How do you use Unapplied Payments towards an open invoice? There seems to be a bug in QBO.

Thanks for coming here with us today, christine45.

Let's try a few troubleshooting steps to isolate this issue when trying to use unapplied payments towards an open invoice in QuickBooks Online (QBO).

There are times when a browser's cache becomes full or damaged. When this happens, issues like this can occur. To start with, let's try logging in to your QBO account using an incognito or private browser. Since this doesn't store data in the cache, it the best place to isolate browser issues.

Kindly use either of the following shortcut keys:
 

• Google Chrome, press CTRL  + Shift + N
• Mozilla Firefox: press CTRL  + Shift + P
• Internet Explorer: press CTRL  + Shift + P
• Safari: press Command + Shift + N 

If it works, you may want to clear the browsing history of your regular web browser. This will remove previously-stored browsing data that might have caused the issue. Otherwise, you can try using other supported browsers to be thorough.

You can run the Invoices and Receive Payments report to see the payments you’ve received and the invoices that go with them.

1. Go to Reports
2. Search Invoices and Receive Payments in the search field.
   
3. Customize the necessary filters (Report period and other columns).

The Community is always open if you have other questions. I'll be around to help. Wishing you a great day ahead!

I've tried using an incognito window and that didn't work either.

Here is an example.  I want to use the unapplied payments towards an open invoice.  It instead wants to created another credit.

Hi there, christine45. 

Thanks for stopping by today, I'm more than happy to help. What you're going to want to do is record the unapplied payments as invoice payments in QBO. To do this, follow these steps:

1. Select + New.
2. Select Receive Payment.
3. Select the name of the customer from the drop-down menu.
4. From the Outstanding Transactions section, select the transactions that you’d like for QuickBooks Online to calculate. As you select these items, the payment total will change.
5. Select the payment method.
6. Enter the Reference no. and Memo if applicable.
7. You can either deposit the money to your checking account or to the Undeposited funds account.
8. Select Save and close.

Should you want to record partial payments or read up further on the process, you can check out this link down below:

• Record invoice payments in QuickBooks Online. 

If there's anything else I can help with, please, don't hesitate to post here at anytime. Thanks for stopping by the Community and have a nice afternoon. 

That didn't work either.

I have an invoice in the amount of $7500.  The customer overpaid the previous month by $252.  Therefore this month they sent a check for only $7248 as they have an unapplied payment of $252.

I have followed the steps as instructed.  In the past I would record $7248 as check deposit and then the remainder $252 would come from the credit balance.  When I do this it wants to create an additional credit for $252.  Please see image file.

$7248 check + $252 credit = $7500

There seems to be a bug.

I'm here to share additional information to help you resolved this unexpected behavior, @christine45.

Let's start by generating the Transaction List by Customer report. By doing this, we'd see all the recorded transactions specific to the customer.

1. Go to the Report menu.
2. Scroll down to the Sales and Customers Section.
3. Select the Transaction List by Customer report.
4. Click the Customize button.
5. Set the Report Period to This Year. 
6. From the Rows/Columns section, mark the following tickbox: 
7. Expand the Filter section.
8. Choose the name of the customer you're currently working on from the Customer drop-down.
9. Pick Invoice, Payment, and Credit in the Transaction Type drop-down. 
10. Click the Run Report button.

From here, you'd see which transaction generates a positive balance that indicates an overpayment. You can compare the recorded payment information to your bank statement.  

If the payments and credit memos were accurately applied, I'd recommend contacting our Customer Care team. A specialist can further look into the root cause of this issue using a secured remote access session. Here's how to contact us: 

1. Hover to the Help icon.
2. Click the Contact Us icon.
3. Enter a keyword about your request in the What can we help you with? box.
4. Select Continue.
5. Choose how'd you like to contact us:
   • Send a message 
   • Get a callback 

Get back to us here if you have other questions about managing your invoice payments in QuickBooks. I'm always here to help.

I have performed the reporting as suggested.  The over payments are being shown as an open balance rather than a credit.

I have tried the customer support yesterday.  Spent over 90 minutes on the phone with no success.

Hi there, @christine45.

Let me share you some guides on how you can correct the unapplied payments.

When sending customer invoices, I'd suggest receiving the payment through the Receive payments feature in QuickBooks Online. This will help you apply the correct credits or existing unapplied payments to the invoice.

For the detailed steps in receiving payments, you can reference this article: Record invoice payments in QuickBooks Online.

Also, if there's an unapplied payment, it should appear a credit below the Receive payments window that can be linked to the customer's invoice.

When there is no invoice to link with the Unapplied Payment, you can delete the check deposit made and use the Receive payment feature in + New to link the unapplied credit and enter the 7248 amount received from the customer to resolve it.

Here's how to delete the check deposit:

1. Go to Sales and then select Customers.
2. In the customer's Transaction List, click the Deposit.
3. On the Bank Deposit window, select More and then choose Delete.
4. Then click Yes to confirm.

Once you've deleted the deposit, you can now use the Receive payments feature to enter the amount and apply the credit to the invoice with these steps:

1. Click +New and then select the Receive payments.
2. Choose the name from the Customer's drop-down list.
3. Check the Invoice and Unapplied Payment box.
4. Then hit Save and close.

That should point you in the right direction.

If you need further assistance in receiving payments, please fill me in your comment to assist you further. The Community is always here to help. Stay safe and healthy, Christine.