Hilfe - Produkte & Funktionen
German English
Hilfe - Produkte & Funktionen
German English
Breadcrumbs

Term: Voucher

Voucher

A Voucher (DE: Gutschein) is a value document issued by the operator that the holder can redeem against a later booking — cash-value voucher, item-specific voucher, or gift voucher. bessa has two voucher modules, each handling issuance, partial redemption and remaining balance fiscally compliant:

  • Local vouchers (the bessa Kassa's Voucher Management module) — only sold and redeemed at the Sales Point and always valid in all branches of the company.

  • Online vouchers — a separate bessa module for the bessa Kassa and POS systems from other vendors; purchase and redemption also in the web shop and the app, redeemable company-wide or only at individual locations.

Also known as

  • Gutschein — canonical term in bessa product interfaces.

  • Gift card — for physical-card variants.

  • Gift voucher — descriptive.

Single-purpose vs multi-purpose voucher

For VAT purposes (EU VAT Directive, transposed in Austria as Einzweckgutschein / Mehrzweckgutschein under § 3 (14)–(15) UStG) two forms of voucher are distinguished:

  • Single-purpose voucher — the place of supply and the applicable VAT rate are already known at issuance (e.g. "breakfast voucher for a specific venue, 10 % VAT for food"). VAT becomes due at the time of sale; the later redemption against the concrete supply is irrelevant for VAT.

  • Multi-purpose voucher — the supply to be rendered and/or the applicable VAT rate are not yet known at issuance (e.g. a "€50 cash voucher redeemable against food or beverages" at different VAT rates). VAT becomes due only on redemption against the concrete product; the sale of the voucher itself is not subject to VAT.

The fiscal treatment of a voucher in bessa is steered through the article group the voucher article belongs to: a single-purpose voucher lives in a group with the matching tax rate, a multi-purpose voucher in a group with 0 % tax. Please consult your tax advisor for the concrete setup in your operation — see also Invoices for Vouchers.

On redemption a voucher is a means of payment, not a cart article. Do not create your own 0 % article with a negative amount for it: that books the deduction into the 0 % rate by mistake and understates the fiscal turnover counter — details under Redeem a Voucher.

Distinction

  • Voucher (this page) — one-off value document, redeemable until expiry.

  • Loyalty Card — a customer loyalty card accumulating balance or points over time.

  • Customer Card — umbrella term for loyalty-program card holders.

Further guides