Why is it every time i convert an estimate to an invoice it says rejected and i have to go back and delete the rejected estimate to clear my estimate queu? 08:08 AM

I can help you with resolving the error you're encountering when trying to convert an estimate into an invoice, @naturalselection.

This error is common when you convert from QuickBooks Desktop (QBDT) to QuickBooks Online (QBO). You may need to create a new one in QBO to convert it into an invoice successfully. 

To save your time, you can copy the estimate and after saving it, go back to the original estimate to delete it. You can now convert the estimate to an invoice successfully. 

Here's how to copy the estimate:

1. Go to the Sales menu and select All Sales.
2. Click to open the estimate and select More, then select Copy
3. Choose Save.

Go back to the original estimate, click the More button and select Delete. Here's how:

1. Go to the Sales menu and select the All Sales tab.
2. Click to open the estimate and click on More.
3. Select Delete.

Once done, you can now convert the estimate into an invoice. Please take note that you can only invoice an estimate with Accepted or Pending status. Follow the steps below: 

1. Go to the Sales menu and select All Sales.
2. Click to open the estimate and select Create invoice.
3. Add more details to the invoice as necessary, then select Save and close.

For more information about estimates and converting them into an invoice refer to the following articles:

• Create and send estimates in QuickBooks Online
• Convert an estimate into an invoice in QuickBooks Online

After receiving the payment from the invoices you've sent, see the following article on how to record this transaction: Record invoice payments in QuickBooks Online.

I'm always here if you need more help in converting your estimates into an estimate and or anything else, by leaving a reply below. I'm always glad to help in any way I can. Take care and have a great rest of the day!

another question to this thread is what is we WANT the estimate auto-deleted once we convert it to an invoice?  It really adds a lot of "noise" to the client record to have double (invoice & estimate) for the same order.  We'd like it to go away after converting to an invoice.  Is that possible??

Hi there, KellyManchester.

Thank you for visiting the QuickBooks Community. I'll ensure to share details on how converting between sales transactions works in QuickBooks. This way, you'll be able to see how important to keep each entry in QuickBooks Online.

When you convert an estimate to an invoice, the entries are linked and QuickBooks automatically fills in the invoice from the information on the estimate. With this, an option to auto-delete the transactions linked is currently unavailable or isn't possible in QuickBooks. This is to ensure that you're able to see all the customer's transactions from the beginning so can keep your books accurate.

Meanwhile, you'll have to manually delete the estimate on the Customer's List page. 

Here's how:

1. Click the Sales menu on the left panel.
2. Choose Customer's section.
3. Click the customer's name and go to the Customer List tab.
4. Find the estimate and click it to expand the page.
5. Click the More button and choose Delete.

To see additional information on how estimate works in QuickBooks, you can open this article: Convert an estimate into an invoice in QuickBooks Online.

Lastly, I'm adding this artilcle to see different info on how the Sales page gives you a great at-a-glance view of sales transactions like open invoices and paid invoices: View sales transactions.

Add a comment below if you have any other concerns about managing customers' entries. I'll be happy to help you! Have a great day!

The problem that we're having is ALL our desktop created estimates back to the beginning of time are displaying declined status even though invoices were created and paid etc.

I can't believe there is no patch for this?

You're saying that we have to go through each and every customer in the database and recreate/copy the old desk top created estimates then create a new invoice from that estimate then delete the old estimate and old invoice to get the status to display correctly?

What kind of cascade effect can we expect on our data? Like what happens with invoices that have already been paid?

How much time per estimate is this going to cost me?

What kind of credit is Inuit going to issue  to us for doing their job?

In my opinion this is ridiculous!

Joining in on this discussion to share details about converting an estimate from QuickBooks Desktop (QBDT) to an invoice in QuickBooks Online (QBO), @suddenrush.

When migrating from QBDT to QBO, the active estimates will be marked as Closed, while the inactive ones will be displayed as Declined. It's due to the reason that they will have no link to the progress invoices that were created in the QBDT version.

For now, I suggest manually updating the status of the estimates. Here's how:

1. Go to Sales and select All Sales.
2. Filter the transactions to Estimates.
3. Locate the estimates with Declined status. Click the dropdown icon beside the Print and select Update Status.
4. Choose Accepted in the Status dropdown and click OK.

When the status changes to Converted, the estimate is already accepted and linked to the invoice. 

When a customer pays an open invoice, it's necessary to record the payment in QBO to balance your accounts. 

Feel free to return to this thread if you have additional questions about managing your estimates and invoices. I'll be more than willing to guide you further. Stay safe.