How to Reference Other Fields in a Calculation
Learn how to reference other fields in a calculation in Smarter Drafter Pro.
Calculating Goods and Services Tax (GST) on costs and disbursements is a common requirement in many forms, especially in industries like law, accounting, and consulting. In Smarter Drafter, you can create a calculation to automatically apply GST to costs and disbursements in a form. This guide will show you how to set up a calculation to calculate GST based on input fields for costs and disbursements.
Instructions
1. Navigate to Your Form
- Open the form where you want to calculate GST on costs and disbursements.
2. Create Fields for Costs and Disbursements
- Ensure you have fields for Costs and Disbursements in your form. These fields will capture the amounts on which GST will be calculated.
- For example, create Number fields for both Costs and Disbursements.
- For example, create Number fields for both Costs and Disbursements.
3. Create a Field for GST Calculation
- Click on Add Field to create a new field for calculating the GST. This field will hold the calculated GST amount.
4. Choose the Field Type
- Select the Number field type for the GST calculation, as it will return a numeric result.
5, Set Field Properties
- Fill in the necessary properties for the GST field, such as the field name (e.g., "GST on Costs and Disbursements"). Set the field to Read-Only so that the user can see the result but not edit it.
6. Select the Calculation Tab
- Click on the Calculation tab in the field properties to open the Calculation Builder tool.
7. Click Start Here
- Click the Start Here button to open the Calculation Builder tool. This will allow you to set up the GST calculation.
8. Insert the Cost and Disbursement Fields
- In the Calculation Builder, use the Reference Field drop-down to insert the fields for Costs and Disbursements. For example:
- Select the Costs field from the drop-down and insert it into the calculation.
- Select the Disbursements field and insert it as well.
9. Calculate the Total Amount Before GST
- To calculate GST on both costs and disbursements, you first need to add the two fields together. The expression might look like this:
- Costs + Disbursements
- This gives the total amount before applying GST.
10. Apply the GST Calculation
- After calculating the total amount, apply the GST rate. In many cases, GST is 10%, but this may vary depending on your region or business rules.
To apply GST, multiply the total amount by the GST rate (e.g., 10% or 0.10). The expression would look like this:- (Costs + Disbursements) * 0.10
- This will calculate the GST amount.
11. Save the Field
- After completing the calculation, click Save to apply the changes. The field will now display the GST amount based on the entered costs and disbursements.
12. Test the GST Calculation
- Test the form by entering values in the Costs and Disbursements fields. Verify that the GST field calculates the correct amount, based on the total of the two fields.
Common Issues & Solutions
- Issue: The GST calculation is not updating or showing an error
- Solution: Ensure that both the Costs and Disbursements fields are correctly referenced in the calculation. Also, verify that the fields are populated with numeric values before the GST calculation is triggered.
- Issue: The GST rate is not correct
- Solution: Double-check the GST rate used in the calculation. Ensure that you have entered the correct percentage (e.g., 0.10 for 10%) based on the applicable tax rate.