VAT Calculation for Meal / Combo Products
VAT calculations for Meals / Combo products are complex because they involve multiple products with potentially different VAT rates bundled together at a discounted price.
A meal deal may consist of:
Main item (e.g., burger) with one VAT rate (e.g., 13.5%)
Drink item with a different VAT rate (e.g., 23%)
The system determines how much of the meal deal price should be attributed to each component for accurate VAT calculation.
VAT Calculation Formula for Meal / Combo Products
For each component in the meal deal, you need:
The product availability price (i.e., what the product would sell of on its own)
The VAT rate for that product
Any additional charges (toppings, modifications)
Add up all the individual standalone prices of the meal components. Then calculate what portion of the meal deal price each component represents:
Product Price in Meal = ( Standalone Product Price ÷ Standalone Total Price ) × Meal Price
The appropriate VAT rate is applied to each component (e.g., VAT rate of Fanta is applied to Fanta's Price in Meal).
Product NET Amount = Product Price in Meal ÷ ( 1 + VAT Rate )
Product VAT Amount = Product Price in Meal - Product NET Amount
Example Calculation
Quarter Pounder Burger Meal
Meal Price: €12.50
Quarter Pounder Burger
€1.00
€10.00
€7.35
13.5%
€6.48
€0.87
Quarter Pounder Burger
€0.00
€9.00
13.5%
Add Lettuce (topping)
€0.50
€0.50
-
Add Cheese (topping)
€0.50
€0.50
-
Regular Chips
€0.00
€4.50
€3.31
13.5%
€2.92
€0.39
Fanta
€0.00
€2.50
€1.84
23%
€1.49
€0.34
€17.00
€12.50
€10.89
€1.61
Net Price: €10.89
VAT Amount: €1.61
VAT Rate: 14.8%
€1.61 ÷ €10.89
Validation
The VAT Amount based on the calculation is €1.61. The POS output matches the expected results, as shown in the screenshot below.
Critical Warning
If you set the product availability pricing to €0.00 for a meal deal component, the system cannot calculate the proper VAT allocation. The system needs to know each component's standalone value. Without this information, VAT calculations will be incorrect.
If you need a price to be €0.00 for a product within a meal (e.g., all drink choices to be free), this is where Price Override within the customisation should be used.
Best Practice:
Ensure that meal deal components have standalone prices, even if they appear as "free" within the meal deal context.
Last updated