I need to upload csv file for sales tax report to Pennsylvania and keep getting errors

[Lotsoflashes]

Need to upload csv file for sales tax report to Pennsylvania. I keep getting errors such as 

This record type must contain exactly 14 columns. Record: 1 contains 5.

Any suggestions?

Thank you!

Patty

[TheRealChipA · Accepted solution]

Hey there @Lotsoflashes.  I’m assuming that the errors you are getting come from the PA upload web page, not from Square.  This error is happening because the Square CSV is based entirely on Square’s sales tax report, and is NOT formatted according to PA’s formatting requirements.  Since Square does not file sales tax reports for us, or pay the sales tax, it is up to us to take the information from Square and format it according to PA’s requirements.  They should have a sample upload file on their website for you to download.  Then, you’ll need to use a spreadsheet to create a CSV upload file that meets their requirements.

Your other option is to pay a third-party vendor (like Tax Jar, for example) to connect to your Square account and file both your monthly reports and sales taxes to PA for you.  Of course, this option will cost you in monthly fees paid to whoever prepares and submits this for you.  Third-party vendors like this can be found by searching for “sales taxes” in the Square App Marketplace.

[TheRealChipA · Accepted solution]

Hey there @Lotsoflashes.  I’m assuming that the errors you are getting come from the PA upload web page, not from Square.  This error is happening because the Square CSV is based entirely on Square’s sales tax report, and is NOT formatted according to PA’s formatting requirements.  Since Square does not file sales tax reports for us, or pay the sales tax, it is up to us to take the information from Square and format it according to PA’s requirements.  They should have a sample upload file on their website for you to download.  Then, you’ll need to use a spreadsheet to create a CSV upload file that meets their requirements.

Your other option is to pay a third-party vendor (like Tax Jar, for example) to connect to your Square account and file both your monthly reports and sales taxes to PA for you.  Of course, this option will cost you in monthly fees paid to whoever prepares and submits this for you.  Third-party vendors like this can be found by searching for “sales taxes” in the Square App Marketplace.

[Lotsoflashes]

Thank you for the info! However, I’ve done the cvs file but I keep getting an error that says the record type must contain exactly 14 columns. Record 1 contains 3. 😡😡😡 we’ve tried it every which way. Do you know where I could view an actual template? They have instructions which I feel like we followed but I’d like to see an example. 

[Candlestore · Accepted solution]

@Lotsoflashes ;

Patty I am in PA and do not upload a csv file for my sales taxes.  I had to setup an account at Mypath here is the link:

https://www.mypath.pa.gov 

In PA we used to use Etides web portal for tax filings but that got changed 2 years ago or so to the Mypath portal.

When you setup an account there you can enter your Gross sales for the timeline your required to file for, 

Sales, Use, and Hotel Occupancy Tax (PA-3)

• Here is a Copy of the web page for Monthly Sales Taxes that I fill in monthly.

Sales Jurisdiction	Pennsylvania
Tax Rate	6%
Total Gross Sales,  Rentals, Services	0.00	Get From Square Sales Report
Net Taxable SalesTotal Amount of Tax Due	0.00	Get From Square Get from Taxes tab in Reports
Discount	0.00	Calculated from MyPath
Net Sales Tax Due	0.00	Calculated by MyPath
Use Tax Due	0.00	Calculated by MyPath
E 911 Fee Due	0.00
E 911 Discount	0.00
E 911 Net Fee Due	0.00
Total Tax and Fee Due	0.00
TPPR Credit	0.00
Amount Due	0.00	Calculated by MyPath

All this data comes from Square Sales Report and from Taxes in the Report section in the Square Dashbord web page.

Usually I open 2 chrome browsers, One with Square and one for Mypath.   Copy the Numbers requested for Mypath and then paste the numbers there.

Usually :

Gross Sales

Net Taxable Sales

The Tax due is calculated and I compare that with what Square says I should owe.

I never had to submit a csv to them.

What page are you using to submit your Sales Tax information to?

Maybe I can look at it and see if I can help.

[Lotsoflashes]

Thank you for posting this!!! Problem solved! 

[TheRealChipA]

Thanks for jumping in here, Keith!