In short: Most JoFotara problems happen at one of three stages: logging in to the portal, the connection details, or the invoice itself. An unsent invoice is fixed by resending that same invoice, a rejected one by fixing the cause the message names, and every invoice rejected right after connecting usually means a mistake in the connection details or the registration type.
In this guide
- First: was the invoice rejected, or never sent?
- Error messages as they appear: meaning and fix
- Paste your error and see what it means
- Portal login problems
- Every invoice is rejected straight after connecting
- The invoice type does not match your registration
- Errors in the invoice data
- Return errors
- The internet, the wait and the duplicate invoice
- When the portal and the shop disagree
- How Ghalleh cuts these errors down
The rejection messages JoFotara sends back are usually technical and in English, and the Income and Sales Tax Department does not publish an official list of them. So this guide is organised by what you actually see, followed by a table of the messages that come up most, as they appear, with what each means and how to fix it. If your problem is not here, the reference is the department and its e-invoicing technical support service on istd.gov.jo.
First: was the invoice rejected, or never sent?
This one question decides the fix. A rejected invoice reached JoFotara, was checked, refused and given a reason. An unsent invoice never arrived, because the internet dropped or no reply came back. Mixing the two up wastes time.
| Situation | How to tell | What fixes it |
|---|---|---|
| Not sent | The device was offline, or the request timed out with no reply | Sending again. A good app does it by itself when the connection returns |
| Rejected | A reply came back from the system naming a data error | Fixing the cause. Sending the same data again gets the same answer |
| Unknown | The connection dropped after sending but before the reply | Check view invoices on the portal before resending, so the invoice is not issued twice |
Error messages as they appear: meaning and fix
These messages show up in the system's reply to your cashier app or on the portal itself. Look for the first words of the message you got.
| Message | What it means | The fix |
|---|---|---|
| This user is not authorized to submit this type of invoice | This connection may not send this type of invoice | The invoice type does not match your registration: a sales tax invoice from a business registered for income tax only, or the reverse. Correct the registration type in your app once your accountant confirms it |
| General tax percentage must be zero | The general tax rate has to be zero | A tax rate reached the system on an income invoice, and income invoices carry no sales tax. Set item tax to zero if you are not registered for sales tax, or correct the registration type if you are |
| Reason for note is required | The note needs a reason | A return went out with no reason. Write a reason on every return |
| The unit price must match the unit price in the original invoice | The return's unit price has to match the original invoice | Build the return from the original invoice at its price, never from today's shelf price |
| The ID number must be unique | This invoice number was already used | Never reuse invoice numbers. Check view invoices on the portal before resending, as an earlier try may already have been recorded |
| ALREADY_SUBMITTED | The invoice was recorded by an earlier try | Do not issue it again. It is in the system, and its copy with the QR is under view invoices on the portal |
| NOT_SUBMITTED | The invoice was not recorded | Read the error message that comes with it, which names the cause, fix it and send the invoice |
| Invalid Invoice Minification | The invoice file is not in the form the system expects | The problem is in how the connecting software builds the file, not in your shop's data. Send the message as it is to your software provider |
| Postal code length is incorrect | The postal code has the wrong length | Jordanian postal codes are five digits. Correct it in the buyer's details |
| 403 | Access to the system was refused | Usually wrong credentials or a connection switched off on the portal. Copy the Client ID and Secret Key again and check the connection is active |
| 500 or 504 | An error or a delay on the system's server | Not a problem with your data. Send the same invoice again later, and check view invoices before any manual resend |
| A portal page that only offers a link back to the home page | The login session ended or the page could not open | Sign out, then sign back in by typing portal.jofotara.gov.jo yourself, or try another browser |
| The invoice will not open for printing or download | The browser is blocking pop-ups | Allow pop-ups for the portal in your browser settings and try again |
| Invoice number is wrong or not activated by its owner (Arabic message) | The number entered does not match an available recorded invoice | Make sure you entered the invoice's electronic number as shown under view invoices, not your shop's receipt number |
We collected these from messages seen while connecting to the system and on the portal. The department publishes no official error list, and wording may change with system updates.
Paste your error and see what it means
If your message is not in the table, paste it into the tool exactly as you got it. It looks for known causes in the wording and shows the closest cause and its fix. The tool runs in your browser and sends the message nowhere.
How to use: Paste the message exactly as you saw it, in English or Arabic, to see what it means and how to fix it. The text stays in your browser, and the table on this page lists the same messages.
Portal login problems
- I cannot log in: there are three fields, tax number, username and password. The username is the one you created on the portal, not your tax number.
- I forgot my password: use the forgotten password link, enter your tax number, and a verification code goes to the phone registered for that number.
- The verification code never arrives: usually the phone number on file with the department is out of date. Update your business details with the department first.
- I cannot see device integration: you signed in as a sub-user. That screen is for the main user only.
- I cannot issue an invoice on the website as the main user: the portal notes that invoices issued on the website go through a sub-user, which you add under add sub-user.
- I cannot issue invoices on the portal since connecting an app: when you connect, the portal warns that the taxpayer will not be able to issue invoices on the platform after connecting devices. Check your position with your accountant or the department.
Every invoice is rejected straight after connecting
If the first invoice and every one after it is rejected, the problem is almost always the connection details, not the invoices. Work through these in order.
- Swapped fields
The user number belongs in Client ID and the secret key in Secret Key. - Partial copy or a stray space
A value lost its last characters when copied, or has a space at the start or end. Copy again with the Copy button. - The connection is switched off
The status switch in the device integration table is off. - Old details
You created a new connection and switched off the old one, but the app still holds the old details. - Wrong income source sequence
The app sends under a different activity from the one the connection was created for. - Wrong registration type
The app is set to sales tax while your business is registered for income tax only, or the reverse.
The invoice type does not match your registration
The invoice depends on how the business is registered: an income invoice for a business not registered for sales tax, a general sales tax invoice for one that is, and a special sales tax invoice for goods carrying the special tax. If the app sends a type your registration does not allow, JoFotara rejects it however correct the rest of the data is.
The classic case: a shop registered for sales tax sells exempt or zero-rated items and assumes it should issue an income invoice for them. The tax rate on an item is one thing, and the invoice type set by your registration is another. Ask your accountant how you are registered, set it in your app once, then set the tax rate on each item separately. The details are in our guide to JoFotara invoice types, cash or receivable.
Errors in the invoice data
- Missing buyer name: according to the portal guide, the buyer's name is required on receivable invoices, meaning sales on account, and on invoices of 10,000 JOD or more.
- A development zone invoice without the buyer's tax number: the portal guide requires the buyer's tax number on this invoice type.
- The wrong tax rate on an item: products imported from an Excel file without checking their tax, so they reach the system at a rate that does not belong to the item or does not fit the invoice type.
- Negative quantities or prices: a return is not a negative line inside a sales invoice. It is a separate return note.
- Totals that do not match the lines: manual rounding or a discount spread the wrong way, so the lines do not add up to the invoice total. Let your app calculate tax and totals the same way every time.
Return errors
Returns get rejected for reasons of their own. The usual ones are a note with no return reason, a unit price that differs from the original invoice, an item that does not match its line on the original, a returned quantity larger than what was sold, and an original invoice that never reached the system. One rule prevents all of them: always build a return from the original invoice, never from scratch. Details are in our returns and credit notes guide.
The internet, the wait and the duplicate invoice
On a busy day the internet drops or the reply is slow, and the cashier is left with a waiting customer and a receipt with no code. The common mistake is to ring the sale up again as a new invoice so the QR comes out. Now the system has two invoices for one sale, and one of them needs a return.
The right way is for the same invoice to stay pending and for the app to resend that invoice, not a new copy, when the connection returns. At the end of the day check that nothing is left pending, and ask your accountant how late an invoice may be sent.
When the portal and the shop disagree
The simplest test of a healthy connection: open view invoices on the portal, export a week of invoices to Excel as the portal guide allows, and compare the count and total with what your cashier app shows for the same period. If they match, the connection is working. If they do not, find the missing invoices: are they pending and unsent, or were they rejected without anyone noticing?
Do this weekly in the first month, then monthly. A small gap today takes minutes to fix. Six months from now it becomes a whole file on your accountant's desk.
How Ghalleh cuts these errors down
Ghalleh is connected to JoFotara. You enter your connection details and registration type once, set each product's tax on its own card, and from then on Ghalleh sends every invoice at the moment of sale and prints the QR on the receipt. If an invoice is rejected, Ghalleh shows the reason in a plain sentence on the invoice itself, not as a technical message.
If the internet drops you keep selling. Ghalleh stores the invoices and automatically resends the same invoice when the connection returns, never a new copy. If an invoice still cannot be sent after the automatic retries, it is marked and you get an alert. When the cause is in the setup itself, such as the registration type or an item's tax, the fix is correcting that setting once, not sending again and again.
Returns in Ghalleh start from the original invoice, so they carry its price, its tax and a reason. Ghalleh is available now on Google Play, and the Windows version is on the download page. The trial is 14 days free with every feature and no card, so you can connect, sell, and compare Ghalleh with view invoices yourself before you pay.
Everything about JoFotara on one page: the JoFotara e-invoicing guide.
Common questions
Why is every invoice rejected after I connected my POS to JoFotara?
Usually because of the connection details: the Client ID and Secret Key are swapped or copied with a stray space, the connection is switched off on the portal, the income source sequence is wrong, or the invoice type does not match your tax registration. Copy the details again and check your registration with your accountant.
What does This user is not authorized to submit this type of invoice mean?
The invoice type sent does not match your business's registration: a sales tax invoice from a business registered for income tax only, or an income invoice from one registered for sales tax. Correct the registration type in your app once your accountant confirms it.
Should I reissue an invoice if the QR code did not print?
Do not issue a new invoice for the same sale. Check view invoices on the portal first. If the invoice did not arrive, your app should resend that same invoice, otherwise the system will hold two invoices for one sale.
Where can I get help with a JoFotara error this guide does not cover?
The reference is the Income and Sales Tax Department. Its site, istd.gov.jo, has an e-invoicing technical support service and published guides for connecting and issuing invoices. Show the error message exactly as it appears to your accountant or your software provider.