ROS Off line

[bestestimate]

Is there such a thing as ROS Offline ?

I'd like to get familiar and confident with some ROS applications before I start using ROS properly without the risk of making errors. Any advice ?

Thanks in advance

 

[ClubMan]

What do you mean by "ROS applications"?
Can't you just use the real thing but just not submit/sign anything?
Don't they also have guides and videos on how to use their platform?

 

[bestestimate]

What do you mean by "ROS applications"?
Can't you just use the real thing but just not submit/sign anything?
Don't they also have guides and videos on how to use their platform?

Thanks Clubman. I have very bad patience for videos and instructions. Prefer the trial and error method. So I could do everything right up to the last entry and then just cancel and don't submit it ? Sounds good. thank you. ROS applications e.g : CAT submission , Form 11,Stamp Duty declaration , IT38. Some of these I want to use , others I want to learn more about to cross check figures.

 

[AAAContributor]

Is there such a thing as ROS Offline ?

There is. And it's precisely useful for what you want to do, namely:

Prefer the trial and error method

others I want to learn more about to cross check figures

Here's more info:

404 - Page not found

Sorry, the page you are looking for has been removed, had its name changed or is temporarily unavailable.

www.revenue.ie

Download the application to your PC.

It's very useful for running trial scenarios without any danger of submitting anything you don't want in error.

 

[bestestimate]

There is. And it's precisely useful for what you want to do, namely:





Here's more info:

404 - Page not found

Sorry, the page you are looking for has been removed, had its name changed or is temporarily unavailable.

www.revenue.ie

Download the application to your PC.

It's very useful for running trial scenarios without any danger of submitting anything you don't want in error.

That is absolutely brilliant. Thanks so much.

 

[Wheelie Bin]

Is there a similiar offline facility for personal taxes .
myaccount offline , maybe ?

 

[extopia]

This seems to have been replaced by Return Preparation Facility (RPF) - https://www.ros.ie/rpf-web/rev/offline

I went through the first part of preparing a return for 2025 and saving locally. Entered all Personal Details and PAYE income for self and spouse but the file is not saving properly (just saved and reopened and it's blank).

Any tips?

EDIT: It seems to be working now on the second attempt, perhaps I had tried to save while there was an error on one of the pages completed, this seems to be a potential gotcha.

 

[Greenbook]

I went through the first part of preparing a return for 2025 and saving locally. Entered all Personal Details and PAYE income for self and spouse but the file is not saving properly (just saved and reopened and it's blank).

I had the same problem myself. Filled in everything, saving as I went along. Then went to save the final page and close it and I got an error message. Everything I had inputted vanished. I phoned the helpdesk, no use at all.

I inputted everything again the following week and it was fine that time.

 

[extopia]

Thanks for the reply, that is a welcome sanity check anyway. I found reentering the data straight forward enough as every relevant field seemed to have been saved somewhere in the browser and the data was offered, autocomplete style. Not sure how I feel about that from a security viewpoint but it saved a good bit of time!

 

[Robovac rider]

@extopia @Greenbook
You can use the actual online ROS form 11.

Open the prepopulated form 11, play around in any way you choose.
Don't sign and submitt.

You can close and reopen the form 11 as many times as you want.
When you are finished playing with the form 11.
Exit the form.
Go back to submit a form online.
Select... income tax...form 11

On the next screen select delete the form 11. The form 11 will then revert to it's original prepopulated state as sent by revenue.

You can repeat this process as many times as you like.

You can let the form 11 calculate and you can print out the calculated results.

You can also do this after you have signed and submitted the form 11. When you choose to edit an already submitted form 11 you need to click a box to change the form. Choose correct an error.

Again you can play around but don't sign and submitt.
When you then delete the form 11, it will now revert to your actual submitted form 11. Nothing has changed. Your signed and submitted tax return remains as was.

You can do this for previous years submitted form 11 returns.

I have done all this many times.

This is a great way to learn how the form 11 operates.

 

[Brendan Burgess]

Not sure why you would use the off-line form?

I do my tax return on an Excel spreadsheet.
I fill it and the ROS online simultaneously e.g. I get some of the pre-populated information from Ros online.

As of now, it is saved and ready to submit. I will wait and do the Preliminary Tax all in one go in early November.

This year I wondered if I need the Excel spreadsheet at all? But it's handy to see it all in one place. And it's handy to calculate the Preliminary Tax for next year.

 

[Robovac rider]

Not sure why you would use the off-line form?

Lots of people seem to be afraid of using the online form out of fear of making mistakes.

In reality it doesn't matter if they mess up their form 11, as it can be repaired back to its original prepopulated state as explained above.

 

[Brendan Burgess]

That is a good point. I have an irrational fear of making a mistake on my tax return. Although I have made them in the past, submitted them, and corrected them later without any hassle from Revenue.

And any mistake online can be corrected anyway before submission.

 

[Villaines]

Lots of people seem to be afraid of using the online form out of fear of making mistakes.

In reality it doesn't matter if they mess up their form 11, as it can be repaired back to its original prepopulated state as explained above.

But if you fail to claim a credit or something like that, if you re-submit and they have to pay you a refund, does that not heighten the risk of audit? Clearly every aspect of any tax return should be well supported by the taxpayer anyway in expectation of an audit, but nobody wants an audit.

 

[getting_on]

But if you fail to claim a credit or something like that, if you re-submit and they have to pay you a refund, does that not heighten the risk of audit? Clearly every aspect of any tax return should be well supported by the taxpayer anyway in expectation of an audit, but nobody wants an audit.

I'd be a bit paranoid of not getting it right first time too. I'd rather pay too much tax than draw them onto me.

 

[Robovac rider]

But if you fail to claim a credit or something like that, if you re-submit and they have to pay you a refund, does that not heighten the risk of audit?

I have made many mistakes over the years. Some under payment, some over payments.

On more than one occasion I have resubmitted form 11 more than once.

I have never had any comments from Revenue. I have never been audited.

If a person is concientiously correcting errors they should be less on the Revenue radar for dodgy tax returns.

 

[getting_on]

If a person is concientiously correcting errors they should be less on the Revenue radar for dodgy tax returns.

True but if they suspect that you don't know what you are doing, that's a red flag too.

 

[Robovac rider]

The ROS system is computerised.
Mistakes are corrected very quickly. I doubt that there is any human interaction.

I am registered as an employer also. I occasionally employ one person and don't use payroll software. I made a complete mess of my payroll submissions recently.

This was all instantly corrected when I resubmitted.

Again no comments from Revenue.

If you make a mistake, resubmitt. Don't overpay your taxes out of fear.

 

[extopia]

You can use the actual online ROS form 11.

Open the prepopulated form 11, play around in any way you choose.

That would be great, but it does not seem to be an option for me. The system tells me I "have no outstanding periods for which to file a return". I'd imagine this is because we generally file with my wife as the "self" and me as the "spouse". I don't want to jump through the hoops of installing seperate digital certificates etc. so the RPF is an easier option for doing the first drafts of our return. We generally file the actual return through a TAIN because our return has traditionally been quite complicated and we feel the professional expense is justified. I do like to do a draft myself though just to have a general idea.

I do my tax return on an Excel spreadsheet.

Would you be prepared to share the template, Brendan? I used to have my own excel sheet but lots of things have changed since I used it last.

 

[Brendan Burgess]

Would you be prepared to share the template, Brendan? I used to have my own excel sheet but lots of things have changed since I used it last.

It's not a template as such and would not be of great help to others.

And I am not an Excel wizard by any means. I don't attempt to calculate USC - it's way above my paygrade.

But it could be a good project for someone who is a wizard. Set up an Excel spreadsheet to mimic F11. Come to think of it, there are so many things you would have to cater for, it would be unwieldy.

And if you did a simple one, someone would say "Why don't you accommodate the blind person's tax credit?"