Xero Xero Accounting
Sync auction settlements, consignor invoices, and financial reporting to Xero — multi-currency and GST/VAT-ready accounting for auction houses worldwide.
Data Flows
How data moves between Xero and AuctionFlow in real time.
Live Data Integration
External System
Xero
Platform
AuctionFlow
Winner Invoices
Sales invoices created in Xero for winning bidder payments with line items for hammer price, buyer premium, shipping, and tax mapped to Xero revenue accounts
Consignor Bills
Purchase bills created in Xero for consignor settlement payouts, with net settlement amounts mapped to Xero accounts payable
Commission & Fee Journal Entries
Manual journal entries in Xero for commission revenue, buyer premium income, and ancillary fee income at the auction event level
Bank Feed Reconciliation
Payment gateway deposits matched against Xero bank feed transactions for automated reconciliation of auction settlement funds
Tax Rate Mapping
AuctionFlow tax amounts mapped to Xero tax rates (GST, VAT, state sales tax) for compliance reporting
Currency Exchange Records
Exchange rates from Xero applied to multi-currency auction transactions for financial reporting in the auction house base currency
Capabilities
What this integration enables within your auction workflow.
Multi-Currency Settlement Accounting
Xero's multi-currency accounting is natively supported by the AuctionFlow integration. When an auction house accepts payments in multiple currencies — USD from American buyers, GBP from British buyers, EUR from European buyers — the winning bidder invoices are created in Xero in the transaction currency, and Xero records the exchange rate at the time of payment against the auction house's base currency. Realized currency gains and losses are automatically recorded in Xero when the payment clears. For auction houses operating in global markets (fine art, luxury watches, rare collectibles), this multi-currency support eliminates the manual exchange rate calculations and journal adjustments that occur when multi-currency transactions are recorded manually in accounting software.
GST/VAT Compliance for International Auction Houses
Auction houses in GST/VAT jurisdictions (Australia, UK, EU, New Zealand) must track and report the GST or VAT component of buyer premiums, commission, and fees. AuctionFlow calculates the GST/VAT amount based on the applicable rate and maps it to Xero's tax rate codes. The Xero integration creates invoices and bills with the correct tax rate applied to each line item — GST on the buyer premium (which is the auction house's supply of service), no GST on the hammer price pass-through to the consignor (margin scheme), and GST on consignor fees where applicable. This correct tax allocation ensures the auction house's BAS or VAT return accurately reflects the tax collected and the input tax credits claimed.
Xero Bank Feed Reconciliation for Settlement Deposits
When payment gateway settlements (Stripe, PayPal) deposit funds to the auction house's bank account, Xero's bank feed captures the deposit transaction. The AuctionFlow integration creates corresponding invoices and payments in Xero that match the bank feed amounts, enabling one-click reconciliation in Xero's bank reconciliation workflow. For auction houses processing multiple auctions per week with daily payment gateway settlements, this automated matching eliminates the manual process of identifying which bank deposits correspond to which auction settlements — a reconciliation task that becomes increasingly complex as auction volume grows.
Edge Cases
Scenarios to be aware of and how AuctionFlow handles them.
Auction house using the Xero margin scheme for secondhand goods
In GST/VAT jurisdictions, auction houses selling secondhand goods may use the margin scheme (or global accounting method in Australia) where GST is calculated on the margin (buyer premium and commission) rather than the full selling price. The AuctionFlow-Xero integration supports margin scheme accounting by applying GST only to the service component (buyer premium and commission) and treating the hammer price as a GST-free pass-through when the margin scheme applies. The lot record in AuctionFlow flags whether the margin scheme or standard GST treatment applies, and the Xero entry reflects the correct treatment.
Consignor in a different currency than the auction house base currency
When a consignor's settlement is denominated in a different currency than the auction house's Xero base currency — for example, a US consignor receiving USD from a UK auction house with GBP books — the Xero bill is created in the consignor's payout currency (USD), and Xero records the exchange rate and any currency gain/loss when the payment is made. The AuctionFlow settlement statement shows both the auction currency amount and the converted amount in the consignor's payout currency.
Partial settlement due to lot dispute in progress
When one or more lots in an auction are under dispute (condition claim, authenticity question) while the remaining lots are ready for settlement, AuctionFlow creates partial settlement entries in Xero: bills for the undisputed lots are posted and payable, while the disputed lots remain in a pending state. When the dispute resolves, the remaining lot settlements are posted to Xero as a supplementary batch. The consignor's Xero Vendor record shows the partial payment and the pending amount, providing clear visibility into the settlement status.
AI Copilot
How AuctionFlow's AI assistant enhances this integration.
The AI copilot maps AuctionFlow transaction types to the auction house's existing Xero chart of accounts during initial setup, recommending account assignments based on Xero account names and types. It identifies GST/VAT configuration requirements based on the auction house's jurisdiction and recommends the correct tax rate mappings for buyer premiums, commission, and pass-through amounts. During ongoing operation, the copilot monitors Xero bank feed reconciliation and flags unmatched deposits that may indicate a payment gateway settlement that was not properly recorded in AuctionFlow.
Setup Steps
Get up and running with the Xero integration.
Prerequisites
- Xero subscription (Standard or Premium recommended for multi-currency support)
- Xero administrator or standard user access for OAuth authorization
- Chart of accounts established with appropriate revenue, expense, and liability accounts
- Bank feed enabled in Xero for the auction house settlement bank account
- GST/VAT registration number configured in Xero (if applicable)
- 1
Connect AuctionFlow to Xero via Xero OAuth 2.0 authorization flow (grants AuctionFlow access to the Xero organization)
- 2
Map AuctionFlow transaction types to Xero chart of accounts: revenue accounts, accounts payable, expense accounts, and tax rates
- 3
Configure GST/VAT tax rate mapping for applicable jurisdictions (if the auction house is in a GST/VAT market)
- 4
Set up consignor-to-Contact mapping in Xero (automatic Contact creation or manual matching)
- 5
Configure multi-currency settings if the auction house processes transactions in multiple currencies
- 6
Run a test settlement through Xero sandbox — verify invoices, bills, journal entries, tax calculations, and bank feed reconciliation
Xero Integration — Common Questions
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