Edit sales tax rates

Update sales tax rates in QuickBooks Online to make sure you’re collecting the right amount.

What happens when you edit the sales tax rate?

Here are a few things you need to know before you edit a sales tax rate.

• Changes made to sales tax rates will update everywhere except on past transactions. 
• If you create a new transaction using past dates, it uses the new rate. The earlier rate can't be used after editing.
• For recurring templates using the changed rate, new transactions created will use the new rate, but existing transactions with the earlier rate will remain unchanged. You may need to edit recurring templates again to add the updated rate if applicable. 
• Reports will show data for both rates if transactions exist for both in a period.

For a better experience, open this article in QuickBooks Online. Launch side-by-side view

Get your books done right

Set up a live video appointment or message your QuickBooks-certified bookkeeper whenever you need help with new sales tax rates. Learn more about QuickBooks Live Bookkeeping.

Edit your sales tax rate

When you use the automated sales tax feature, QuickBooks automatically generates the tax agencies and sales tax rates you need. However, if you still use custom sales tax rates, here’s how you can edit them.

Note: You'll see "Error: To process this credit card transaction, please enter a credit card number. (code:"INDIRECTTAX-15811")" when trying to edit a tax rate that is being used on a recurring transaction that is setup to auto-charge.

To resolve this error:

1. Create a new tax rate.
2. Edit the recurring transactions to use to the new tax rate.
3. After all recurring transactions are updated to the new tax rate, go to the sales tax settings and make the old tax rate inactive.

Note: The following steps are for the automated sales tax experience. If you still use manual sales tax, check if you can switch over to automated sales tax. If you don’t have the option to switch yet, follow the Edit sales tax rate using manual sales tax steps.

Follow this link to complete the steps in product

1. Select Sales Tax Settings.
2. In the Custom rate section, find the sales tax rate you want to edit.
3. Select Edit.
4. Update the name or rate.
5. Select Continue, then select Edit.

If you’re still using manual sales tax, use the following instructions to edit your sales tax rate instead:

Follow this link to complete the steps in product

Edit a tax agency name

You can edit a sales tax agency’s name through the Sales Tax Center using manual sales tax only. However, your sales forms will still show the old or initial name you’ve entered. If you would like a different name to show on your sales forms, you'll need to create a new tax agency.

To edit your tax agency's name, follow these steps:

Follow this link to complete the steps in product

1. In the Agency Name column, look for the tax agency you want to edit and select rename.
2. Enter the new name, then select Save.