have new value on the split subtracted form the initial value - 
the end result is that the total for the item is larger as it adds 
sales-tax twice to and item. This makes no sense as it is incorrect as 
the bank has recorded for me the true total. I want to split this total 
into item-value and tax.

-- original message ------------

*Liz* edodd at billiau.net 
<mailto:gnucash-user%40gnucash.org?Subject=Re:%20Re%3A%20%5BGNC%5D%20Determining%20HST%20Amounts%20from%20bank%20postings&In-Reply-To=%3C20250817174347.0077d390%40zenbook3.billiau.net%3E 
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/Sun Aug 17 03:43:47 EDT 2025/

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------------------------------------------------------------------------

On Sat, 16 Aug 2025 22:19:28 -0400
Pat Buckley <eq956 at ncf.ca
<https://lists.gnucash.org/mailman/listinfo/gnucash-user>> wrote:

    /I see that HST amounts can be added to Invoices and bills. I do not />/use
invoices or bills. I just
    use files from the bank accounts and />/credit cards. Is there a way that I
can use a SALES-TAX-TABLE
    to />/determine the amount to put in EXPENSE::HST account? I tried using
/>/SPLIT-TRANSACTION either
    on the Assets::Current Assets::Checking />/Account. Is there a way that
entries in Assets::Current
    />/Assets::Checking Account can be SPLIT into item-cost and HST ? I do
/>/not see a way. Similarly,
    I tried to SPLIT entries in, say, />/EXPENSES::Household. />//

Yes there is a way to split the transactions.
I am thinking from your post that you are not yet able to make
multisplit transactions, so I am inserting two links, one to written
instructions and then one to a video. The video is referring to older
version, but that should make no difference.
https://gnucash.org/docs/v5//C/gnucash-manual/trans-multi-enter.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IspbOCaeZpo

You split can be done from any of the accounts you mentioned, but I'd
recommend your cheque account.

Mine is simple arithmetic - the tax is one eleventh of the total.
I put in the total.
I put in the tax amount by entering the arithmetic in the amount box
and pressing enter [total / 11]
Then use an arrow up, the remainder will appear in another box
below ready for the expenses account to be selected.

Liz