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R
Reeder
November 15, 2019
Question

Recurring Invoices in QBO

  • November 15, 2019
  • 1 reply
  • 0 views

Is there a way to create a recurring invoice template with a start date earlier than the date you are creating the template?

    1 reply

    Jen_D
    Jen_D
    November 15, 2019

    It's nice to have you here, @Reeder,

     

    QuickBooks doesn't allow past start dates for recurring transactions. You need to select the most current create or future date on the template to successfully create it.

     

    If you need to add prior invoices on your books, create them manually. Here's how:

     

    1. Go to the QuickBooks Gear icon, and select Invoice from the list.
    2. Input all the sales detail then select Save and close.

     

    Once you entered all prior sales, you can now create the recurring transactions for upcoming invoices. Perform the steps below:

     

    1. From the Gear icon, pick Recurring Transactions.
    2. Tap the New button and select Invoice for the Transaction Type.
    3. Hit OK and enter all the recurring details.
    4. Press Save template when done.

    To learn more about creating scheduled transactions, see this article: Schedule recurring transactions created with a template.

     

    If you have other concerns or need further help with recurring transactions in QuickBooks, let me know by adding a comment below. I'll be right here to help whenever you need one. Have a wonderful day!

    R
    ReederAuthor
    November 16, 2019

    Thank you Jen_D

    I have now figured out how the recurring invoices can work for me in QBO. Since I'm coming over from Sage I am used to how their recurring invoices work and it is quite a bit different. In Sage you don't create a template, you just create an initial invoice and then "Store" it as a recurring invoice. Then the next month you just "Recall" that "Stored" invoice and use it as the next monthly invoice and make any small changes needed and then "Store" it as the next recurring invoice. So every month you are using the previous month's invoice as the template which was handy for me. For my business I have customers that are in contracts. So if I have a customer that's in a 12 month contract, on each invoice I would put a note for the customer, eg. "1st. Month of 12 Month" and then the next invoice would have a note "2nd. Month of 12 Month". It was an easy way to keep track of what month of the contract the customer was in. But now in QBO I have to pick the original invoice template that I made for their 1st. month of their contract and then figure out manually which month of the contract they are going into so that I can put a note on the invoice. Not sure if there is an easy way around this in QBO or not?

    R
    Ryan_M
    November 16, 2019

    Hi @Reeder,

     

    In QuickBooks Online (QBO), recurring transactions are created as is.

     

    You have the option to customize your recurring template to create the invoice in advance (say, 2 or 3 days), but not email them automatically. This way, you can review the generated invoice and enter the necessary info (nth month of 12 Month). You can enter this on the Message on invoice text box, and your customer will see that message on the invoice itself when they view the transaction.

     

    Once you're okay with what you see on the generated invoice, you can proceed with sending it. You can refer to the screenshot below as to how you can edit your recurring template. 

     

    More info on creating a recurring invoice is in this article: How to create a recurring invoice and manage recurring transactions. It also includes steps on how you can manage your recurring transactions.

     

    Do you have other questions? Post them below, and I'll get back to you shortly. 

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