Can I Show a Past Due Amount on a Current Invoice in QuickBooks?

Yes, you can. There is a rather complex work-around I developed, that transfers the balance from an old invoice to a new one. It does so by zeroing out the amount from the older invoice. However, this is not a good practice. Because it's not a good practice, I'm not going to show you how to do it.

Here are two reasons why it's not a good practice:

1. You have already sent your customer the old invoice. On their books, they show that invoice for the amount due. That invoice also has the detail of the sale.If you send a new invoice, with the amount from the new invoice, plus the amount from the old invoice, it will double the amount due from the old invoice in your customer's records. Plus, it won't show the detail from the old invoice.

2. Since it zeros out the amount from the older invoice, the work-around is not accurate. There really is an amount due from the older invoice, and zeroing it out changes that. My very first accounting teacher taught me:

Always record what actually happened. Don’t record what should have happened, what you wish had happened, or what would have happened if somebody else had done something differently. Record what actually happened, even if it was the wrong thing that happened.

Since zeroing out the amount from the older invoice does not represent what actually happened, it’s not a good idea to do so.

What to do Instead: Instead of showing a past due amount from an old invoice on a current invoice, generate a statement. This will show all invoices, with their individual amounts due, and will total them at the bottom. It's more accurate, plus it's easier than the work-around.