DevisersTech Arabia Case Study: Zoho Books and ZATCA Fatoora

At a glance

100%ZATCA Compliant

90%Reduction in Manual Effort

90%Faster Invoicing

100%Automatic VAT Entries

The challenge

What DevisersTech Arabia needed to fix

DevisersTech Arabia partnered with Shyphan to deliver zoho Books with ZATCA Phase 1 + Phase 2. Before the rollout, DevisersTech was running on spreadsheets with manual VAT calculations and no ZATCA-compliant invoicing in place.

Before the rollout, DevisersTech was running on spreadsheets with manual VAT calculations and no ZATCA-compliant invoicing in place.

Manual Books of AccountsFinance was tracked in spreadsheets with no proper Chart of Accounts.
VAT & E-Invoicing RiskManual VAT and no ZATCA e-invoicing created real compliance exposure.
Unstructured Chart of AccountsThere was no clean COA mapped to the way the business actually operates.
No Automated Sales InvoicingInvoices were created manually with no template, controls or workflow.
No Centralized VisibilityLeadership had no real-time view of revenue, VAT or receivables.

Hand with pen checking a financial statement beside a calculator. Photo credit

Before and after

What changed for the team

BeforeAfter

Finance tracked in spreadsheets with no proper chart of accounts

A structured chart of accounts in Zoho Books, built for an IT consultancy

Manual VAT calculations and no ZATCA-compliant invoicing in place

VAT applied automatically, with ZATCA Phase 1 and Phase 2 both live

Invoices created manually with no template, controls or workflow

Branded invoices with threshold-based approvals, cleared by ZATCA in real time

Leadership had no real-time view of revenue, VAT or receivables

VAT, cash-flow and management reports available directly from Zoho Books

How it works

The business process, step by step

01
Chart of accounts
Shyphan designed a structured chart of accounts for an IT consultancy in Zoho Books and migrated the existing accounts into it, so every posting lands in an account that matches how the business operates.
02
VAT setup
KSA VAT is configured in Zoho Books with tax codes and groups for 15% standard, exempt and zero-rated supplies, so VAT is calculated automatically on every transaction instead of by hand.
03
Fatoora onboarding
The organisation is onboarded to ZATCA Fatoora, including the CSID and compliance checks, connecting Zoho Books for both Phase 1 e-invoicing and Phase 2 real-time clearance.
04
Invoice
The finance team issues sales invoices and credit notes from Zoho Books on the branded, ZATCA-compliant template, with threshold-based approvals on invoices, credit notes and journal entries.
05
Real-time clearance
Each B2B invoice is sent from Zoho Books to ZATCA for Phase 2 real-time clearance through Fatoora, so the finance team never has to upload invoices manually.
06
QR and XML
Zoho Books generates the QR code, XML and PDF automatically and stores them with every invoice and credit note, giving the company a clear trail that is ready for audit.
07
Reports
Leadership and finance run VAT return, cash-flow and management reports from Zoho Books, giving them a real-time view of revenue, VAT and receivables without spreadsheet work.

The solution

What we built for DevisersTech Arabia

Shyphan, a Zoho Premium Partner, configured Zoho Books end-to-end with a structured COA, KSA VAT, ZATCA Phase 1 e-invoicing and ZATCA Phase 2 Fatoora real-time clearance.

Company profile, KSA settings and VAT setup
Structured Chart of Accounts migrated
Customers, vendors and items migrated
VAT codes, tax groups and return reporting
Custom branded sales invoice template

ZATCA Fatoora

ZATCA Phase 1 e-invoicing with QR code
ZATCA Phase 2 Fatoora real-time clearance
Automatic XML and PDF generation
Invoice clearance workflow
End-to-end transaction testing

Scope delivered

Zoho Books organisation set-up and chart of accounts
VAT configuration and tax groups
ZATCA Phase 1 and Phase 2 Fatoora onboarding
Invoice and credit note templates with QR and XML
Customer and vendor master data import
Bank reconciliation and expense capture
VAT return and cash-flow reports
Two training sessions and written SOPs

Who uses it

Finance team

Issue invoices and credit notes, capture expenses, reconcile bank accounts and prepare VAT returns in Zoho Books.

Approvers

Approve invoices, credit notes and journal entries above the set threshold before they are posted or sent.

Leadership

Review revenue, VAT and receivables in real time through the VAT, cash-flow and management reports.

Administrator

Manages role-based access so that each user sees only the modules and data their role needs.

Architecture

How the systems connect

InputsLegacy spreadsheetsBank statementsExpense capture

Delivered by ShyphanZATCA Fatoora

OutputsZATCA FatooraCustomer invoicesVAT return

Integrations

Approval Workflows
Threshold-based approvals on invoices, credit notes and journal entries.
Role-Based Access
Each user only sees the modules and data their role needs.
Branded Invoice Template
ZATCA-compliant layout with company branding baked in.
Master Data Migration
Customers, vendors, items and opening balances loaded cleanly.
Fatoora Phase 2 Live
Every invoice is cleared by ZATCA in real time, no manual upload.
End-to-End Testing
Full transaction cycle validated before cutover, zero day-one surprises.

Reports and dashboards

VAT return

VAT by tax code across 15% standard, exempt and zero-rated supplies, ready for filing.

Cash flow

Cash coming in and going out, drawn from reconciled bank accounts and captured expenses.

Revenue and receivables

Revenue earned and amounts still owed by customers, from invoices issued in Zoho Books.

E-invoice clearance

Invoices issued and their ZATCA Phase 2 clearance, with the QR code and XML stored on each.

The results

What the system does now

Full VAT & E-Invoicing ComplianceZATCA Phase 1 and Phase 2 are both live and validated.
Automated Books of AccountsPostings, VAT and reports happen with no manual data entry.
Zero Data Migration RiskBooks were validated cell-by-cell before cutover.
Professional InvoicingEvery invoice is branded, compliant and cleared in real time.
Confident Finance TeamUsers own the system end-to-end without needing IT help.
Audit-Ready FoundationClean books, clear trail and ready for inspection any day.

Client testimonial

The implementation was smooth and professional. Our books are now properly set up, our VAT is handled automatically, and our invoices are fully ZATCA-compliant. Shyphan understood exactly what we needed and delivered it quickly.

BilalManager · DevisersTech Arabia

Delivery

Five-phase delivery in 1.5 weeks · 20 hours

01
Discovery & Blueprint
Stakeholder workshops, AS-IS process mapping, BRD/FRD finalization
Signed-off Solution Design
02
Configuration & Build
Module setup, custom workflows, automation, integrations
Working sandbox
03
Data Migration & UAT
Data cleansing, mapping, migration, full UAT cycle with users
UAT sign-off
04
Training & Change Mgmt
Admin & end-user training, SOPs, recorded video walkthroughs
Adoption-ready users
05
Go-Live & Hyper-care
Cutover, production go-live, daily support, optimization sprint
Stable production system

Local rules built in

ZATCA e-invoicing

Fatoora-format tax invoices with XML and QR, cleared or reported as required.

15% VAT

Standard, zero-rated and exempt supplies mapped, with return-ready reports.

Saudi PDPL

Personal data kept to what the process needs, with role-based access.

Arabic and English

Bilingual documents where customers and authorities expect them.

FAQ

Questions about this project

Which ZATCA phases does the setup cover?

Both. ZATCA Phase 1 e-invoicing with a QR code and ZATCA Phase 2 Fatoora real-time clearance are live in Zoho Books. XML and PDF files are generated automatically, and each B2B invoice is cleared in real time without a manual upload.

How quickly was the system delivered?

The Books, VAT and Fatoora setup was delivered in 1.5 weeks, with go-live on 12 Nov 2025. The full transaction cycle was tested end to end before cutover, and the team received two training sessions and written SOPs.

How was existing data handled?

Customers, vendors, items and opening balances were loaded into Zoho Books, and a structured chart of accounts was migrated in. The books were validated cell by cell before cutover, so the company started on clean, audit-ready data.

Ready to write your own success story?

Send us your brief and a senior consultant will reply within 1 hour with scope, timeline and a fixed quote. No spam, no junior reps.

Talk to us

Request A Quote

Get In Touch

Follow Us On:

DevisersTech Arabia

What DevisersTech Arabia needed to fix

What changed for the team

The business process, step by step

Chart of accounts

VAT setup

Fatoora onboarding

Invoice

Real-time clearance

QR and XML

Reports