Excise stamp records that match down to the last unit

The records described here follow Polish excise regulations, under which the system runs today.

Why this is a separate topic

Excise goods records are not an ordinary warehouse. A warehouse answers the question "how many do we have", while excise stamp records answer "where is every single unit and what happened to it". Those two questions differ in everything: a warehouse may round, the records may not.

Excise stamps are accounted for by number, and the numbering is continuous. One range must not overlap another, must not break off and must not disappear without explanation. A spreadsheet enforces none of this, so a discrepancy surfaces only at reconciliation, when nobody remembers which day was wrong.

What the system does

Unbroken numbering, checked as data is entered

A range is checked when it is created, not at the end of the month. A wrong number format, a reversed range, a quantity that does not match the range and a number outside the issued series are stopped immediately, with a message on the screen of the person entering the data. Overlapping ranges and gaps in continuity trigger a warning: it can be overridden deliberately, but the override is recorded.

Daily summaries closed like a document

A working day is closed deliberately, and it cannot be closed before the daily summary is. A closed day accepts no new issues, and only an administrator can reopen it, which is recorded. An entry cannot be quietly deleted: cancelling it leaves a trace of who, when and why. During an inspection, that trace is worth more than the result itself.

Damaged, lost and returned stamps kept separately

A damaged stamp is not waste but a mark that has to be accounted for. The system records damaged, lost and returned stamps separately from applied stamps and separately from damaged goods, because these are different things that can happen together. If a product is damaged after stamping, both the product and the excise stamp are lost, and both have to go into the records.

Two sets of records in parallel

Own production and goods supplied by a customer are two separate sets of records, each reconciled with a different party. The system keeps them apart, with their own documents and reports, but the numbers can be combined when the full picture is needed.

Documents and reports

Notifications, periodic statements and printouts for the tax office are produced from data that is already in the system, not by retyping it into a separate form. A report tells you how many out of how many: if data is missing, the printout shows a dash and a note about the gap, not a zero pretending to be the truth.

Evidence for goods supplied by a customer

When you account to a customer for damaged units, a statement alone is not enough. The system requires evidence for every unit reported as damaged and will not let you send the reconciliation while any line is missing it. Gaps are visible on the list before anyone clicks "send".

Who it is for

• producers and bottling plants of goods subject to excise stamping,
• companies applying excise stamps to goods supplied by a customer,
• plants that keep records in a spreadsheet today and started losing track as volumes grew,
• companies after an inspection that already know what was missing from their documentation.

A fair disclaimer

I am not a tax adviser and I do not interpret the regulations on behalf of the company. How your records should look is something you decide with your adviser or with the tax office. My part is to make the numbers defensible: every unit has its place, date and person, and a discrepancy is visible on the day it arises.

Frequently asked questions