These steps use our CereTax extension for Business Central. When the toggle "Enable CereTax on Sales Transactions" in the CereTax General Settings is on, Business Central uses CereTax to calculate tax. To set a customer exempt, set the customer's Tax Area Code to CERETAX. Then choose the exemption criteria, the percent, and a reason in the Customer Exemption Subform under the CereTax Customer Setting tab. Release a sales document and read the tax on each line in the CereTax Sales Tax Log to compare it with the exemption you set.
Who This Applies To
This page is for accounting leads and finance systems administrators who set up customers in Business Central with our CereTax extension. Our Business Central integration is available through Microsoft AppSource. The steps follow our Business Central setup documentation, updated August 27, 2026, which describes app version 1.0.0.35. Release 1.0.0.36, dated September 9, 2026, is later, and no release note line mentions exemptions or certificates.
Before You Start
Confirm these company settings are in place first:
- Hold CT_Admin permissions, which installation and setup require.
- In General Settings, create a Default Tax Area Code named CERETAX, keep "Use External Tax Engine" off, and create a Default Tax Group Code named CERETAX.
- Create a tax jurisdiction with the code CERETAX and its tax account, and assign it to the CERETAX tax area code.
- Set the Tax Group Code to CERETAX on every item, general ledger (G/L) account, resource, and fixed asset that you use on transactions. Our setup requires this code for tax to calculate correctly.
- Turn on "Enable CereTax on Sales Transactions."
Steps to Mark a Customer Tax Exempt
- Go to Sales, Customers, and create a customer or select an existing one.
- On the Customer Card, open the Invoicing tab and set the Tax Area Code to CERETAX. When CereTax is enabled for sales, customers must carry that code. To set the code for several customers at once, select them on the Customer List, then choose Actions, Functions, Assign Tax Area, select CERETAX, and select OK. Microsoft's Customer table reference defines Tax Area Code as the code used to calculate sales tax for the customer.
- Expand the "Customer Exemption Subform" tab within the "CereTax Customer Setting" tab.
- Select the exemption criteria from the dropdowns: state, tax level, tax type, and tax type class, as your exemption requires.
- Set the exemption Percent. The default is 1.00, or 100%.
- Enter a Reason for the exemption. We give "Resale" as an example of the text.
To remove an exemption, open the "Show more options" menu on its row, select "Delete Line," and confirm the deletion.
Check an Invoice for the Customer
CereTax calculates tax on a sales transaction when you open the Statistics page, release the document, run Preview Posting, or post the document. Use a test invoice for the exempt customer and follow these steps:
- Create a sales invoice for the customer with a line item whose Tax Group Code is CERETAX.
- Release the document, or run Preview Posting.
- On the transaction, open the "CereTax" menu and select "CereTax Sales Tax Log." The log shows a breakdown of tax for every line on the transaction.
- Read the tax on each line and compare it with the exemption you set on the customer.
If Tax Still Appears on an Exempt Customer's Invoice
We require these settings for tax to calculate under CereTax. Check each against your test invoice:
- "Enable CereTax on Sales Transactions" is on.
- The customer's Tax Area Code is CERETAX.
- The item or account on the line has the Tax Group Code CERETAX.
If all three are in place, reopen the Customer Exemption Subform and confirm the criteria, percent, and reason are the ones you meant to enter.
Next Step
To ask us about your Business Central exemption setup, contact CereTax.
Questions About Your Business Central Setup?
