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david40
Level 1

What is the difference between deleting and voiding an invoice??

What is the difference between deleting and voiding an invoice

Solved
Best answer March 12, 2019

Best Answers
MarninaM
QuickBooks Team

What is the difference between deleting and voiding an invoice??

Great question, David!

I'd be glad to clear this up for you. 

The difference between void and delete is something that QuickBooks users need to consider. Both these actions will make a difference in the way your books are organised and rendered inside QuickBooks. Open invoices should be directly deleted unless they are needed for a later date. By deleting the invoice, users will be permanently removing it from their company file. On the other hand, voiding an invoice cancels a particular payment or invoice. Voiding an invoice will keep the invoice number and list it in reports but changes the amounts to zero.

Hence, if you want to stop a particular payment from being realized by QuickBooks, select void. For removing the receipt from QuickBooks, select delete. If you want to perform both of these actions then first void the transaction and then hit delete. This will stop the payment process as well as remove the receipt from your records.

I'd be glad to hear back from you if you have other questions. Have a great day.

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25 Comments 25
MarninaM
QuickBooks Team

What is the difference between deleting and voiding an invoice??

Great question, David!

I'd be glad to clear this up for you. 

The difference between void and delete is something that QuickBooks users need to consider. Both these actions will make a difference in the way your books are organised and rendered inside QuickBooks. Open invoices should be directly deleted unless they are needed for a later date. By deleting the invoice, users will be permanently removing it from their company file. On the other hand, voiding an invoice cancels a particular payment or invoice. Voiding an invoice will keep the invoice number and list it in reports but changes the amounts to zero.

Hence, if you want to stop a particular payment from being realized by QuickBooks, select void. For removing the receipt from QuickBooks, select delete. If you want to perform both of these actions then first void the transaction and then hit delete. This will stop the payment process as well as remove the receipt from your records.

I'd be glad to hear back from you if you have other questions. Have a great day.

linajanehayden
Level 2

What is the difference between deleting and voiding an invoice??

but by simply voiding or deleting an invoice...won't this mess up my previous balance sheet? As the A/R will therefore be changed?
trish26
Level 1

What is the difference between deleting and voiding an invoice??

I would also want to know if there is a way to void an invoice from a previous month/period without making any changes in the balance sheet.

Anonymous
Not applicable

What is the difference between deleting and voiding an invoice??

 Hello, linajanehayden, trish26.  


Voiding an invoice will always affect your AR account and Balance Sheet. As a workaround, you can void it then create a journal entry to offset the amount.
The journal entry should have the same date with the voided invoice and should use the same accounts as the invoice did. Once done, create another journal entry with the current date using the same accounts to offset the first journal entry created. 


It’d be best to consult your accountant before doing these steps for proper recording. 


Drop by again if you have other concerns with QuickBooks. 

TBC21
Level 1

What is the difference between deleting and voiding an invoice??

How can you book bad debt expense against an invoice and get rid of the invoice?

JessT
Moderator

What is the difference between deleting and voiding an invoice??

Hi TBC21,

 

I've got information to enter bad debt in QuickBooks Online.

 

There are a few methods to record a bad debt depending on the accounting method you use or if you're using the allowance method. We've listed the steps in the article about writing off bad debt, and you can select the method that is best for your scenario. Please check this out: Write off bad debt.

 

If you have other questions, you can always visit us back here and we'll be happy to answer them.

TomWe
Level 1

What is the difference between deleting and voiding an invoice??

The answer to this question also depends on "what exactly happened" so you are doing everything correctly with respect to GAAP and proper documentation, when it comes to accounting information systems.

 

Personally, I would never delete if it went out to any party outside the organization.  Even if it was a fraudulent sale.  Someone could later present that document to the organization and claim for it to be valid.  You would want a record of the voided invoice in QB, in cases like "the actual exchange of goods never actually happened"

 

If it's a bad debt, you also need to keep the original invoice and record the write-off separately.

 

sandra-eid
Level 1

What is the difference between deleting and voiding an invoice??

person chat please

Georgia - Product Expert
QuickBooks Team

What is the difference between deleting and voiding an invoice??

Hi Sandra-eid, 

 

If you'd like to contact our QuickBooks support team, you can by either:

- Clicking the 'Help' button in your QuickBooks

- By visiting the contact us webpage

 

Thank you,

Georgia

gf21
Level 2

What is the difference between deleting and voiding an invoice??

If you delete the invoice will the job costing time & parts be available to invoice again under that same invoice/job#?  Will all items go back to unbilled and allow us to recreate a corrected invoice?  Or should we void the invoice to do that?

Thanks

MaryLandT
Moderator

What is the difference between deleting and voiding an invoice??

Yes, the job costing time and other line items are still available if you create again in the invoice after deleting it, gf21.

 

Deleting a transaction removes the entry entirely in QuickBooks. And, paid bills will return to unpaid status.

 

Also, deleting the bill causes the Transaction Journal Detail report to display a bill payment without the corresponding bill. There's also no bill associated with the payment check when you go to its transaction history.

 

You can use the Audit log to get the details of the deleted invoice. Let me show you how to use the feature:

 

  1. Go to Settings ⚙and select Audit Log.
  2. Select Filter.
  3. From the Filter ▼ drop-down menu, select the appropriate user, date, and event(s).
    deleted transactions from the audit log.png
  4. Select Apply.
  5. Locate the deleted transaction.
  6. To easily find deleted transactions, use the browser search Ctrl + F and type "deleted".
  7. Under the History column, select View.
  8. All the information needed for the transaction can be found under the Event column.
     

Using the information from the Audit log, you can re-enter the transaction with its original transaction date.

 

Additional tips for your transactions:

 

  • Audit Log only works for transactions that were saved.
  • There is no available report for deleted transactions.
  • Consider voiding a transaction instead of deleting or completely removing it from your records.

To get more help with the Audit log feature, check out this link: Learn what the audit log can do and how to use it to keep an audit trail.

 

Stay in touch with me if there's anything else you need with your transactions in QuickBooks. I'm always right here to help you.

LNS Books13
Level 1

What is the difference between deleting and voiding an invoice??

Hello - If I void an invoice that has a payment connected to it, does it delete the payment? I'd like to keep the payment and delete the invoice since the invoice is dated 2021 and payment was made in 2022 (and I'm only cleaning up 2022). Thanks!

IntuitSheila
Level 8

What is the difference between deleting and voiding an invoice??

Hi LNS Books13,

 

If the voided invoice has payment linked to them, the payment will not be deleted and will be left as an unapplied payment on the customer's account. Voiding the invoice will still keep the transaction on your books but will not affect your balances. If you'll completely delete the invoice this fully removes the invoice from your books and accounts.

 

You can check this link to learn more about Void or delete transactions in QuickBooks Online.

 

After you've voided or deleted an invoice, here is how to  view the unapplied payment:

 

  1. Click on the Sales tab.
  2. Click on Customers.
  3. Locate the customer name and click on them.
  4. You'll see an unapplied amount under Open balances.

You have the option to apply the unapplied to future invoices or apply them as credits.

 

Post again in the Community if you have more questions about QuickBooks Online!

 

jimmyjamm8376
Level 1

What is the difference between deleting and voiding an invoice??

My question is maybe more specific to my reason to void or delete the invoice.

I selected all availalbe time and printed a draft, however, QB made an invoice-the reason I had to print it was to line-by-line select billable time so that I could provide the customer with 2 separate invoices for two separate jobs.  Since QB made an invoice, I have to either Void or Delete it, but I don't want to lose any of the time.

I had a similar problem in the past, I deleted the invoice, and none of the time was available to recreate an invoice, so I had to go timesheet by timesheet to re-activate the time to be billed, which took hours.

IntuitSheila
Level 8

What is the difference between deleting and voiding an invoice??

Hi jimmyjamm8376,

 

In QuickBooks Online any deleted or voided invoice that has an unbilled charge, billable time, expense and credits remains in the customer's accounts and can apply to future invoices. I'd recommend checking the customer's profile and checking the billable time created.

 

You can also run a report called Transaction List by Customer to see the list of billable times and other transactions for the said customer. Here's how:

 

  1. Click on the Reports tab.
  2. On the search box enter Transaction List by Customer.
  3. Click on Customise and select a specific customer name to view under Filter.
  4. Enter a specific date or period.
  5. Click on Run report.

 

You can check this link to learn more about voiding and deleting invoices in QuickBooks Online: 

 

If the issue remains, I'd also recommend contacting the Customer Support Team via chat or phone. That way, one of the support agents can further help you check your transactions on file.

 

Post again in the Community if you have more questions about QuickBooks Online!

AK2022
Level 2

What is the difference between deleting and voiding an invoice??

Im not seeing this bad debt article anymore. Can you please resend?

MJoy_D
Moderator

What is the difference between deleting and voiding an invoice??

I'm here to resend the article that you're referring to, @AK2022.

 

Check out this updated article: Write off bad debt in QuickBooks Online. That'll guide you on writing off the bad debt on either an Accrual or Cash basis. 

 

In case you've added a transaction by accident, here's how to void or delete transactions in QuickBooks Online so it doesn't affect your account balances or reports.

 

Let me know if you need further help with your account. I'm here to help!  

Sue Murphy
Level 1

What is the difference between deleting and voiding an invoice??

If I void an invoice, will the inventory be added back ?

 

IntuitAika
Intuit

What is the difference between deleting and voiding an invoice??

Thanks for joining the thread, Sue Murphy.

 

Yes, the inventory will be added back if you void an invoice. The quantity and amount of the voided invoice will be zeroed out. 

 

If you need to check the details of the voided invoice, you can run an Audit log report. 

 

Here's how: 

 

  1. Go to Gear icon and select Audit log
  2. On Events dropdown select Deleted or Voided transactions.
  3. Select View.

 

Let me know if you have any other questions on voiding an invoice. I'll be around to help you. 

 

Juzer
Level 1

What is the difference between deleting and voiding an invoice??

I would like to know if voiding the invoice will add up my inventory balance (Qty wise) to previous balance?

JaeAnnC
QuickBooks Team

What is the difference between deleting and voiding an invoice??

I appreciate you for joining in on this discussion, @Juzer. I'll be glad to share information on what will happen to your inventory after voiding an invoice in QuickBooks Online (QBO).

 

Yes, you're right. When you void an invoice in QBO, the associated item is added back to your inventory count. Additionally, it retains the transaction record, but won't impact your account balances or reports.

 

Here's how to void an invoice:

 

  1. Go to Sales and select Invoices.
  2. Locate the specific invoice and click the dropdown icon under the Action column.
  3. Select Void, then Yes to confirm.

For more in-depth information about voiding invoices, please check out this reference: Void or delete transactions in QuickBooks Online.

 

Furthermore, you may refer to this article as your guide in recording customer payments in QBO: Record invoice payments in QuickBooks Online. Doing so marks the invoice as paid and ensures it doesn't appear as open in your reports.

 

Please don't hesitate to post in the Community whenever you have additional questions about voiding an invoice. We're always available in this forum to assist you further. Stay safe and have a great day ahead.

Juzer
Level 1

What is the difference between deleting and voiding an invoice??

Thanks for the reply, so by saying 'it wont impact my balance' does this mean that after voiding the sales invoice my account receivable balance remain the same as before?

IntuitAika
Intuit

What is the difference between deleting and voiding an invoice??

Hi Juzer,

 

Yes, voiding an invoice will not affect your reports and accounts receivable balance as the amount of the voided invoice will be changed to zero. You may try to click on More and select Transaction journal of the voided invoice to see the posting of accounts.

 

For more detailed information, you can check this article: Void or delete transactions in QuickBooks Online.

 

Feel free to drop a comment below if you have any other questions, we're here to help you.

Paula78
Level 1

What is the difference between deleting and voiding an invoice??

What happens to the items "sold" on the Invoice? If the Invoice is deleted because the purchase didn't go through, do the items automatically go back to Inventory?