Gold shop software · GBP · Ready-made packJewellery shop software for the UK
In the UK, new pieces carry 20% VAT on their full value, while second-hand pieces bought from private sellers can be sold under the margin scheme — VAT on the shop’s margin only. That is only possible if the piece’s cost was recorded on the day it was bought.
Tax in the UK: 20%, and the margin scheme for second-hand
The margin scheme: when a shop buys a piece from a private person who charges no VAT and then sells it, VAT is worked out on the difference between the selling and buying price, and it sits inside the price, not on top: margin × 20 ÷ 120.
ZahabFlow records, with every piece that comes into the shop — by trade-in, by buying scrap or from a supplier — its cost, currency, type of seller, VAT status and the document it came with. Without that data the margin scheme is impossible later.
To be honest about it: the margin calculation is in the pricing engine, but the till does not apply it yet. Today every piece is sold at 20% on its full value.
A worked example
A piece the shop bought from a private seller for £600 and sells for £900:
| Line | Calculation | Result (£) |
|---|---|---|
| Margin | 900 − 600 | 300.00 |
| Margin-scheme VAT (inside the price) | 300 × 20 ÷ 120 | 50.00 |
| Customer pays | — | 900.00 |
| For comparison: full-value VAT | 900 × 20% on top | 180.00 |
Prices in the example are illustrative, not today’s rates.
At a glance
- Currency
- Pound sterling, 2 decimals
- Weight
- Grams, stored to the nanogram
- Fineness
- Parts per thousand, as pieces are hallmarked: 375, 585, 750, 916
- Tax
- 20% on the full value; the margin scheme is in the engine but not on the till yet
- E-invoice
- Not required, and not something we offer
What to know before you start
- The software works in Arabic and English — useful for an owner in London or Birmingham who wants the screens in Arabic.
What every shop gets
A till priced from the rate of the moment
Price is never stored on a piece. It is rebuilt at every sale from the gram rate, fineness, making charge and tax, then fixed on the invoice.
Stock in grams per karat
Weight is stored in nanograms and fineness as parts per thousand, so pure grams add up and reconcile with no rounding.
Trade-in and buying scrap
The customer pays part of the price in old gold on the sell screen itself, and every gram that comes in is recorded with its cost and source.
Workshop
The customer’s gold on the bench is weighed going out and coming back, and the loss is recorded per craftsman.
Selling without internet
The arithmetic runs on the device itself; the sale waits in a queue, is sent when the connection returns, and the server re-prices it.
Day close
Expected grams per fineness and expected cash, against what you counted, with the difference recorded and a note.
Arabic and English
Arabic first, right to left, with full English — one tap to switch.
Questions we are asked
Can it sell under the margin scheme today?
Not on the till yet. The engine computes it, and the data it needs is recorded on every piece from day one, but today’s invoice charges 20% on the full value.
Why record second-hand costs if the margin scheme is not available yet?
Because they cannot be recovered later. If the cost and source of a piece are not recorded on the day it is bought, it can never be sold under the margin scheme.
Can staff who do not read Arabic use it?
Yes. The whole interface is in English too, and you can switch languages at any time.