OpenAccountants

Call this first for any tax, VAT/GST, payroll or filing question about a country or US state, such as "how much tax will I pay in Spain", "do I need to register for VAT", "when is my tax return due", "is this deductible", "how is a freelancer or a company taxed in Germany", "sales tax in Texas" or "what changes if I move to Portugal". Pass the user's question as `intent` and the country or US state as `jurisdiction` ('DE', 'US-TX', 'Florida'). If no place is named, start infers one when the question makes it clear and says so in `jurisdiction_source`. Returns the skills to read next (`skills_to_load`, open each with get_skill), or what is still needed, usually the country. Covers 190+ jurisdictions; where no skill exists yet it returns a research_brief naming the official sources.

Find the skill for a specific tax topic by keyword: a deduction, form, regime or rule such as 'home office deduction', 'Schedule C', 'reverse charge', 'crypto capital gains' or 'Beckham regime'. Optionally limit to one jurisdiction or domain. Returns matching skill slugs to open with get_skill. Set content_type='method' to find step-by-step methods (run them via start), each tagged accountant-reviewed or source-cited.

Open a skill by slug (from start, search_skills or search_rules) to answer the user's question. Returns the skill's rules and method, its quality tier, the named accountant where one reviewed it, a `section_index` of sections not inlined, and a provenance footer to keep with the answer.

Look up tax rates, thresholds and rules in one or many jurisdictions, such as 'VAT rates in MT, IE and DE', 'income tax brackets for 2025' or 'rules mentioning reverse charge'. Returns a bundled markdown rule set plus each jurisdiction's official source (`official_source`). For one specific figure in one jurisdiction a skill is often more complete (search_skills then get_skill): a figure can sit in a skill without being a separate rule here, and then this returns related guidance instead. Entries tagged `GUIDANCE` are text, not values. Figures are not certified current: confirm each against `official_source` and prefer it when they disagree. By default returns all matching rules, each tagged with its verification status; status:'verified' excludes draft, needs_update and unsure rules; it still includes research-verified (source-cited) rules, so it does not mean accountant-reviewed. list_rule_facets gives the valid filter values.

Browse the skills for one jurisdiction or domain (for example every skill for 'MT', or every 'payroll' skill), each with its quality tier and verification status. For a specific topic, search_skills is quicker. Filter by jurisdiction, domain or role ('foundation' | 'compute' | 'orchestrator' | 'reference'). Paginated (default 100, max 200); page with offset/next_offset.

Follow-up to get_skill: fetch sections it listed in `section_index` as not inlined (for example a supplier-pattern library). Pass `section_index` for one section, or omit it to get every section with its heading and markdown.

Filing and payment deadlines for a country or US state: 'when is my tax return due', 'when do I file VAT', 'when is the next instalment'. Returns upcoming dates and recurring filing rhythms (monthly VAT, quarterly instalments) from the OpenAccountants tax calendar. Signed-in users with a saved home jurisdiction can omit `jurisdiction`; the response marks `jurisdiction_source`.

Helper for search_rules: lists the values you can filter on (live jurisdictions, domains, roles, rule kinds, statuses, tax years, a sample of topics) and the defaults. Takes no arguments. Use it when unsure of a filter value rather than guessing.

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Call when the user has no tax question yet and opens with 'what can you do?', 'how can you help me?' or 'where do I start?'. Takes no arguments. Returns the two scoping questions plus the available intents and jurisdictions; for a signed-in approved accountant, a short personal `orientation` briefing instead. Once there is a question, call `start`.

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Answers 'which countries do you cover?' or 'what is there for [country]?'. Returns every jurisdiction with published skills (countries as ISO 2, US states as US-XX, Canadian provinces) with skill counts, accountant-reviewed counts and the named lead accountant where there is one.

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Answers 'who reviewed this?' or 'which accountants are behind this?'. Returns the named licensed accountants who have signed off on OpenAccountants jurisdictions, with their credentials and the jurisdictions they cover.

Call only when the user asks what OpenAccountants charges, requests a quote, or asks whether their current fee is fair. Returns the same published plans, service prices, limits, market exceptions and hourly rate as the website, plus the engagement process and contact details. Match the client's scope to the listed prices; incomplete scope means the total is provisional. Separately quoted services must be confirmed by OpenAccountants. This tool does not create an engagement.

Check live whether an EU VAT number is valid and registered, for example before applying a B2B reverse charge, zero-rating an intra-EU sale or onboarding a supplier. Queries the European Commission's VIES registry and returns the verdict plus the registered business name and address where the authority discloses them. Coverage: the 27 EU member states plus 'XI' (Northern Ireland); use 'EL' for Greece. Other countries, including the UK, are not supported yet: say live validation is not available there rather than guessing. If the registry is down the response says so.

Answers 'does my company need an audit?' for a private limited company in Malta (MT, Article 185(2) micro thresholds) or the UK (GB, small-company thresholds before and after 6 April 2025). A deterministic check of turnover, balance sheet total and average employees. Returns 'exempt' | 'review' | 'audit_required' | 'cannot_determine', the per-threshold table, the rule citation, and whether a named accountant has confirmed the thresholds ('draft' = source-cited draft; say which). Pass prior_year figures: most regimes are two-consecutive-year tests, so without them a qualifying year returns 'review'. 'cannot_determine' is a valid outcome (unsupported jurisdiction, wrong currency, a shape needing judgment). Use the determination as returned, not thresholds from memory.

Only when the user asks: sends their feedback, or their request for a person to check or do the work, to OpenAccountants. Two modes. (1) `note`: an anonymized note about the guidance (a gap, a workaround you needed, or via `skill_slug` a bug in a specific skill). Anonymize hard: no names, amounts, or PII. (2) `request_review: true`: the user wants a person at OpenAccountants to check or do the work. Typical requests: 'can an accountant check this?', 'can someone file this for me?', 'can someone do this for me?', 'I want an accountant', 'can I talk to a person?'. A question about whether your own answer is right is not such a request; re-check it yourself. Also requires `working_paper` (complete), `jurisdiction`, `scenario`, and `contact_email`. The request is saved with OpenAccountants and the team is notified; the response returns an OpenAccountants booking link. The call is free. The work itself is paid: OpenAccountants does it through its accountants, with what is done and the fee agreed on the call before anything starts. Never describe the work itself as free. Call at most once per user request; not as a routine closing step.