Question

American Express - parent accounts and subaccounts

Forum|Forum|5 years ago
September 25, 2020
2 replies
0 views

We recently issued employee cards from American Express, but I can't get the new cards to connect in the banking. I have added them in the chart of Accounts as a subaccount, but they still will not pull transactions. How do I fix this?

QuickBooks Online

J

JamesDuanT

Hello there, Angmann.

When setting up the sub-accounts for Banking in QuickBooks Online, you don't need to connect the parent account. Instead, connecting the sub-accounts will do. This will prevent duplicate transactions in your QuickBooks register. You can use this link for reference: About Bank or Credit Card Subaccount Setup.

Also, QuickBooks Online will automatically download your bank transactions once you've connected your bank in the Banking page. If it doesn't download your bank transactions, we can update the Banking page manually.

In the Banking page highlight the connected account.
Click the Update button.
Enter the Multi-Factor Authentication credentials if asked.

You can use this link if you encounter bank errors while in the Banking page: What to do if you see a bank error or bank transactions won’t download.

We got your back if you need additional assistance in downloading your bank transactions. Have a great day!

A

AngmannAuthor

I was able to download and add the subaccounts, now the parent account (which is credit card that is used) is not linking.

R

RCV

It's great to know you were able to download and add the sub-accounts, Angmann.

The option to connect both parents and their subaccounts is unavailable in QuickBooks Online (QBO). If you try to connect both, you’ll encounter an error message that the account is already connected.

In this case, we need to choose on what account you'll need to connect for your Online banking. If the transactions are downloaded to one account, just connect only the parent account. For transactions that are downloaded to the individual accounts, we can connect the subaccounts.

When reconciling your accounts, we only need to reconcile the parent account since all transactions in the subaccounts roll up into it. See About bank or credit card subaccount setup article for more details about this one.

Feel free to visit our Banking page for more insights about managing your bank feeds and reconciling accounts.

You can always count on me if you need a hand with creating bank rules or any QBO related. I'm always here to ensure your success.

T

Tybee Bill

Is the expected outcome that the main card will have charges and payments applied and the sub card will collect just charges and the accounts will be over and under and net out on the balance sheet. Support indicated that will be true but my client is complaining.

MarsStephanieL

I appreciate the details you've shared about your concern, @Tybee Bill.

Allow me to share some information about the parent and sub-account in bank feeds.

QuickBooks will only get the details given by the bank. You may need to check the setup of the parent and sub-accounts. Some banks upload transactions separately on the sub-accounts and parent account.

In your case, I'd recommend letting your client reach out to their bank to know the setup and correct the transactions being pulled out incorrectly.

I've added an article that will guide you on how to manage the bank accounts in QuickBooks: About bank or credit card subaccount setup.

Let me know in the comment section on any updates after your client contacted their bank. I'd be glad to help you further. Take care.

T

Tybee Bill

I have two clients with this issue. One is a local church that just went thru a pretty much state wide conversion to QBO from QBD. I helped them with the setup of accounts and they work fine. When she pays her bill with one check it get received at AMEX to the main cards account. It leaves the sub card with a balance and the main card with an overpayment. I showed her how to split the payment between the two cards. I have suggested that she pay the bill with two checks so the reconciling will go smooth. The other client has TWO accounts each with a additional card (4 cards total). This client is over and under large on one account and semi over and under on the other one. Support told me that will be the result. My clients rely on me to figure stuff like this out and get their books ready for taxes. I will get on the phone in the AM with AMEX but I am not anticipating much from them. With AMEX the additional card login does not carry a balance. It just shows card activity. The account balance is on the main card.

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