QB for Mac 2019 Upgrade breaks sales tax

Got it working for new estimates & invoices, but existing estimates & invoices still do not work. I had to delete and recreate them to get sales tax to be added to the total. This is a pretty big oversight in the update process. It should not change any existing settings.

Welcome, @mediapimp and thank you for coming to the QuickBooks Community for assistance.

I'm happy to hear that you were able to get this working for your new estimates & invoices. It also sounds like you found a great workaround for your old transactions. I do see how not changing your settings during the update process would be very beneficial to you and other users, so I have submitted this as feedback to our engineering team. They take this feedback into considering when deciding what improvements to make to the products.

If you have any other questions or suggestions please let me know! The feedback is always very appreciated.

I've had the same problem. There's a software bug. Please fix it.

Thanks for looping in, maryalicefisher.

Let's get your sales tax working so you can get back to business.

As mediapimp referenced, creating new estimates and invoices will fix the issue. However, for existing estimates and invoices, you'll need to delete and re-create the transactions in order to synchronize the update.

Here are some recommended articles that you may find helpful:

• QuickBooks Desktop for Mac 2019 User’s Guide.
• Create an estimate.
• Create an invoice in QuickBooks Desktop.

You can always get back to us if you have other concerns, we'd love to help. Have a good one.

Maybe I don't understand. You are telling me to re-create hundreds of invoices?

ETA:

Quickbooks desktop phone support recommended the following:

1. Move my company file from my iCloud-synced Documents folder to a folder on my hard drive.
2. Run the Verify Data tool under File > Utilities 

In my case, there was some kind of link problem. The support tech sent me to the Help article titled Resolve data damage on your company file. I'm very relieved to report that rebuilding the data corrected the problem.

update:

Nope. After I logged out, quit Qickbooks, rebooted my computer, then opened Quickbooks again, the sales tax setting had switched off again. Really frustrating!

update:

Nope. After I logged out, quit Qickbooks, rebooted my computer, then opened Quickbooks again, the sales tax setting had switched off again. Really frustrating!

Hi there, @maryalicefisher.

Thanks for getting back to us. Allow me to address your concern about sales tax settings, so let get this straightened out. 

Our product developers launched a new sales tax settings for Mac 2019, as of now there isn't an option to make any changes in the preferences. I can see how this process update affects you and to other users, I encourage you sending feedback directly to our product engineers for improvement to make in the products. 

Here's how you can send feedback: 

1. From the QuickBooks menu, click QuickBooks Feedback.
2. Select Product Suggestions in Type of feedback section.
3. Fill out the necessary information and click Send Feedback.

For the meantime, you can use the workaround provided by @mediapimp, which is to delete and re-create the old transactions to get sales tax added to the total. 

You may also check all the articles provided by my colleague @RoseMarjorieA for future reference. 

Please know that you're always welcome to post here in QuickBooks Community if you have any other concerns. We're always here to help. 

I apologize for not describing very well what is occurring.

There certainly is an option to make sales tax changes in the preferences.

The problem is that the preference changes without me changing it. It happens when I log out and log back in, and it also happens when I open a different company file and then return to the first one.

I've attached screenshots to hopefully clarify what is the problem.

The checkbox at the top (which I have set to remain checked) becomes unchecked. All of the radio buttons revert to what must be the default setting. The most common drop-down is blank.

When I re-check the checkbox, Quickbooks asks me whether I'd like to make all of my inventory items taxable and whether I'd like to charge all of my customers sales tax. About half of my customers are taxable and half of my inventory and non-inventory items are taxed. Either way, this affects all of my existing invoices for the past year. It's a massive project for me to delete all of my invoices and re-do them. That is an unacceptable solution.

I will send feedback as you suggest. 

Thanks for getting back and further elaborating on what you're trying to accomplish, maryalicefisher.

I want to make sure your concern with sales tax settings get's resolved.

Since running the verify/ rebuild of your company file doesn't work, we can uninstall and reinstall your QuickBooks Desktop to resolve unexpected product behavior.

Make sure have your QuickBooks Desktop download file and license numbers ready before uninstalling QuickBooks. Once done, you can now start uninstalling your QuickBooks Mac Desktop.

Here's how:

1. Close QuickBooks.
2. While on your desktop, from the Finder menu, select Go.
3. Choose Applications.
4. Select the QuickBooks icon and drag/move it to the Trash.

Here's an article made handy for you to learn more about reinstalling QuickBooks for Mac using clean install: Reinstall QuickBooks for Mac using clean install.

If the issue persist after doing the above steps, I recommend contacting our Care Support Team so they can take a closer look and conduct proper investigation on why sales tax settings get back to it's default after making changes.

Here's how you can reach them:

1. Go to: https://help.quickbooks.intuit.com/en_US/contact.
2. On the Contact Us page, click a topic.
3. Click on the Get Phone Number button to see the support number.
4. If asked, choose your QuickBooks Product.
5. Select your QuickBooks version.

Should you need more help with this or question about sales tax settings, feel free to drop me a reply below. I'll be here to help you some more.

Okay, I'll try that.

Thank you for the instructions for Windows. I'm using a Mac, running macOS Mojave v. 10.14.2. I haven't got a Selective Startup option in this operating system. Do you have any specific instructions for my computer?

Thanks for getting back and for keeping me posted, maryalicefisher.

I appreciate you for giving me additional details of your concern.

I've updates the information above to provide you the steps specific for QuickBooks for Mac.

Don't hesitate to reach back to me if you need more help with sales tax settings in QuickBooks. It's always our pleasure to help.

I'm having a slightly different, but equally maddening issue:

I do not charge sales tax and have never used the Sales Tax Center. But for 7 years, I've been using QB for Mac to collect and pay rental tax. I have an account called Taxes Rental, that is an Other Current Liability account (this was set up by my CPA). The Vendor is set up as a taxing authority, and I have associated two taxes with my rent invoices that are added automagically to my base rent, depositing the taxes (listed separately) in said Taxes Rental account. 

I've written checks out of this account for seven years to pay the taxes. When I went to pay the taxes this year, I kept getting an error message that I needed to "specify a vendor for the sales tax account." It would not let me save the transaction or print the check! Even when I created a new vendor, it would not let me print the check as long as the payment was associated with the Taxes Rental account (which is the account from which the taxes must be paid.)
Desperate to write a check and get the payment in on time, I changed the account to Licenses and Fees (another account that I use with that vendor) and it let me print the check. After it was printed, I switched back to the correct account, Taxes Rental, and it let me save the transaction.

I talked to QB about this and the Windows person who was helping me said that Windows will NOT let her change this account and save it, so this work-around would not work in Windows!! I'm terrified I will lose even this workaround. She also told me that there is no option to write a check using the Sales Tax Center (I tried and it wouldn't ever let me write and print a check in the correct amount to the correct taxing authority. It just took the money out of my account.)
I was told to create a new Other Current Liability Account and move all my transactions for seven years to the new account! That is straight-up crazy. We need to be able to edit this account to permit the printing and saving of checks! I have no option to pay this tax online or however the Sales Tax Center manages it.
For those of us who need to save years of transactions, please allow us to write a check for taxes out of this account! Otherwise when the payment is made NOT through the Sales Tax Center, there will be no balancing debit to the credits in this account nor a balancing credit for the check that was written.

Hi there, @Buff Crone.

I appreciate the feedback and letting us know what's happening to your Check window. Let me share some insights about Sales Tax.

When you're creating or editing a check that includes the Sales Tax Payable account, QuickBooks requires the tax vendor's name in the Customer: Job column. You have to make sure that the Taxes Rental account is not under the Sales Tax Payable account.

If this is verified and still being asked to specify a vendor, you will have to contact our phone support again.

I understand that you've already called and were able to talk with our support. However, I still suggest contacting them to handle your check issue. Checking the root cause of this requires tools, like screen sharing, that only the phone support team has and they can create an investigation ticket if there are other customers experiencing the same thing.

1. Visit this link: https://help.quickbooks.intuit.com/en_US/contactus.
2. Select QuickBooks Mac Desktop.
3. Select the issue/topic.
4. Click the Get Phone Number button to see the support number.

Of course, you can always drop by here in the Community for any questions you need help with. Also, keep me posted on how it goes. I'd like to make sure this is taken care of.

I had the problem and found that clicking the percentage icon on the bottom row of the open invoice showed the sales tax.

I am extremely frustrated that the recent upgrade to quickbooks for Mac 2019 has de-selected 'customers pay sales tax'. There was no notice to this effect, so every estimate I've created in the past several weeks has no sales tax associated with any of my estimates. Now I've been told I have to delete all of these estimates and re-create them?:?????? Please tell me there's another way. 

I am extremely frustrated that the update changed the 'customers pay sales tax' preferences. Every estimate I have created since then has had NO sales tax associated with it, and after changing my preferences and pulling down the appropriate sales tax at the end of the invoice, there's still NO sales tax being charged. I've read here that you have to delete every estimate and re-enter them?????? Please Please tell me there is another way. My estimates tend to be 13 pages long. Please help

Hi, Geo4quinn.

Thanks for taking the time to join in this thread. I want to make sure your taxes are being calculated from the estimates. Let me help you sort things out.

For now, deleting and creating the estimates will help you fix the problem. This is to ensure that all the updates will synchronize.

Create an estimate:

1. From the QuickBooks Home screen or on the Customers menu, select Estimates / Create Estimates.
2. On the Customer: Job drop-down, select a customer or customer job. If the customer or job is not on the list yet, you can click Add New.
3. Fill in the relevant information at the top of the form like the Date and Estimate #.
4. In the detail area, select the item(s) you propose to do or include as a sale.
   Note: When you select or add an item, the description and amount are automatically populated based on the description and unit cost entered when the item was set up. You can delete or modify this when creating Estimates.
5. (Optional) If you want to apply for a discount, you need to create a discount item.
   1. From the QuickBooks Lists menu, choose Item List.
   2. Right-click anywhere and select New.
   3. In the New Item window, select the Type on the drop-down and choose Discount.
   4. Enter an Item Name/Number and a brief Description.
   5. In the Amount or % field, enter the discount amount or percentage. If your discount amounts vary, you may want to leave the Amount or % field blank and enter the amount directly on your sales forms.
   6. From the Account drop-down, choose the income account you want to use to track discounts you give to customers.
   7. Select an appropriate Tax Code for the item then OK.
6. Select Save & Close.

Here are some recommended articles that you may find helpful:

• QuickBooks Desktop for Mac 2019 User’s Guide.
• Create an estimate.
• Create an invoice in QuickBooks Desktop.

Don't hesitate to leave a reply below if you have additional concerns about sales tax in QuickBooks for Mac. Have a good one.