If you collect sales tax or use a non-US version of QuickBooks, there are a few tax settings to get right so your invoices sync cleanly. This article covers importing your QuickBooks tax codes and applying them to your packages and invoices.
An invoice only syncs to QuickBooks when the tax on it comes from a tax code imported from your QuickBooks account. This applies to any workspace connected to QuickBooks Online. For most workspaces, tax setup is set-and-forget: import your codes once, apply them to your packages, and new invoices sync cleanly from there.
Import your QuickBooks tax codes
Navigate to Settings ➔ Third party connections ➔ QuickBooks, then scroll to the QuickBooks Online tax codes card. This section explains: "To correctly sync your Dubsado invoices to your QuickBooks online account, please import your tax codes below."
Click the QuickBooks tax codes field and search for a code.
Check the box next to each tax code that applies to your business. Your selection saves immediately, there's no separate Save button.
If you add a new tax code in QuickBooks later, click Refresh in the card header to pull the latest codes into Dubsado, then select the new one.
If no tax codes appear, tax may not be set up in QuickBooks yet. See Intuit's guide to setting up sales tax in QuickBooks Online.
You likely imported your tax codes when you first connected QuickBooks. Use these steps if you skipped that step, or to import a code you added in QuickBooks later.
Importing a tax code creates a matching tax in your Dubsado account. Some tax codes are actually made up of several agency-level taxes rolled into one rate. For example, a QuickBooks tax code for Burbank, California's 10.25% sales tax is made up of taxes from four different agencies, so importing it creates four separate taxes in your account. You don't need to track or select those individual taxes yourself: when you apply the QuickBooks tax code later, Dubsado applies the whole thing as a single unit.
To see the taxes QuickBooks created in your account, go to Home ➔ Finance Reports ➔ Chart of Accounts.
Tax for US vs. non-US QuickBooks accounts
Taxes work a bit differently depending on where your QuickBooks account is located. To check yours, go to the QuickBooks settings page and look at the Location: field next to Account: and Organization:.
US accounts: Only line items that are taxable need a tax. You can leave non-taxable items tax-free.
Non-US accounts: Every line item needs a tax, even if it's 0% or tax-exempt. If any line item is missing a tax, the invoice will not sync.
Consult your accountant on when to use an Out of Scope code versus a tax-exempt code.
All Dubsado invoices are tax-exclusive: tax is added on top of each line item. Even if you use tax-inclusive invoices in QuickBooks, invoices created in Dubsado are always tax-exclusive.
Apply QuickBooks tax codes to packages
Applying a QuickBooks tax code to a package template makes sure new invoices built from it carry the correct tax, whether you add the package manually or a client selects it from a proposal.
Navigate to Invoicing ➔ Packages and open a package.
At the top of the package's item table, open the Apply QuickBooks tax code dropdown.
Select the tax code you want to apply. Dubsado applies it across the package's taxable line items.
The dropdown only lists tax codes you've imported from QuickBooks, so there's no risk of applying a tax you created by hand in Dubsado.
Selecting a code from Apply QuickBooks tax code replaces any QuickBooks tax already on the line items, so you don't have to clear old taxes first.
Apply QuickBooks tax codes to an invoice
You can apply or fix a QuickBooks tax code on an individual invoice too, most commonly to resolve a sync error.
Open the invoice and click Edit.
At the top of the line items area, open the Apply QuickBooks tax code dropdown.
Select the tax code you want to apply. Dubsado applies it to every taxable line item and swaps out any QuickBooks tax that was already there.
Applying a tax code here saves the invoice right away, so it stays in sync with QuickBooks. You don't need to save separately.
Applying different tax rates to individual line items
If an invoice mixes taxable and non-taxable line items, or needs a different tax code on different items, use the per-line-item control instead of the invoice-wide one. Open the resource menu on the line item and select QuickBooks tax code (or Change QuickBooks tax code, if one is already applied). Search for the code you want and select it. Each option shows the code's name and total percentage, and selecting one saves the invoice immediately.
To remove a QuickBooks tax from a single line item, select Remove tax code from the same menu. This clears the QuickBooks tax on that line item while leaving any other taxes in place.
Fix a sync error caused by taxes
Most QuickBooks sync errors come down to tax: an invoice only syncs if every taxable line item (all line items, for non-US accounts) uses a QuickBooks-imported tax code. If you have an invoice with an Error status, reapply the correct QuickBooks tax code using the steps above, then retry the sync.
There's also a separate, known sync exception involving percentage discounts. See how to manually sync invoices and payments with Quickbooks for details.
FAQ
I created taxes in Dubsado before connecting QuickBooks. Can I still use them?
Not for invoices you want to sync to QuickBooks. An invoice only syncs if its tax is a QuickBooks-imported code, so reapply the correct code using the Apply QuickBooks tax code control. You can rename your old Dubsado taxes to keep them separate, but don't rename or edit the taxes QuickBooks created.
I added a new tax code in QuickBooks. How do I get it into Dubsado?
On the QuickBooks settings page, click Refresh in the QuickBooks Online tax codes card, then select the new code from the list.
My invoice won't sync and shows an Error status. What should I check first?
Check the tax. Make sure every taxable line item (all line items, if you have a non-US account) uses a QuickBooks-imported tax code, then retry the sync.
Do I have to select each individual agency tax myself?
No. Select the QuickBooks tax code once from Apply QuickBooks tax code, and Dubsado applies the full code, including any multi-agency breakout, to your taxable line items.