What's new in QuickBooks Online: May 2023

May 19 is Accounting Career Day and National Accounting Day. Be sure to thank an accounting professional for their tireless work to help business owners, like yourself, achieve their financial goals.

If you aren’t already connected to an accounting professional, you can find one in your locale below:

●     United States ProAdvisor Page

●     Canada ProAdvisor Page

●     United Kingdom ProAdvisor Page

●     Australia ProAdvisor Page

What's new in May:

Visual workflows builder and multi-conditional approvals in QuickBooks Online Advanced

Export PDFs from Custom Report Builder in QuickBooks Online Advanced

943 filing for all existing QuickBooks Online Payroll customers

Seamless reactivation in QuickBooks Online Payments

Manage employee documents, right in QuickBooks

Track contractors’ W-9 info

Visual workflows builder and multi-conditional approvals in QuickBooks Online Advanced

In a nutshell: Workflows in QuickBooks Online Advanced are now more flexible and customizable ways.

Previously, you could only use one condition when creating an invoice-approval workflow. Now, you can more easily reflect different real-life scenarios by including multiple conditions in an invoice approval workflow. For example, your workflow can send invoices of more than $5,000 to person A for approval and invoices of less than $5,000 to person B for approval. This new level of customization allows businesses to operate within their company procedures while reducing repetitive tasks and the chance for error.

In addition, you’ll have a better view of workflows in QuickBooks Online Advanced with a visual workflow builder. You’ll see a visual representation of the workflow as you create it, which is especially helpful when including more conditions. 

NOTE: Once a QuickBooks Online Advanced subscriber begins using the visual workflow builder, they will not be able to revert to the old interface.

Export PDFs from Custom Report Builder in QuickBooks Online Advanced

In a nutshell: Feedback is a key factor in the improvement of QuickBooks' products and features. Exporting PDFs from Custom Report Builder was a top-requested feature, and we’re proud to say it’s now available. 

Not only can you can create and customize reports the way you want in QuickBooks Online Advanced; you now have the option to export a report as a PDF in one click. This can save you time and provide a neatly formatted document that’s easy to share with collaborators.

Rather than create a PDF from another exported file, you can now choose to export a report:

• As a PDF.
• As a CSV file.
• Directly to Excel.

Learn more

943 filing for all existing QuickBooks Online Payroll customers

Because of our continued investment in QuickBooks Online, agricultural businesses can depend on QuickBooks Online Payroll to file Form 943, Employer’s Annual Federal Tax Return for Agricultural Employees.

With our continued investment in QuickBooks Online Payroll, we’ve made it possible to file Form 943 right in QuickBooks. That means agricultural businesses no longer need to manually file their federal taxes or depend on an outside product.

In QuickBooks Online Payroll, you can switch your filing status to 943. Select Payroll Settings, and it will appear in the Federal Taxes section. Learn more

Seamless reactivation in QuickBooks Online Payments

Starting this month, when you migrate from QuickBooks Desktop Payments, you’ll automatically have QuickBooks Payments activated and ready to use in your new QuickBooks Online account.

That means you’ll no longer need to call customer care or take manual steps to activate or relink to QuickBooks Online Payments. You’ll have the same payments account settings, preferences, and pricing in QuickBooks Online that you had in QuickBooks Desktop, but your QuickBooks Online account will have a new merchant ID. You’ll be able to process payments in both QuickBooks Online and in QuickBooks Desktop after migrating, until you opt to close your QuickBooks Desktop merchant account. 

Please note:

• When you’re ready to close your QuickBooks Desktop Payments account, be sure to use QuickBooks Online Payments to recreate any invoices awaiting payment in QuickBooks Desktop. Once your QuickBooks Desktop merchant account is closed, your open QuickBooks Desktop invoices will no longer be payable.
• If you’re using both QuickBooks Desktop and QuickBooks Online after migration, be sure to record payments in both places. Payments received in QuickBooks Online are not automatically recorded in QuickBooks Desktop and vice versa.

Manage employee documents, right in QuickBooks

In a nutshell: Storing and accessing important employee and HR-related documents can often feel like a juggling act. As part of a greater effort to help you manage employee data in one place, you can now use the new document management feature in QuickBooks Online Payroll. It helps you securely store and manage these documents with a few clicks, right within employee profiles.

To get started:

1. Log in to QuickBooks Online Payroll.
2. Select the employee for whom you want to upload documents.
3. Select Documents.
4. Select Add documents.

Then, upload documents from the device you’re using, or scan a QR code with your mobile device to upload a document from that device.

Once you add employees’ documents to QuickBooks, there’s no need to dig through filing cabinets or search hard drives. Plus, you can stay organized the way you want by using folders and categorizing your documents.

Track contractor W-9 info

In a nutshell: It’s now easier for you to keep contractors’ W-9 info on hand—and see whose info you still need.

Collecting W-9 information in a timely fashion has historically been a time-consuming and frustrating process for clients who employ contractors. However, it’s a crucial step in staying compliant with the IRS. 

In the Contractors List, under Expenses or Payroll, they can see at a glance which W-9 information is ready, missing, or requested.

If a W-9 is missing or requested, they can also select Finish setup and pay to send an invitation or reminder to their contractor to provide this information online.