Progress Invoicing for QuickBooks Online - Part 2

by

General Ledger

QuickBooks Online has been making major strides when it comes to the needs of users who have previously only been able to use QuickBooks Desktop.  Most recently the addition of Progress Invoicing means that contractors, wholesalers, retailers and professionals can now invoice against estimates based upon how much of their work, construction project, or even inventory has been fulfilled.

In Part 1 of this mini-series we looked at the new feature, and the various alternatives and options for invoicing from the original estimate.  Specifically we examined the option of invoicing a percentage of the estimate as a whole which applies a specified percentage against each line of the estimate and creates the corresponding invoice as shown below.

In this article we want to look at some additional Progress Invoicing alternatives.

Creating an Additional Invoice as Another Partial Billing

1) From the Open Estimate, click Create Invoice to open options

2) In this example we select the option, Custom amount for each line

3) Click on the 'Due' amount of any/each line, a otherwise hidden dialog box opens allowing you to edit either the percent or the amount for the partial billing.

4) Enter the amount or percentage you wish to invoice. In this case we will Invoice for the balance of line 1 and 100% of line 2, but we are not ready to invoice any of line 3.

Line 3 remains 'open' since we haven't invoiced any of it. We have created 2 different invoices from the same estimate, and yet the Estimate remains open for the portion we have yet to invoice.  Our Estimate is illustrated below.

In the illustration above the highlight numbers represent: (1) our original estimate, (2) the various amounts that have been invoiced and those which remain open, (3) the details with hyperlinks to the Invoices generated from the Estimate, and (4) the remaining amount to be invoiced.

Invoicing the Remaining Balance of the Original Estimate

1) From the Open Estimate, click Create Invoice to open options

2) In this example we select the option, Total of all estimate lines = $ (in our example the amount is $525.00), as shown below.

QuickBooks immediately creates an Invoice for the remaining balance of the Estimate, at the same time the Estimate is 'closed'.

As you can see (above) the invoice contains only the 1 line item that had previously not been invoiced.

When we examine our original Estimate (below) we can see that it is now closed.

The illustration above highlights (by number) the following aspects of the estimate: (1) the original estimate, (2) shows each line item is now closed, (3) shows all three of the associated Invoices (with hyperlinks to each).

This is a 'great' new feature for QuickBooks Online, and it offers a lot of capabilities and flexibility that is critical to many small businesses that need progress billing functionality. 

Remember, this feature is just now being rolled-out, you may not see it for four or five weeks, but it is clearly on the way.  For many users it will be like getting a 'holiday gift.'