Menu Tax Management

Overview

From the Menus page, within the Otter Dashboard, you can manage different tax settings for your menu(s). 

Within the settings, you have the option to:

• Turn on or off Otter sending tax rates to selected channels
• Set tax rate per location(s)
• Set tax rate on specific items
• Set tax rate on specific items per fulfillment mode

Sending Taxes Settings

From the Menu Settings, you can choose whether you'd like Otter to send tax rates or not, per channel. When the option for Otter to send taxes is toggled ON for a channel, the tax rate for each item will need to be set from the Menu Item Settings and can be by: 

1. Selecting Otter suggestion based on the jurisdiction in which that store menu operates in
2. Manually adding the tax rate for the item

Follow the steps below to navigate to the tax sending settings for a menu:

• Step 1:

  From the Otter Dashboard, click Apps > Menus.

  

• Step 2:

  Select the menu to update. Then click the gear icon in the top right corner.

  

• Step 3:

  Scroll to the Taxes section— there you can view or update the tax sending settings selected for the menu. To make a change, just click the toggle corresponding to the channel you'd like to turn off or on.

  

• Step 4: 
  Set Exceptions for Online Channels tax rate:
  Default off - not editable: Online channels that default the tax settings to be OFF because the channel does not support receiving tax values. Example: Rappi and Didi Food
  Default on - not editable: Online channels that default the tax settings to be ON because the channel require Otter to dictate the tax values. Example: Deliveroo. 

  

Uneditable Channels

There are a few instances where toggling the tax sending setting ON or OFF is not optional— some channels require a default setting for sending taxes. 

• All Otter channels (like Direct Orders and Otter POS), require Otter to send taxes within the menu publish. So, this setting cannot be edited. If there are any changes needed, the tax rate for an item has to be manually adjusted within the Menu Item Settings.

  

• Some Online channels may default the tax sending settings to be ON— this means the channel requires Otter to set tax values. For these channels, tax rate can still be manually adjusted from the Menu Item Settings.

  

• Some Online channels may default the tax sending settings to be OFF— this means the channel does not support receiving edited tax values. From these channels, tax rates cannot be edited.

  

Editing a Menu Item Tax Rate

When the Otter tax sending setting is toggled ON, the option to manually edit an item tax rate is available. Menu Item Tax Rates can be set per item, location, and by fulfillment mode.

When would I use this setting?

Example Scenario: You have a complex menu with different tax rates needed per location & for in-store orders, so you could go by item and assign different rates by location & fulfillment modes.
 

• Step 1:

  Select the menu and click on the item you'd like to edit from the Menu Overview page.

  

• Step 2:

  Scroll to Taxes section. Click [Edit tax rates].

  

• Step 3:

  Select whether you'd like to enable tax rate editing per fulfillment (toggled ON), or have tax rates same per fulfillment and set per location only (toggled OFF).

  You can also set Otter's suggested tax rate for all locations and fulfillment channels by clicking [Apply to all].

  

• Step 4: If editing tax rate per location or fulfillment channel, you can select how you'd like to set the tax rate from the following options:

  1. Add custom tax rate: Manually enter a tax rate
  2. Don’t send tax rate: Otter will not send tax rate to that channel
  3. Use default tax rate: Use a tax rate set as default for that location

  

• Step 5: Click [Done] to publish menu tax rate changes.

  

Bulk Editing Menu Item Tax Rates

Once you've selected a menu— from the Menu Overview page, you can update the tax rate for multiple items in one action. 

• Check the box next to the items you'd like to update
• Click [Manage tax rates].
• Select tax rate option from drop down next to location(s) listed
• Click [Save].
  
  

Tax Rate Tab Settings

The Tax Rate tab in Menu Manager makes it easy to customize tax rate settings per restaurant location. This tab is useful to apply tax settings in Bulk to multiple locations or manage different tax rates across all your locations. Follow the steps below to configure custom tax rate settings per location in Menu Manager Tax Rate tab.

From the Tax Rate tab, you can:

• View and manage all existing tax rates configured.
• Review the tax name, rate value, and how many locations the tax rate is applied to.

• Tax Rate Tab View
  
  See all existing custom tax rate values.
  View the default tax rate currently applied to each location.
  Search by tax rate name.
  Filter by tax rate value.
   
  
• Location Tab View
  
  - See all tax rate values assigned to each location.
  - View the default tax rate currently applied to each location.
  - Search by location name.
  - Filter by location.
  
  

Editing Tax Rate Per Location:

Follow the steps below to configure custom tax rate settings in the Menu Manager Tax Rate tab.

• Step	Process	Image
  1	From the Otter Dashboard, select Apps > Menus.
  2	Click into the Tax Rates tab from the left side bar.
  3	Click on the three dots (⋯) menu next to a tax rate. Click [Edit Tax Rate].
  4	A popup window will appear. Enter the following information: Name Tax rate percentage Description Locations
  5	Once all required information is entered, click the “Assign and Create” button.
  6	The window will close, and return to the Tax Rates main page. The newly created tax rate will be displayed in the list.
  7	Click the expand button for a location A list of all available tax rates for that location will be displayed. To change the default tax rate for a location, click [Set as Default] next to the desired tax rate.
  8	Tax Rates View by Location: You can switch to the “View by Location” mode, where you can: See all tax rate values assigned to each location. View the default tax rate currently applied to each location. Search by location name. Filter by location or by tax rate value (e.g., view all locations using a specific tax rate).

Deleting Tax Rate Per Location:

Follow the steps below to delete tax rate settings in the Menu Manager Tax Rate tab. Tax rates can only be deleted if there are no locations set to the rate. Make sure to apply a different tax rate to a location before deleting the previous rate.

• Step	Process	Image
  1	From the Otter Dashboard, select [Apps] > [Menus].
  2	Click into the [Tax Rates] tab from the left side bar.
  3	Click on the three dots (⋯) menu next to a tax rate.   Click Delete tax rate.
  4	A popup window will appear.   Click [Confirm] to permanently delete the selected custom tax rate.   Click [Cancel] to not delete the tax rate.
  5	Click the [Save] button to apply the edits.   Click [Cancel] to close the [Edit Custom Tax Rate] popup window without saving.

Enabling Custom Menu Tax Rates:

Custom Tax Rates can be used when a specific location or menu item needs to be excluded from the tax setting rules that other locations or items are using. This setting is useful if some of your restaurant locations have different food item tax rates than the rest of your locations. You could create a custom tax rate for the different locations and keep all the remaining locations at a different rate.

• Step	Process	Image
  1	From the Tax Rates page, click the “Create Custom Tax Rate” button.
  2	A popup window will appear. Enter the following information: Name (required) Tax rate percentage (required) Description (optional) Locations —  select “All locations” or choose specific locations where this tax rate should be available as an option.
  3	Once all required information is entered, click the “Assign and Create” button.
  4	The window will close, and you will be redirected back to the Tax Rates main page, where the newly created tax rate will be displayed in the list.
  5	Click on the three dots (⋯) menu next to a tax rate to edit or delete the custom tax rate setting.

Tax Rates Tab Video Walkthrough:

Troubleshooting

FAQs

• You can set the tax rate when creating the new menu item in the Item Settings. If an editable channel, you'll have the choice of Suggested tax rate, Override, or No Override. 

  If you forget to set the item tax rate during creation, Otter will notify you before publishing.

  

• The tax rate will need to be added at item level for the new location. If you forget to do this when adding a location, Otter will notify you of the missing tax rate for the items before publishing the menu for the new location.

  

• Tax rates are set at the item level, not at the menu level. However, you do have the option to bulk select the items to make updates quickly and efficiently
• Franchisees using shared brand menus will still be able to view and configure settings in the Tax Rate tab in Menu Manager, but they will only have the ability to view and edit settings for their location. 
  

Updated March 03, 2026 23:38