Error: Can't delete old employee used in unbilled charges

Thanks for joining the Community, rebecca39.
 

If you're encountering a "This employee cannot be deleted because it is used in unbilled charges." error message upon trying to make an employee inactive, you can run your Unbilled Charges report to identify each transaction they're linked with, then unlink them.
 

Here's how:

1. In the left navigation bar, go to Reports.
2. Enter "Unbilled charges" in your Find report by name search field.
3. Choose Unbilled charges from the drop-down list.
4. Click each transaction to open their records. This way you can check if an employee's connected with any unbilled charges. In the event they are, untick your Billable (/hr) checkbox for each one.
5. Select Save and close.
   

After addressing each unbilled charge, you can return to your Employees page and delete them by using the ACTION ▼ drop-down arrow, then selecting Make inactive.

If you need to reactivate a deleted worker, use your Gear (⚙️) icon, turn on Include inactive, then hit Make active for their record.

You'll additionally be able to find many detailed resources about using QuickBooks in our help article archives.
 

Please don't hesitate in sending a reply if there's any questions. Have a lovely day!

Unfortunately I have already removed all the "unbilled charges" I am able to from my "Unbilled Charges" report. The problem I have now is a list of 6 "customers" on that "Unbilled Charges" report I can't delete or make inactive. The balances are zero, but there are "time charges" linked to those 6 customers that I can't remove. When I go to the "Customer" under "Sales" then "Customers", I open the customer and see "time charge". All amounts are zero, the only option is "create invoice". When I create the invoice, I see the linked time charge. When I click on the "billable time" there is an option to remove. When I remove the linked "time charge" I am unable to save the created invoice because it removed the line item. Any ideas?

Hi there, rebecca39.

I'll make sure that you can deactivate your old employees.

To completely remove the time charge, you'll open the transaction from the Customers tab by clicking it. Then, select the Delete option at the bottom to get rid of it. Here's how:

1. Select Sales from the sidebar menu.
2. Head to the Customers tab.
3. Choose the appropriate customer.
4. From the Transactions tab, find and click the time charge open it.
5. Select Close from the To enter a timesheet, go to TSheets pop-up dialog.
6. Click Delete at the bottom, then choose Yes to confirm the changes.

You're done and ready, please follow the steps provided by my colleague, ZackE to deactivate your old employees. 

Additionally, here are some articles that you can read to help efficiently manage your employees in QuickBooks:

• Terminate or change employee status payroll
• Change an employee's direct deposit info

Don't hesitate to add a reply to this thread or start a new conversation if you have any other concerns. The Community is open 24/7 and always ready to help.

Select Sales from the sidebar menu. Head to the Customers tab. Choose the appropriate customer. From the Transactions tab, find and click the time charge WHEN I GET TO THIS POINT I GET THE ATTACHED ERROR MESSAGE. I DO NOT HAVE THE OPTIONS TO  Select Close from the To enter a timesheet, go to TSheets pop-up dialog. Click Delete at the bottom, then choose Yes to confirm the changes.

Allow me to step in and help you further in deleting the time charge and an old employee, rebecca39.

I appreciate the screenshot you've provided. To ensure you can delete the old employee in QuickBooks, you might want to ensure that all the unbilled charges are linked to invoices. This way, all the transactions were zeroed out and you're able to delete the employee.

However, if you're still getting the same result, I'd suggest getting in touch with our QuickBooks Online Support to have this investigated.

Unlike in this public forum, they have the tools required to perform any escalations in the system whenever necessary on your behalf. Here's how to get a call or chat from us:

1. Click the Help (?) icon.

2. Choose Contact Us.

3. Enter a  brief description of your situation in the What can we help you with? area, then click Let's talk.

4. You'll be presented with a few options for connecting with Intuit. Select Get a call.

To know more about the time tracking feature and its process, check out the following write-up: How to turn on and set up time tracking.

Kindly update me on how the calls go by adding another comment below. I want to make sure you're all set, and I'm here if you need further guidance. Have a great day! All the best.

This is a poor interface design. 

There are points where an employee is terminated and we want to make inactive to reduce any accidental or otherwise incorrect documentation on time etc. If we bill clients on a 30 or 60 day basis almost two months can go by before those charges are billed. It does not make sense that all time connected to an employee must be billed prior to the termination of said employee. Please fix this. 

Hello there, C2Construction.

Thanks for providing detailed information about your concern. I'd like to reiterate what my colleague answered. Being able to deactivate old employees is unavailable in QuickBooks Online. 

Our developers are continuously working towards providing better features to help improve our customer's experience while using the program. I suggest sending feedback to our product developers to add this option for the upcoming product enhancements.

This is best the place for your voice to be heard and make product suggestions. To send your thoughts and ideas, please follow these steps:

1. Here's how:
   1. Use your Gear (⚙️) icon.
   2. Click Feedback.

   
   3. Enter your suggestion(s).
   4. Hit Next.

   
   5. Choose Skip and send message.
   6. The available drop-down menu can be used to pick an appropriate category.
   7. Select Send message.

If you want to see what's new and coming in QuickBooks, you can always visit this site: Product Updates. It provides articles where you can read and review the improvements of our product.

Keep me posted if you have questions about deleting employees. Just leave a comment below and I'll be around to provide the information that you need.

To be honest, this is the most unhelpful post. I am having a similar issue with not being able to inactivate employees who are no longer with the company. I would like to use QB payroll since we use QB online for accounting but this is the main reason I won't switch from PAYCHEX. The inability to "inactivate" employees is very frustrating and giving feedback to QB to address this does NOT help.

We should indeed remove employees who are no longer part of the company to keep our records accurate, @evaxanthos.

Let me share some troubleshooting steps so you can achieve your goal, these steps could help us verify for any browser or data issues.

To proceed, let us verify any browser or data issues that prevent you from inactivating an employee. Let's open your account using a private browser by following the keyboard shortcut keys below.

• Safari: Command + Option + P
• Google Chrome: Ctrl + Shift + N
• Firefox or Internet Explorer: Ctrl + Shift + P

Once it works, go back to your regular browser and clear its cache to refresh the website's preferences. You can also use the different supported browsers for the best and most secure experience.

 If the issue persists, I recommend contacting our Support Team. They can investigate the issue and provide you with a prompt resolution.

Moreover, here's an article that provides an overview of your business finances: Run payroll reports

Keep me posted if you have follow-up questions about managing your payroll in QuickBooks Online. I'll be here to help.