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After updating an invoice, how do I show, on the invoice, what changed?

Forum|Forum|7 years ago
January 29, 2019
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I have an invoice that I created some months ago.

We found a problem in it.

We updated the invoice in quickbooks.

We delivered the invoice via quickbooks.

We were asked what changed from the last version of the invoice.

Quickbooks doesn't appear to have any sort of way of changing an invoice that is visible outside of the audit log. I find it hard to be that's true and am wondering if Quickbooks somewhere says not to update invoices that have been delivered, but to instead do something else.

In the meantime, here's what I've been doing:

1. Add a custom field: version

1. On invoice creation, set the version to 1 and save a copy of the quickbooks response

1. On invoice update, get the current version of the invoice from the API, bump the version, update the invoice in quickbooks, and compare the response fields for: balance, total amount, and the line items, and manually diff it, then tell the recipient in a separate communication what's changed.

Are we doing something wrong here? This is a lot of work for something that quickbooks should make a first-class concern: showing what changed. And we know quickbooks has internal versioning because we can see them in the audit log (via the private audit/getTxnAuditHistory API request).

Whatever the answer this deserves to be highlighted. I can't imagine we're the only company that has to update an invoice after it is delivered.

QuickBooks Online

Best answer by qbteachmt

When you did this: "We updated the invoice in quickbooks."

You just changed your Financial History, your Sales, and if that is a tax year already reported, you just changed All of it. If that included changes to inventory items, you just affected inventory.

Here's what you should have done:

If the invoice is Paid and done, you make a Credit Memo (return/refund) dated now for what was Wrong. Your refund that, or are going to use it to apply to the New Invoice dated now for what was overlooked. If the invoice was not paid at all, a credit memo dated Now would be used to reverse everything on the invoice and you apply them to each other. Then, the New invoice dated now is, "Let's start from the beginning, and correctly."

Or the original invoice is not paid in full, and you list on a credit memo dated Now, what was wrong, to reverse those and end with a Value that is you Apply to the rest of the unpaid value.

In other words, what you want to be able to show the customer is the Credit Memo you should have made, how it affects the previous invoice is from the perspective of Value applied if that previous invoice was not already paid, if they get a Refund, and/or if there is a New Invoice to get your sale to them on track, all dated Now.

Not editing historic transactions.

Run your reporting to see what you affected. You can put it all back how it was, then make that credit memo and take the proper action moving forward, dated Now.

A

Anonymous

Hello, bf4.

Any changes made in your invoices would only show in your QuickBooks’s Audit log (Gear icon> Audit log). In the audit log window, the invoices you’ve changed would be tagged as Edited under the EVENT column. You can click the View link under History and select Compare at the upper right corner to view what information has been changed. In this page, you’ll also know the original invoice details prior from editing it.

Moreover, you can share your preferred way of tracking this information with our developers through feedback. Just click the Gear icon at the top and select Feedback.

Keep posting your questions every time you have further concerns about QuickBooks.

qbteachmtAnswer

When you did this: "We updated the invoice in quickbooks."

You just changed your Financial History, your Sales, and if that is a tax year already reported, you just changed All of it. If that included changes to inventory items, you just affected inventory.

Here's what you should have done:

If the invoice is Paid and done, you make a Credit Memo (return/refund) dated now for what was Wrong. Your refund that, or are going to use it to apply to the New Invoice dated now for what was overlooked. If the invoice was not paid at all, a credit memo dated Now would be used to reverse everything on the invoice and you apply them to each other. Then, the New invoice dated now is, "Let's start from the beginning, and correctly."

Or the original invoice is not paid in full, and you list on a credit memo dated Now, what was wrong, to reverse those and end with a Value that is you Apply to the rest of the unpaid value.

In other words, what you want to be able to show the customer is the Credit Memo you should have made, how it affects the previous invoice is from the perspective of Value applied if that previous invoice was not already paid, if they get a Refund, and/or if there is a New Invoice to get your sale to them on track, all dated Now.

Not editing historic transactions.

Run your reporting to see what you affected. You can put it all back how it was, then make that credit memo and take the proper action moving forward, dated Now.

B

bf4Author

This looks useful. Thanks for taking the time to share. I'll investigate this.

M

Malcolm Ziman

@bf4 wrote:

I have an invoice that I created some months ago.

We found a problem in it.

We updated the invoice in quickbooks.

We delivered the invoice via quickbooks.

We were asked what changed from the last version of the invoice.

Quickbooks doesn't appear to have any sort of way of changing an invoice that is visible outside of the audit log. I find it hard to be that's true and am wondering if Quickbooks somewhere says not to update invoices that have been delivered, but to instead do something else.

Once issued an invoice should not be changed. This is an accounting system, not an invoice evolution tracker

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