How do i clear old invoices that show open from previous years

Hi stephwag,

Welcome to the QuickBooks Community, and thanks for posting about your open invoices. I'll share some information on how you can handle this.

There should be a reason why some of your old invoices are still open. Yes, you can mark them as paid, but the payments will also affect your books, so I recommend checking why those transactions haven’t been paid yet. If you can no longer collect payments, you can record them as bad debt. Check out this article for your reference: Write off bad debt in QuickBooks Online.

If you see other reasons why those invoices are still open, please let us know and we will guide you in recording your transactions. You can also seek help from an accountant so that they can advise you on what to do with your records.

On the other hand, check out the video tutorials for QuickBooks Online for your reference in the future.

I am just a comment away if you need more help. I just want to make sure you can move forward and focus on your business instead. Take care!

The invoices have been paid but in the year they were paid they were never marked as paid so now they all show as past due even though they were paid. I don't want them on our books as past due but also don't want them showing in transactions for this year as they were all from previous years.

Hello there, stephwag.

Thanks for adding more details about the issue. This will guide us on how to close your invoices.

We’ll have to review your deposits and make sure Accounts Receivable is the posting account. Then, link them to the invoices to show that they’re already paid.

Before performing any troubleshooting steps, I recommend consulting with an account to ensure the transactions will not throw off your records. When you’re ready, follow these steps to locate the deposits.

Here’s how:

1. Go to the Accounting menu on the left panel to choose Chart of Accounts.
2. Look for the account where you deposited the payment and select the View register link under the Action column.
3. Find and select the correct deposit to expand the line and then click the Edit menu to open the Bank Deposit page.
4. Navigate to the Add funds to this deposit section and choose the transaction you’re working on.
5. Click the Received From ▼ drop-down and pick the customer the deposit was from.
6. Press the Account ▼ drop-down to select Accounts Receivable.
7. Tap the Save and Close button.

You can perform the same process for the remaining deposits you wish to edit. After updating the entry, apply it as a credit to the invoice. For detailed instructions, go to the Apply the deposit entry as an invoice payment section in this guide: How to link a deposit to an invoice.

Also, this article will guide you on how to group multiple payments into a single record, track a partial payment, etc: Record invoice payments in QuickBooks Online.

Keep in touch if you have other invoice-related concerns. I’m always ready to lend a helping hand. Wishing you and your business continued success.

The deposits for them were never recorded in Quickbooks either 

I know a way to mark your invoices paid in QuickBooks, stephwag.

Since there are no deposits, we'll have to record the invoice payments in QuickBooks Online. I'll show you how.

1. Go to the Sales menu and then select All Sales.
2. Click the Filter button.
3. On the Type field, select Invoices.
4. You can select Open or Overdue on the Status field.
5. Enter the date.
6. You can also filter the specific customers.
7. Once you're done, click on the Apply button.
8. After that, click on Receive payment under the Action column.
9. Add the details on the Payment method and Deposit to field.
10. Enter the amount, then click on Save and close.

For more details, please see this article: Record Invoice Payments in QuickBooks Online.

Additionally, I encourage running and customizing the Open Invoices reports. This will help you easily track and manage all your open transactions in QuickBooks Online. Here's how:

1. Go to the Reports menu.
2. Type Open Invoices in the search field, then click open.
3. You can click on Customize to filter the details need.

For your visual reference, I've attached a screenshot below.

Please come back and keep us posted on your progress in marking your invoices as paid. I'm determined to ensure your books are accurate.

Can we take it one more step… For old invoices that payments were never recorded in QuickBooks and now old invoice are showing up over due.. Once you receive them in undeposited funds - how would you clean that up to where it won’t mess up my books?

Hi there, Retiredat64. Let me share some information about marking paid the old invoices in QuickBooks Online. 

Since this invoice has already been paid but not recorded in QuickBooks, you can record a received payment directly to the bank account or to the Undeposited funds to mark the invoice paid. You need to ensure that you enter the exact payment date so that it will not affect your books in the current year. You can follow the steps below:

1. Go to Sales, then select Invoices.
2. Select the overdue invoice, then click Receive payment.
3. Enter the Payment date, then select the account you want to deposit the payment in the Deposit to section.
4. Click Save and close.

If you choose the Undeposited Funds, you need to create a bank deposit and ensure that the payment date matches the old invoices. 

Please note that this process will still affect the overall records, specifically your bank account and income. Thus, I recommend consulting with your accountant for further guidance to ensure that it will not mess up your books as it will also affect your previous reconciled accounts. 

Furthermore, you run a Transaction list by Customer report to see all your transactions and their payments in one data. You can also customize it to fit your preferences and or generate other reports in the program.

Don't hesitate to click the Reply button if you have other questions about managing your invoices in QuickBooks. We've got your back. Have a great day!

How do you clear invoices that never existed? You can't deduct them as bad debts if they were never viable. So, can you do a Schedule M item. Another example of lay person slop. 

I have invoices from 2017 to current that showed up overnight and cannot figure out how to remove them without my accountant having an issue as all of these past invoices had been paid years ago. Even my current invoices from this year are on my pay bills screen after they have already been paid. Any ideas?

Thanks for joining the thread, @iporta. It can be concerning to see invoices from 2017 appear unexpectedly, especially when they've already been paid. Let me help you fix this without messing up your accounting records.

The old paid invoices might be showing up as unpaid due to unapplied or unlinked payments. To resolve this, verify if the payments for these invoices are properly recorded. If they're missing, you'll need to enter them again. Here's how:

1. Click the +New button and select Receive payment.
2. Choose your Customer and Payment method.
3. From the Deposit to dropdown, pick the account you put the payment into.
4. In the Outstanding Transactions section, check the box for the invoice you're recording the payment for.
5. Enter the Reference no. and Memo if needed.
6. Hit Save and close.

Next, ensure there are no duplicate invoices in your account causing confusion. If there are, you can exclude them so they won't show up in any account registers or financial reports. Follow these steps:

1. Navigate to Transactions, then Bank transactions.
2. Open the For Review tab.
3. Select the checkbox of the entries to exclude.
4. Click Exclude.

I highly recommend consulting your accountant's advice throughout this process to maintain the accuracy of your records.

To catch discrepancies early and keep your books spot-on, it's essential to reconcile your accounts regularly. Use this article as a reference: Reconcile an account in QuickBooks Online.

I’m here to make sure you have a smooth experience moving forward. Don’t hesitate to reach out if you have more questions. Together, we’ll keep your entries precise and stress-free. Take care.