How can I fix my credit card subaccount balances?

Good day, @laura73,

Posting transactions to the parent account will not impact the sub-accounts. The parent account's balance will decrease once  you record money-out under entries under it, while the balance of the sub-accounts remains the same.

You can check the parent account if there are transactions that weren't assigned to the sub-account. This cause the difference between their balances.

If you want to inactive the sub-accounts, QuickBooks will create a journal entry to zero out the balance. Thus, you need to transfer all the transactions to the parent account first.

To make an account inactive:

1. Click Accounting from the left menu, the select Chart of Accounts.
2. Find the account you want to inactive.
3. Click the drop-down under the Action column, then select Make Inactive.
4. Click Yes to confirm.

You also check out to this page for your guidance with the steps above: How to delete an account or restore a deleted account.

Keep me posted if there's anything I can help with your accounts in QuickBooks. I'm always around whenever you need help.

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@MaryLandT wrote:

Good day, @laura73,

 

 

 Thus, you need to transfer all the transactions to the parent account first.

 

 

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No, not all the transactions. Just the balances. With a journal entry: debit all the subs, credit parent with total of the subs, so the balances in the subs will then be zero. Then you can make them inactive. Reconcile the parent

Is it possible for Quickbooks to automatically create the journal entry to zero out the sub-accounts?  I do this manually each month, but it would easily be automated and I wonder if I'm missing something.

Does Quickbooks have a way to automate the journal entry to debit the subs and credit the parent?  I do this manually each month and it is repetitive and easily automated.  

Hi there, @Q_B_desktop_Fan.

Thanks for providing a suggestion on how to make QBO easier for our user. There isn't an option to create an automated Journal Entry for now. Manually entering them is advisable as each business is unique and has a distinct accounting preference. 

I'll take note of this feature request and pass it on to our engineers. Customer suggestions and feedback will be collected and reviewed for future updates. 

For now, I encourage you visiting our blogs to stay current on all the QuickBooks new and announcements. 

• The QuickBooks Blog
• Firm of the Future

Let me know if there's anything else I can do or you have other proposals. I'd be here to provide more help and share them on your behalf.

Hello everyone, 

Thank you for sharing this information. I'm am new in quickbooks and I been following different topics in Community center. I have the same problem every month I do journal entry to zero out the balances of sub-accounts, and to reflect the total amounts into parent account to match the total as per end of billing cycle and credit card statement. I'm only paying the parent account. 

My question is, in doing  bank reconciliation do I need to mark Reconcile in the journal entry that I did? because journal entry are not in bank statement, its only in quickbooks.

Thank you so much and looking forward to hear all your inputs and knowledge using QB Online.

Aurora

Hello acalbarico,

Welcome to the Community. It would be my pleasure to lend a hand with reconciling bank account in QuickBooks Online.

When doing account reconciliation, you only match transactions entered into the QuickBooks system and your bank statements. If not necessary, you don't need to mark it as Reconcile from your account register.

I recommend the following link as it's a hub of articles to assist a user with the reconciliation process, such as fixing discrepancies:

• Fix Reconciliation Discrepancies.

• Zero or incorrect Beginning Balance in the Begin Reconciliation Window.

Please don't hesitate to come here with all of your reconciliation needs. The Community is here to ensure your success.

I have the same problem.  I reconcile the parent account and have subaccount balances.  How do I zero out?  What category do most use to zero-out?  I wish it would do this automatically.  

You'll need to reconcile the sub-accounts first to zero out the balances, mcbbsinc.

Once reconciled, you can then go back to the parent account and reconcile it. Use the same articles in the previous responses just in case you run into an error or discrepancies when reconciling the sub-accounts.

If they're connected to online banking,  you only need to reconcile the parent account because all transactions in the sub accounts roll up into it. More details about this function are shared here: About bank or credit card sub account setup.

You'll also want to run a reconciliation report after the process is complete. Here's an article on how you can do it: How do I view, print, or export a reconciliation report?.

I'd be more than glad to get back here in case you need more help with your banking transactions. 

I have my credit card set up as described by Quick Books.  Parent account and then two subs under it.  The Parent account is not connected to online banking.  The two subs are.   I reconcile the parent account.  The sub accounts show that reconciliation.  However, the balance has never zeroed out.  Is there something else that needs to happen?

It's possible that the credit payment that you've made wasn't recorded properly in QuickBooks, @Slfike.

This is the reason why it's still showing balances (QUICKBOOKS BALANCE) in the Chart of Accounts window.

Let me provide you the steps on how you can record it to zero out your credit card balances. If you made a credit card payment using a check, you can record it in QuickBooks by creating a check.

1. Select + New.
2. Under Vendors, click Check.
3. In the Payee field, select the (Vendors name) for the credit card payment.
4. In the Bank Account field, choose the bank account or credit card from which the payment will be made.
5. Enter a Mailing address and select a Payment date.
6. In the Check no. field, enter the check number, or If paid electronically, type the EFT.
7. Uncheck Print Later if the check was already issued.
8. Enter the Category details and a payment amount.
9. Fill in the rest of the information and click Save and Close.

Once done, let's record the payment through a bank transfer. 

1. Click the + New icon and select Transfer.
2. Select the bank account the credit card was paid from the Transfer Funds From ▼ drop-down menu.
3. From the Transfer Funds To ▼ drop-down list, select the credit card that the payment went to.
4. In the Transfer Amount field, enter the amount of the payment.
5. Edit the date and enter notes under Memo.
6. Select Save and close.

Also, you can run the Reconciliation reports in QuickBooks Online. This will show you the list of your reconciliations, with links to individual reconciled accounts. Just go to Reports and look for the Reconciliation reports.

If you ever have other questions we can help you with, feel free to swing by the Community.

accidental double post - removing

I'm having the same issue. 

I reconcile my parent account every month with no issue.  However, I don't do anything with the subaccounts and they do have balances that need addressing.  I've read the previous replies, but I'm still confused about the "next steps" I should take to fix this issue.  One post said to reconcile the subaccounts, another said to move all the transactions from the sub to the parent, another said to create a journal entry to move the balance.  In the subaccounts, it looks like the transactions have been reconciled as they have a check or a lightning bolt next to them (we use bank feeds.)  The transactions seem to be showing in both the parent and the subaccount, so I'm not sure what to move.  What would the journal entry look like if I created it?  Moving the balance from the sub to the parent account would make the total owed WAY off from what is actual. 

Hello there, @Total Air.

Thank you for posting here in the Community. I can share some clarification about how the account balances work in QuickBooks.

You don't need a journal entry to clear the balances. When entering payments, please make sure to select the sub-accounts instead of the parent account.

The process will zero out the balances, including the parent. Check out these screenshots for your visual guide:

For additional reference, I've attached a link you can use about reconciling an account: Reconcile an account in QuickBooks Online.

Please let me know if you need anything else. The Community and I will be here to help you.

Thank you so much!  That makes PERFECT sense.  I really appreciate the visuals. 

You're always welcome, @Total Air.

I'm glad that I was able to help with your concern today. You can count on the Community if you need any assistance with using QuickBooks.

It's always our pleasure to help. Cheering you and your business to continued success.

Exactly my problem.  I have 2 employee cards on one credit card account.  The two subaccounts are actively connected, appearing in the QBO Banking feed and the parent account is offline, accessible only in Chart of Accounts.  I reconcile the parent account but the two subaccounts retain ongoing balances, one grows into the negative the other grows into the positive.  They cancel eachother out to equal the actual banking balance but I need to figure out how to zero these accounts out so that there won't be perpetually growing negative/positive subaccount balances displayed (which looks really confusing).

When the bank balance and parent account are at $0, I have subaccount A with a balance of -121,591 and subaccount B with a balance of +121,591

Joining the thread to share information about your account balance, @cetanorak.

Each credit card subaccounts balance will result in the total balance of the parent account. Based on how you describe them, each subaccount downloads the transactions by income and expenses respectively.

You don't have to worry, each subaccount balance is correct once the parent account has been reconciled based on the transaction on your statement. Here's an article to read more: The Bank and Credit Card Subaccount Setup.

I also suggest contacting your accountant for guidance in understanding each account balance along with working the reconciliation. Use the link to find someone you want to work with: The QuickBooks Certified ProAdvisor.

I'm adding this article with topics to use while working with your credit card account and transaction reconciliation: Banking in QuickBooks Online.

Feel free to let me know if you have other concerns about managing your account balances and transactions. You can drop a comment below, and I'll gladly help. Take care, and I wish you continued success!

But my accounts (I have over 20) are all active and the total of all cards is correct but the Parent account has a negative balance and the sub accounts all retain their balances.  this seems very "dirty" and I would like to clean this up. 

Good afternoon, @Lonnie5. 

Thanks for joining in on this thread. Let me point you in the right direction to get this problem resolved. 

If you're still having trouble after reviewing some of my colleagues suggestions, then I recommend contacting our Customer Support Team so they can take a close look at these accounts with you via screen share to figure out why this is happening. Here's how: 

1. Go to the Help icon in the top right-hand corner. 
2. Press the Contact Us button. 
3. Give a brief description of the issue and hit Let's talk. 
4. Scroll down and choose to Get a callback. 

It's that easy! 

Come back and let us know how it goes. Have a great day!

How do you do it manually. Please show 

Thanks for joining the thread, Icasa.

Could you further elaborate on the issue you're having with your credit card account? Are you trying to clear the balances, zero out your credit card balances, or manually enter the journal entry transactions? We would appreciate any information or screenshots you can give us to help us locate the problem.

Update me in the comments section below. I'm hoping to hear from you as soon as I can. Take care always!

Thank you!

What does your this journal entry look like every month? I need to clear my subaccounts!