Set up VAT and explain inclusive and exclusive prices

PressFlow calculates tax through WooCommerce. It does not assume a 20% rate. A product can be taxable, zero-rated or exempt for a particular customer, so two displayed amounts can legitimately be equal.

Set up the shop before entering prices

1. Open WooCommerce → Settings → General and enable tax calculations if your shop uses them.
2. Open WooCommerce → Settings → Tax. Decide whether your selling prices will be entered including or excluding tax. PressFlow's live product pricing follows that setting.
3. Configure the tax calculation address, rates and display preferences for your business.
4. In Products → Edit product → Product data → General, set the product's Tax status and Tax class. Make sure a matching rate exists for that class and the relevant location.
5. Enter PressFlow prices consistently with the chosen price-entry basis. Check a full job, an extra, a minimum and a production surcharge.

Changing the price-entry basis does not rewrite your existing numbers. If £100 used to mean £100 excluding tax and you change the setting, it can now mean £100 including tax. Review every selling-price source before changing this on a live shop.

For the underlying settings, see WooCommerce's tax setup guide. Confirm the correct tax treatment for your business with your adviser; choosing a screen setting does not establish that treatment.

What the customer sees

With a compatible shop theme, PressFlow supplies independently calculated exclusive and inclusive amounts for the same specification: starting price, configured job total, per-copy price and quantity/date matrix cells. The theme's VAT switcher chooses which amount to show, including after a price refresh. The saved preference affects display only.

Other themes receive a portable display following WooCommerce's configured shop tax display. PressFlow does not add a universal VAT toggle to those themes.

Switching the preference does not alter copies, options, basket prices, tax rates or checkout totals. WooCommerce still calculates the purchase using the customer's checkout details.

A practical check

Use a taxable product with a matching rate and a valid £100 job in an exclusive-price shop. Compare the exclusive amount with WooCommerce's inclusive result. Repeat after changing options, copies, dimensions and production date. Check the catalogue starting price and matrix at the same time.

Then test a zero-rated class and an exempt customer using your actual exemption mechanism. Equal prices are expected where no tax applies. Test a different customer location if your rates vary by address. Do not judge customer tax behavior solely from a logged-in administrator's setup preview.

When the label changes but the amount does not

Check that tax calculation is enabled, the product is taxable, the class has a matching rate and the customer is not exempt. Check the actual amount returned after changing an option. Do not repair this by multiplying the visible number by 1.2: that breaks other tax classes, locations and inclusive-entry shops.

Staff-created quote offers are a separate workflow: the quote's entered complete-job price is exclusive of tax. Follow the quote guide rather than applying the product editor's entry basis to it.

Related: Starting prices, Discounts, Developer VAT integration.