Creating a parent account for credit card

I can see that this is your first post so let me take time to welcome you in the Community space, dudleytut.

Yes, it would be best to do that.

When we connect our credit card account, we have to determine how your bank sends the downloaded transaction. We'll have to connect only the parent account if the transactions are downloaded to one account. If it's downloaded to both parent and subaccounts, then we'll have to connect them both.

In your case, we'll have to disconnect all the subaccounts then connect only the parent account. This way, you'll only have to reconcile the parent account since all the transactions in the subaccounts are rolled up into it. You can refer to this link in disconnecting the subaccounts: Disconnect or delete an account from the Downloaded Transactions page.

Once done, we can create subaccounts in your chart of accounts to break down your bank transactions into greater detail. I'll guide you how:

1. Click the Gear ⚙ icon.
2. Choose Chart of Accounts.
3. Click New. 
4. Select the account type and detail type.
5. Click the Is sub-account option and then enter the parent account.
6. Enter the necessary information.
7. Hit Save and Close.

We can also turn an an existing account into subaccount (If you have one).

Then, let's connect the parent account. I've added an article that will guide you in doing it: Connect bank and credit card accounts to QuickBooks Online.

You may refer to this link in categorizing your downloaded credit card transactions.

If you have further questions or need a helping hand in managing your credit card accounts, just let me know and I'll get back to you as quickly as I can.

Dear KlentB,

Thank you so much for your quick response and detailed solution.  I have disconnected both of the credit card accounts.  Before I continue, I want to be sure I understand the next step.  In your instructions, you say to create new sub-accounts.  I am wondering if I could use the existing accounts I had originally set up and edit them so that they will be sub accounts to the parent.  Will that create a problem?

Thanks again for all of your help as it is most appreciated!

Thanks for your help!

I have a very similar problem. The credit cards are from Bank of America.  There is the main and two employee ones.  All three are connected to QuickBooks Online.  In Chart of Accounts it will not allow me to put the two employee ones as a sub under the main account.  Each account receives a bank balance.  I have read that the parent account should not be connected, however, if I disconnect it what do I do with the small amounts of interest earned, etc.

Hello there, @Slfike.

Since the accounts are already connected in QuickBooks Online you'll have to upload the transactions.

Here's how: 

1.  Go to the Banking menu.
2. Select the Banking tab.
3. Click the blue tile for the account you want to upload the transactions into.
4. Select the Update ▼ and then File upload.
5. Follow the onscreen instructions.

After that match and categorize the transactions, by going to the banking menu. 

For future reference on how to resolve issues in uploading transactions and steps to do if you're unable to download transactions in QBO, please check these articles: 

• Fix bank upload errors
• What to do if bank transactions won’t download

If there's anything else that I can help you with, please let me know in the comment section. I'll be here to lend a hand. Take care always.

Thank you.  I have been able to get all of the transactions from the bank.  Is there a special way to reconcile these accounts since the statement keeps them separate, except for the new balance total on the statement?

Hi there, @Slfike.

You can reconcile the parent account as the transaction from sub-accounts flow to the parent, once you reconcile the parent account it automatically reconciles the sub-account.

Here's how to reconcile:

Make sure to have your bank statement, review the opening balance and match the balance of your real-life bank account for whatever day you choose to start tracking the account in QuickBooks.

1. Go to the Gear icon, under Tools column select Reconcile.

2. On the account drop down in the middle, choose the account to reconcile.

3. The last statement ending date should be your bank statement starts the day after your last reconciliation.

4. Make sure the beginning balance in QuickBooks matches the one on your bank statement. 

5. Enter the Ending balance and Ending date as they're written on your bank statement.

6. Once done click on Start reconciling.

Let me add this article on how you can compare your bank statement and QuickBooks and review or change reconciliations: Reconcile an account in QuickBooks Online.

You may also want to know on how to adjust a reconciliation, feel free to read this article: How to adjust a reconciliation.

You can drop any question here in Community, I'm always here to answer.

When I tried to edit the two employee accounts to be sub accounts under the main card quickbooks would not let me do that.  I get this message "You can't change the parent of this account to Main Credit Card because it or its parent is already set up for Online Banking or Web Connect."

When I tried to make the two employee cards a sub under the main card quick books would not let me.  I get the following message: "You can't change the parent of this account to Main Credit Card because it or its parent is already set up for Online Banking or Web Connect."

It's good to have you back, Slfike.

I'm here to share additional information about this. 

We can disconnect the parent account then manually record the transactions under the parent account.

To disconnect an account:

1. On the left panel, select Banking.
2. In the Banking page, select the credit card account you want to disconnect and click the pencil icon.
3. Select the Edit account info button.
4. Put a checkmark on the Disconnect this account on save box.
5. Click Save and Close.

Once done, manually record the small amounts and interest earned, etc. into QuickBooks.

You may check out these articles for reference:

• Match and categorize bank transactions in QuickBooks Online.
• How to change the type of an existing parent account or sub-account.

You can tag me directly if you need more help.

Hello,

I have the same problem and the solution above works, but does this mean i cant use the banking link feature anymore. Will i always have to manually enter transactions as my main credit card has all the payments going into it and the sub credit cards act as separate entities even though they are sub accounts of the main credit card. lastly i do not want to separate the credit card payment manually and have to do the math of how the bank apply's it to all three of my credit cards.  

Thanks for joining the thread, @Aviaoaccounting. 

As mentioned by my colleague above, the parent account is disconnected and created as a reconcile account, because it doesn't get the individual transactions, but it gets the statement for all accounts' transactions. From your example provided, the parent account receives the payments that cover the employee account balances. If you want to use a Bank Feed for the parent and sub-accounts, you'll want to reconcile it all on one statement and then use a 3-tier account setup. 

The 3-tier set up will be:

• The parent account- which has no connection but is used to reconcile all the accounts.
• The Sub-parent- which is actually the primary card that has your main credit card payments going into it. (Can be connected to Bank Feeds)
• The sub-account of the sub- parent account- which will include all of the respective employee cards. (Can be connected to Bank Feeds)

Here's a screenshot of the set up:

Let me know if you have additional questions or concerns. I'll be here every step of the way. As always, feel free to reach out to the Community any time. Take care!

I know this thread is old but if I try to reconcile I just reconcile the dummy parent account and all the transactions will be in there correct?  How about the payments that are made? Do they apply to each credit card so each one has a zero balance?

Hi amanda71.

Thanks for dropping by the Community today. I'm happy to help. You are correct, the parent account would be the one you want to reconcile, because all transactions in the sub accounts are rolled up into it. You can find additional information on the process and much more in the following articles:

• Bank and subaccount setup. 
• Reconcile workflow.

If there's anything else I can help with, feel free to post here anytime. Thanks for stopping by and I hope you have a great day. 

Hi Amanda,

My case was a little more complicated.  We bank with Chase and the transactions come over a little differently. If you bank with them, please let me know and I'll try to explain how I reconcile the credit card.  I learned from my online QB accountant.

Hi! I am curious what the workaround is. I am having similar issues with parent / sub accounts.

Thanks for checking in with us, AmandaLJ.

When connecting your credit card or bank account, we have to determine how your bank sends the downloaded transaction. We'll need to connect only the parent account if the transactions are downloaded to one account. If it's downloaded to both parent and subaccounts, then we'll have to connect them both.

Also, we need to reconcile the parent account since all transactions in the sub-accounts are rolled up into it. 

You can find additional information on the process and much more in the following articles:

• Bank and subaccount setup
• Reconcile workflow

If you encounter the error message  "You can't change the parent of this account to Main Credit Card because it or its parent is already set up for Online Banking or Web Connect." Just follow the troubleshooting steps provided by GlinetteC and Tori B to get this sorted out.

Just in case you need further assistance about this one, feel free to contact our Customer Support Team. They'll pull up your account in a secure environment and help you with this one. You may send a message via chat, call us at a time convenient to you, or we’ll get in touch with you instead. To ensure we address your concern, our representatives are available from 6:00 AM to 6:00 PM on weekdays and 6:00 AM - 3:00 PM on Saturdays, PST. See our support hours and types for more details about this one.

Feel free to visit our Banking page for more insights about managing your bank feeds.

I'd like to know how you get on after trying the steps, as I want to ensure this is resolved for you. Please reply to this post and I'll get back to you. You have a good one. 

Hi, can you explain the process you use for Chase?  I am trying to decide if the parent-sub account-child account would work. Thanks

Hey there, @NJPHTX.

Are you trying to set up a bank or credit card account with multiple subaccounts with your Chase bank account? 

If so, the steps provided above are applicable to your bank account. You can create a parent account and then have each individual card set up underneath as a subaccount in QuickBooks Online. This way, it would be easy for you to reconcile your accounts in QuickBooks.

To view transactions specific to one of the subaccounts, run a report for that subaccount. To see all of the transactions for the parent account and for each subaccount, run the report at the parent level.

If you still need to set up the parent and subaccount,  simply follow the steps provided by my colleague MarsStephanieL. Or else, check out this article for complete guidelines: How to create subaccounts to keep your chart of accounts organized.

Additionally, here are other things you can do to keep your accounts in order:

• Remove accounts you no longer use
• Use account numbers if you have an extensive chart of accounts

Should you have any follow-up questions or concerns, don't hesitate to post again here in the Community or leave a comment on this thread. Take care and have a good one.

Hello, I have the same issue, only when I tried to edit it the following legend shows: "You can't change the parent of this account to XXXXXX because it or its parent is already set up for Online Banking or Web Connect."

Please help since no one in the qb chat has been able to...

Thanks in advance.

Hi there, @Irrori. Let me give you insights on how QuickBooks Online works with bank feeds

Are you trying to create sub-accounts to the parent account? The error message you're getting comes up when the parent account is connected to online banking. You'll have to disconnect it first before making any changes.

Here's how:

1. Go to the Banking menu.
2. Select Banking at the top.
3. Choose the account you want to change, and then click the Edit icon.
4. Click Edit account info.
5. In the Account window, check the box next to the Disconnect this account on save field.  
6. Click Save and Close.

You can also refer to these articles. The steps are laid out on how to add sub-accounts:

• Create a new account or sub-account in QuickBooks
• About bank or credit card sub-account setup

Once done adding the sub-accounts, reconnect its parent account.

Additionally there are two ways how your banks send the downloaded transactions to the program:

1. Transactions download to one account.
2. Transactions download to the individual accounts.

You'll need to connect the parent account only if the transactions download to one account. Otherwise, connect the sub-accounts if the transactions download to individual accounts. If you try to connect to both, you will receive a message that the account has already been connected to QuickBooks Online.

When you reconcile, you only need to reconcile the parent account because all transactions in the sub-accounts roll up into it. 

I'm always here if you need any more help working with bank feeds. Have a great day.

Hi,

I am struggling with the same issue to reconcile Parent account and Sub account for Bank of America credit card. I did not get any answer in any of the thread or the links shared on this thread. Both my accounts are connected to the Bank as Parent and Sub account.

The issue is the parent account only  gets payments made and the expenses are recorded in  the sub accounts

The Sub account has all the expenses only, therefore it always shows the expense total and not 0 when payment is made, since that goes into the Main Parent account.

When we try to reconcile the balances differ with the bank since the bank balance for the sub account is 0 (after payment) while  the sub accounts in QB shows for Eg  '$2300" amount of spent based on the expenses. Can someone please guide me on how to reconcile these accounts for Bank of America. Help!!

I know its importance to ensure everything is reconciled, Pallavi1. I've got you covered.

When reconciling, you only need to do it on the parent account since the transactions from the subaccounts roll up into it. For the detailed steps, I'd suggest following the steps below:

1. Go to the Gear icon and then select Reconcile.
2. From the Account drop-down menu, select the account you want to reconcile. 
3. Enter the Ending balance and Ending date on your statement. 
4. If you see it, review the Last statement ending date. 
5. When you're ready to start, select Start reconciling.

For more details about the process, please see this article: Reconcile an Account in QuickBooks Online.

To zero out the balance, you can debit all the sub-accounts. Then, credit the parent with the total amount (for the sub-accounts).
 

You can also check out this article to learn how to handle your accounts in QuickBooks: About Bank or Credit Card Subaccount Setup.

Once done reconciling, you can print or export the reconciliation report. This way, you'll have a handy copy of your data.

Please let me know if you have any other issues or concerns about reconciliation, Pallavi1. I want to make sure everything is taken care of for you. Have a great day!