Hey amya9,
It's great that you're using projects to streamline the recording of your various sources of income under specific customers. This advanced function makes it simple to track exactly how much money you're making for a specific job. Based on your description, it sounds like you want to split up the income from an invoice as the payments become due. This can be difficult under accrual accounting, the income is recorded on the invoice date. I'm confident QuickBooks Online's progressive invoicing feature will suit your needs perfectly. I'll be happy to help you set this up.
An important thing to consider before using progressive invoicing is the effect on sales tax. This method works best when the tax amounts are claimed gradually. It just takes a few easy steps to activate this option:
- Go to the Gear icon and select Account and Settings.
- Select the Sales tab.
- In the Progress Invoicing section, select Edit ✎.
- Select the Create multiple partial invoices from a single estimate checkbox.
- Select Save and Done.
Once that's set up, you'll be able to create an estimate for the full amount, and gradually invoice portions of it as they become receivable. The estimate won't affect your sales tax return or your income accounts until it's invoiced. You can learn more about this great function in this handy article: Set up and send progress invoices in QuickBooks Online
If you're unsure how the tax implications should be considered, your accountant is the best person to ask. You can easily invite your accountant as a user to approach this together. To search for a pro in your area, simply head to the My Accountant tab in QuickBooks Online then click on Find a pro to help.
I'm here for you. Feel free to let me know if you have any other questions.