How do I record cash collected during an event that will be paid by cheque to the party the funds were raised for?

You're in the right place to ask for assistance regarding accounting for the amounts collected and sent within QuickBooks Online (QBO), @BCAtreasurer. Worry less. I'll outline the complete guidelines for you to follow.

We can create a sales receipt or bank deposit when recording the amount collected from the event. These types of transactions do not require the creation of an invoice, as they are documents issued by a party involved to verify the product or service provided and the amount donated for the event.

Before we start recording these entries, we'll need to create an income account in your chart of accounts to track the amounts received from the participants. Here's how:

1. Go to your QuickBooks Chart of Accounts and create an Income account.
2. Select Income as the Account Type and Non-Profit Income as the Detail Type.
3. Name the account relevant to the event for easier identification when recording transactions.

Once done, follow the steps below to create a service item when recording a sales receipt or bank deposit:

1. Go to the Products and Services section and click the New button.
2. Choose Non-inventory for the service type.
3. Name the item after the event.
4. Use the Income account we just created.
5. Click Save and Close.
   

Next, set up the participants as customers for use when recording entries.

After completing the steps above, we can create a sales receipt or bank deposit to record the amounts collected from the event. Additionally, we can create an expense or cheque transaction when recording the money sent to the third party for whom the amount was raised.

Furthermore, get the latest update on your business's finances by running financial reports. Refer to this article for complete guidelines: Run a report in QuickBooks Online.

If you need help managing QuickBooks transactions, please leave a comment in this thread. You can count on me to provide reliable and helpful assistance. Take care!