How do I recoerd outstanding checks as of the opening balance date on my company?

I'm here to help you record your outstanding checks, @amgaqb1!

You can create a new wash account first before recording your outstanding checks. Recording them this way, the amounts of your checks will not affect the opening balance of your account.

To do so:

1. Go to Accounting.
2. Select Chart of Accounts.
3. Hit New.
4. Choose an appropriate account type and detail type of your account.
5. Enter Wash Account as the name of your account.
6. Click Save and Close.

In addition, here's an article you can read to learn more about how you can create a new account: Create a new account in your chart of accounts in QuickBooks Online.

Once completed, here's how you can start recording your outstanding checks:

1. Go to the Plus icon.
2. Under Vendor, select Checks.
3. Select a vendor and date of your outstanding checks.
4. On the Payment account menu, select the wash account you recently created.
5. Choose an item or category.
6. Enter the amount.
7. Click Save and close.

Additionally, I've also included this helpful article that'll guide you in recording a check: How to write checks?

From there, you can simply change the payment account of your outstanding checks into the correct bank account once the amount has been posted into your bank statement.

Let me know in the comment section down below if you have any other questions. I'll always be around, ready to help. Have a great day!

Checks are part of the account history and should be in the check register to start with.

enter the checks with the original date and amount, total them and add that amount to the opening balance.  If the check expense is for this fiscal year, use the correct account, otherwise use opening balance equity for the check expense

thanks so much and please forgive my ignorance, I am new to QB. is my "wash account" a liability or an equity account?

Thanks for joining this conversation, @SanSunAcres.

When creating a Wash account (also known as Barter or Clearing account) in QuickBooks Online (QBO), you can choose either of the two. However, the best is a bank account because of the following reasons:

• You can pay into a bank account via Receive Payments or Make Deposits.
• You can pay out of a bank account via Write Checks or Pay Bills.
• A bank account appears on the balance sheet and on the statement of cash flows to balances and changes in balances.
• To allocate expenses to overhead or class using a zero check, you must use a bank account as your Clearing account.

You can also consult your accountant for further guidance as to what's the correct account to use.

To learn more about setting up an account in you Chart of Accounts, you may check out this article: Add an account to your chart of accounts in QuickBooks Online.

For tips and other resources, I recommend visiting our website for reference: Self-help articles.

Feel free to post again or leave a comment below if you have any other concerns. I'm always here to help. Have a wonderful day!

I set up the wash account as a banking account, as was suggested.  When I entered all the outstanding checks to the wash account, it gave a debit balance (I would have expected a credit balance, and you can't enter a negative balance, it doesn't let you).  Now that the checks are clearing, I am changing the bank to the correct checking account (as it suggests), and while the checking account balance is decreasing, as I would have expected it to, the wash account balance is increasing, which I did not expect it to.  Help!?!?!?!

Hello, I just and starting on QBO 7/1.  I entered our opening bank balance as of 7/1.  I am trying to account for the outstanding vendor checks that had been sent in June, but not cleared the bank as of June 30.   I did as you suggested, and set up my wash account as a bank account.  However, I am confused as to how this works.  When I entered the outstanding checks, I used the category of wash account, it doesn't let you enter a negative amount, so the wash account balance is a debit (and it should be a credit, as the opening bank balance does not account for checks that were outstanding at the end of the prior month).  So now when the outstanding check clears, yes, the bank account reduces, but now the wash account is increasing.  Help!?!?!  I was expecting the wash to be a credit and then as the checks cleared it would debit the wash account and credit the cash account.  What am I missing?

When you apply it to the account it belongs to, that account should have an openning balance - right, then when you apply the cheque agains the account, it is a zero balance?

I'm here to help and ensure that your questions are addressed accordingly, Glenn_Vaughan.

For me to be able to provide you with the right answer, could you please tell me what you're trying to do in QuickBooks? What transactions are you trying to record?

It would be best if you can send me a screenshot as well. Any additional information would be highly appreciated.

I hope you can respond to me on this thread so we can work on your concern together, Glenn_Vaughan. Please know I'm ready to assist further whenever you have an additional account and cheque concerns. Have a good one.

your wash account should be a liability account.. 

Please confirm.  Do I add the outstanding checks expensed in previous year to the bank account opening balance?

Thanks for joining this thread, droybal. I'd gladly provide some information about account opening balances.

Before anything else, I recommend reaching out to your accountant so they can provide professional advice on whether you should add the outstanding checks to your opening balance. If you don't have one, you can use our accountant tool to locate a nearby professional.

An opening balance is an amount in an account at the start of an accounting period, and it must match the cleared balance on the bank statement on said start date. If you chose to start on the previous year, then you'll need to include the checks in the opening balance. If not, refer to your bank statement about your balance on the start date you've picked and use that amount as the account opening balance.

For more information, see this article on opening balances: Enter and manage opening balances in QuickBooks Online.

For future reference, here's a guide on ensuring your QuickBooks accounts match your real-life ones: Reconcile workflow.

Please feel free to come back to this thread for any other clarifications regarding your opening balance in QuickBooks, droybal. We've got your back. Take care!