Books

Managing your company books and accounts

Keeping your QuickBooks Online data accurate and organized is essential for reporting and tax compliance. Whether you need to clean up old transactions, track multiple segments of your business, or consolidate data, we have tools to help you manage your books effectively.

Voiding or deleting uncashed cheques

If a cheque was written but never cashed, you have a few options to handle it in your books. Simply deleting or voiding the cheque will revise your financial history, which may not be desirable if you want to maintain a record of the original transaction.

Instead, you can choose to offset the amount by making a deposit to the same account used for the original payout. This keeps the history intact while zeroing out the liability.

To void or delete a cheque:

1. Go to the Settings (gear icon).
2. Select Chart of Accounts.
3. Locate the bank account and select View register (or Account history).
4. Find the cheque transaction.
5. Select the transaction and choose Void or Delete from the action menu.

Closing the books

Closing your books locks entries from a prior fiscal period to ensure no accidental changes occur after you’ve filed taxes. This feature requires specific user permissions.

Requirements:

• You must be logged in as the Master Administrator or an Accountant user.

To close the books:

1. Go to the Settings (gear icon).
2. Select Account and settings (formerly Company Settings).
3. Click the Advanced tab.
4. Select Accounting.
5. In the “Close the books” section, select Edit.
6. Enter the closing date and set a password (optional but recommended).

Tracking multiple locations or entities

If your business operates multiple locations, or if you manage a non-profit with distinct programs (such as a church, a college, or a broadcast), you can track them within a single QuickBooks Online company.

Location Tracking Use Location Tracking to separate income and expenses by store, region, or department.

1. Go to the Settings (gear icon).
2. Select Account and settings.
3. Click the Advanced tab.
4. Select the Categories section to turn on Track locations.
5. Save your changes.

Once enabled, you can assign a location to each transaction. To view performance by location, run the Statement of Activity by Location report (found under the Reports tab).

Class Tracking For non-profits or organizations with distinct programs, Class Tracking allows you to track segments separately within one set of books. This is useful for managing different income streams under one umbrella entity.

Note: If your entities operate under separate Federal EINs or have distinct tax statuses (e.g., a 501(c)(3) church vs. a separate college entity), Intuit recommends maintaining separate company files for each legal entity.

Deleting recurring transactions

If you have a recurring invoice or transaction template that you no longer need, you can remove it entirely.

To delete a recurring transaction:

1. Go to the Settings (gear icon).
2. Select Recurring Transactions.
3. Find the template you want to remove.
4. From the Edit drop-down menu, select Delete.

Troubleshooting book discrepancies

If your books do not match your bank statements, the most common cause is uncleared transactions.

Steps to resolve:

1. Run a Reconciliation for the affected account.
2. Look for cheques or payments entered in QuickBooks that have not yet cleared the bank.
3. Review the discrepancy report provided during the reconciliation process to identify editing errors or missing transactions.

Deleting accounts with history

You generally cannot delete an asset account (or any account) that has activity or a balance. If an account contains past deposits or transactions, it is considered part of your financial history.

Instead of deleting, you can make the account inactive:

1. Go to the Settings (gear icon) > Chart of Accounts.
2. Locate the account.
3. In the Action column, select Make inactive.

This hides the account from menus and lists while preserving the historical data required for accurate reporting.

Consolidating multiple company files

QuickBooks Online does not have a built-in feature to merge or consolidate two separate company files into one. If you need to combine data from different companies, third-party applications may assist with this process. We recommend checking the Intuit App Store or consulting with a accounting professional for compatible solutions.