Fix failed recurring transactions in QuickBooks Online

Learn how to fix recurring transactions that failed to run in QuickBooks Online.

Occasionally, one or more of your recurring transactions weren’t created. This article helps you confirm if the info in your template is up-to-date, then manually process or recreate the recurring transaction. To fix this, follow the recommended steps to resolve the issues.

Manually create transactions from the template 

For any templates that don't run, a quick way to create the needed transaction is to use the existing template.

1. Go to Settings ⚙.
2. Under Lists, select Recurring transactions.
3. From the list, find the recurring transaction.
4. From the Edit ▼ dropdown, select Use.
5. Review the transaction details and add more if you need to, then select Save template.

Confirm recurring transaction is set to Scheduled

Recurring templates will only create transactions automatically when the type is set to “Scheduled” and the template has not reached its end date or maximum occurrences.

1. Go to Settings ⚙.
2. Under Lists, select Recurring transactions.
3. Find the template for the transaction that wasn’t created. Then, in the Action column, select Edit.
4. Make sure the Type is set to Scheduled, and End is set to None, or the appropriate end date or number of occurrences.
5. Select Save template.

Check the credit card status of the customer associated with the recurring sales receipt

When QuickBooks prepares to create recurring transactions, it skips transactions that have an expired credit card. Review and make sure your customer’s card isn’t expired or expiring soon. If it is, update it as soon as you have your customer's new card info so that any recurring sales receipts that are scheduled continue to run.

Check if the sales tax code is changed

If some item or tax code used on the recurring template is changed indirectly, the template should update automatically to use the new info. However, there are some instances when an error occurs and the sales tax used needs to be re-saved on the template.

If the recurring template failed but the next recurring transaction date seems to advance, open and review the template details. Save the template to check if there are any errors and see what caused the recurring transaction to fail. Recurring transactions can run later than expected. Usually, most transactions run before 9 AM PST.

Recreate then delete the failed template

If the recurring template continues to fail, recreate it to fix the issue.

1. Go to Settings ⚙.
2. Under Lists, select Recurring transactions.
3. Find the template you want to recreate, then select Edit in the Action column.
4. Print or write down any details you’ll need to recreate the template.
5. Return to the list of recurring templates, then select New.
6. From the Transaction Type ▼ dropdown, select the type of template you want to create. 
7. Fill out the template and be sure to select Scheduled from the Type ▼ dropdown.
8. Select Save template.

You then need to delete the old template to avoid duplicates.

1. Go to Settings ⚙.
2. Under Lists, select Recurring transactions.
3. From the list, find the recurring transaction template you want to delete.
4. In the Action column, select the Edit ▼ dropdown, then select Delete.