Merging GL accounts that are 1099 accounts

Addition for late thought:   

* If the GL accounts being merged a sub-accounts of the same higher level number, does that make a difference in merging them?

* If the GL accounts are sub-accounts of different higher level numbers, could I assume all the data would then become part of the higher number of the GL account that was the one being merged into? (Probably shouldn't "assume", but ....)

If the process of merging is different for sub-accounts, please let me know how that would change the process..

And here I am assuming that QB actually allows for the merging of GL numbers. Does it? 

Hello there. Allow me to step in and assist you with your questions regarding consolidating accounts in QuickBooks Desktop (QBDT).

Please note that merging accounts in QBDT is not feasible if one account is for 1099 purposes while the other functions as a GL account. In this scenario, you can manually transfer the account using a journal entry and adjust any existing contractor payments accordingly.

To add a journal entry:

1. Go to the Company option and select Make General Journal Entries.

2. Fill in the necessary fields.

3. Click on Save & Close.

4. Repeat this process for each payment that needs to be moved.

To edit existing contractor payments:

1. Select Vendors, then choose Vendor Center.

2. Click on the vendor and locate the transactions you need to edit.

3. Double-click the transaction to make your edits.

4. Once done, tap on Save & Close.

5. Repeat this process for each payment that needs to be changed.

Any changes don't impact the operational aspects of the accounts when modifying account names and descriptions. Even if you edit the account number, its functionality remains unchanged.

When merging the sub-accounts of the same higher-level numbers, there will be no difference in incorporating them. But if they are sub-accounts of different higher-level numbers, the data will be grouped under the parent number of the merged accounts. Make sure your account mapping is accurate to prevent reporting errors.

Additionally, sub-accounts cannot be merged directly. To consolidate them, convert each sub-account into a parent account before merging. Afterward, adjust the sub-account names to match the main account.

You can also merge accounts with different account numbers and then manually modify the account number of what you wish to keep.

I also appreciate your feedback about the 1099 assignment. May I know what activity you're referring to? I'd be glad to provide details and references.

To address any irregularities in your chart of accounts and return it to its default order, you can re-sort the lists. Visit this reference to assist with the instructions: Re-sort lists in QuickBooks Desktop.

I'm looking forward to getting this sorted for you. Keep me posted if there's anything else you need to ask about handling your chart of accounts or 1099 forms. You can count on me 24/7. Stay safe.

Thank you for your response. I need to review it again in more detail, but I wanted to reply quickly to the comments / instructions on General Journal Entries. I am intimately familiar with GJE's in general and in QB, and there are far, far too many entries in either of the accounts to make it feasible to do journal entries to move the dollar amounts into a single GL account. Both accounts were used for several years, so that is not a possibility. 

Is it not possible to un-assign the 1099 flag from a GL account? Do bad things happen in history of the GL or the 1099 history? 

We appreciate your immediate response. We'll provide further details on how unassigning 1099 flags from a GL account affects your financial data in QuickBooks Desktop (QBDT).

If an account is mapped to a filed 1099 form, it's recommended that you don't make any changes as it may result in double filing or cause discrepancies to your 1099.

While changing the account mapping after filing won't directly impact your General Ledger history, it can affect future reporting in two ways. First, the mappings determine whether future vendor transactions will be included in next year's 1099 filings. Second, reports that rely on 1099 data will be impacted by changes to account mappings. They pull information from accounts you've assigned to specific boxes.

To learn more about mapping 1099 transactions, please see this article: Understand payment categories for the 1099.

Also, we recommend regularly reconciling your accounts (monthly) to track your expenses effectively.

Stay in touch if you have additional questions or concerns about managing GL accounts and 1099 transactions. We'd be delighted to help you out.

Need some clarification:    As the QB 1099 partner didn't file 1099's in SD, we utilized a CPA firm to e-file our 1099 forms for 2023. I can understand how changing the 1099 flag would change the history of 1099's but if the filing has already occurred I'm not sure what the additional risk is. I am also not sure how an additional fiiing would take place. Can you please elaborate to explain how ....

 -- an additional filing of 1099's would occur?

 -- how changing a 1099 assignment would change GL history?

I understand that changing a GL # would change GL history, but if the GL account report mapping was done properly there should be no discrepancy in the overall financial statement results ...no?

I appreciate you for getting back on this thread, Deadwood Al. Allow me to share additional insights about this matter.

When you map an account in QBDT, the program tracks transactions in that account and uses them to populate the 1099 form for filing. If you change the account mapping after filing the 1099s, the program might not recognize that the information has already been reported. This could lead to accidentally filing the same information again.

Furthermore, the 1099 flag or mapping is used to identify transactions that need to be reported on the tax form. Changing this after the filing doesn't directly impact your General Ledger history. However, it could affect future reporting. The inclusion of future vendor transactions in next year's filings depends on any changes made to account mappings. It will also affect your reports that rely on 1099 data (e.g., tax 1099 Transaction Detail/Summary) as they pull the transactions that have been mapped to a box when preparing the 1099 forms.

After that, it is necessary to review the updates made. Then, file a correction to ensure the form is accurate. For more details, please see this article: Correct or change 1099s in QuickBooks.

For more details about 1099s, I'll be attaching these articles for reference: 

• 1099 E-File: QuickBooks Desktop setup, troubleshooting, & FAQs
• Modify your chart of accounts for your 1099-MISC and 1099-NEC filing

Please let me know if you have additional questions. I'm just a few clicks away. Keep safe always!

I don't know why there is so much misunderstanding about my questions: I am NOT changing any reported 1099 that was already filed for 2023. I want to change the GL number going forward to accomplish the following:

1. Get back to the standard GL numbering system ... 1xxx for assets, 2xxx for liabilities, 3xxx for Equity, 4xxx for revenue / income. 5xxx for cost of sales, 6xxx -8xxx for expenses, 9xxx for other income/expense.

2. Regroup to re-establish order to put related accounts together (salary-related items, banking related items, sales-related, administrative-related, event-related, etc.)

3. Add accounts to enhance tracking of expenses in specific cases

The question of un-assigning 1099 flags came about only because the system told me that I couldn't change a GL number from 6xxx to 6yyy because it was a 1099 account. In my view, the resulting 6yyy would be a 1099 flagged account! I would prefer NOT having to un-assign the 1099 setting in order to change the GL #, the system told me I  had to!!! If that is true, then what would happen is

 a) unassign 1099 flag from 6xxx

 b) change 6xxx to 6yyy

 c) assign 1099 flag to 6yyy

Those steps seem totally unnecessary to me but are required by QB! Why??

And a related question: If a GL account was mistakenly flagged as a 1099 account a few years in the past, and it was just discovered, the logical thing to do would be to un-assign the 1099 flag from that GL, no? If the only vendor that used that account was not flagged as a 1099 vendor, nothing would have been filed for that vendor/account $. So un-assigning the 1099 flag would be the action to take.

I really need someone other than a QB employee to respond here ... where are the real-world users?

There may be a reason I shouldn't or can't do this, but I want it to be based on real-world consequences, not on misunderstanding what I am trying to ask about.

@BigRedConsulting   

??

I am having the same issue and it is so frustrating.

I want to clean up my chart of accounts. Many of my accounts are assigned to a 1099 and I have not idea how that happened because a 1099 is not applicable for most of those accounts...

It's not the experience that we want you to encounter, Karen. I'm here to help you disconnect those accounts from 1099 by maximizing the omit option from the Preferences tab.

An account will be associated with 1099, depending on its setup or if used to track vendor-related data in QuickBooks. To unlink, we can omit it from 1099. Please refer to these steps to proceed:

1. Open your QuickBooks Desktop (QBDT) company file.
2. Navigate to the Edit menu and select Preferences.
3. Choose Company Preferences. Then, from the If you want to map your account to boxes on Form 1099-MISC and If you want to map your account to boxes on Form 1099-NEC sections, click the you can do it here link.
4. Hit Yes on the Print/e-file 1099 forms prompt, and from the Show 1099 accounts dropdown, pick Show all accounts.
5. Locate the account that you want to exclude from 1099, and on the Apply this payment to 1099 box column, choose Omit these payments from 1099 from the dropdown selection.
6. Once done, Save & Close.

For additional information about preparing and documenting your federal 1099s in QBDT, please review this link: Create and file 1099s with QuickBooks Desktop.

Once omitted, you can erase the accounts from your Chart of Accounts if needed. Nevertheless, if those accounts are linked to your transactions, items, and payroll setup or have existing balances, you can only make them inactive.

I'm also including this article as your reference once you need to generate your year-end forms and taxes: Year-end checklist for QuickBooks Desktop Payroll.

If you have additional queries with your accounts or need help with your data and transactions, feel free to click the Reply button. I'll make sure you're taken care of.