Tax Rates is where sales tax rates by location are imported and reviewed.
What this screen is for
Use Tax Rates to import quarterly sales tax rate files and review currently effective rates by state, county, location, code, rate, effective date, and end date.
admin and executive users can view Tax Rates from System Settings. Importing rates is protected by the backend for admin users.
Screen path
Dashboard > System Settings > Accounting > Tax Rates
Key areas
| Area | What it shows |
|---|---|
Import Quarterly Rates |
State, effective date, end date, .xlsx file picker, and Import Rates button. |
| Search | Filters loaded rates by state, city/location, county, or location code. |
| Rates table | Shows state, county, location, code, local rate, state rate, combined rate, effective date, and end date. |
The current UI supports WA in the state selector for imports.
Main actions
Import Rates: Imports a quarterly.xlsxfile.- Search by state, city, county, or location code.
- Review the currently effective tax rate rows.
There is no manual row edit action on this screen.
What happens behind the scenes
PAX reads active tax rates when the screen loads with effective_only=true.
When an import is submitted, PAX expects a state, an effective date, and an .xlsx file. The WA Department of Revenue format is parsed from the first worksheet. PAX reads county, location name, location code, local rate, state rate, and combined rate.
The import runs in a transaction. Current open-ended rates for the same state with an earlier effective date are ended the day before the new effective date, and imported rows are inserted or updated by state, location code, and effective date.
Sales tax lookup uses currently effective tax rates by postal code, then city/location name, then county/unincorporated fallback where applicable.
Troubleshooting
Import Rates is disabled
Likely cause: A file or effective date is missing, or an import is already running.
Safe fix: Select a .xlsx file and enter Effective Date.
Contact support if: Required fields are complete but the button remains disabled.
Import failed: No valid data rows found in file
Likely cause: The spreadsheet does not match the expected WA Department of Revenue format.
Safe fix: Download the official quarterly .xlsx file and import it without reformatting.
Contact support if: The official file still fails.
A rate is missing from search results
Likely cause: The screen shows currently effective rates only.
Safe fix: Confirm the effective date and end date for the rate period.
Contact support if: A current rate should be effective but is not listed.