# How to Void or Delete a Check or Bill in QuickBooks Desktop, and Delete a Deposit

> Void vs delete in QuickBooks Desktop: void or delete a check, bill or bill payment, delete a deposit, and what changes in a closed period or a batch.

- URL: https://logistify.ai/guides/quickbooks-desktop/void-vs-delete-transactions/
- Section: QuickBooks Desktop Guides, Accounting & month-end
- Applies to: QuickBooks Desktop Pro, Premier, Accountant, Enterprise
- Steps checked against: Intuit's QuickBooks Desktop help articles, updated August 2026
- Updated: 2026-10-20

**Short answer:** To void or delete a check or bill in QuickBooks Desktop, select it and choose the Void or Delete command on the Edit menu. Voiding keeps the transaction at a zero amount; deleting removes it. To delete a deposit, open it from the Deposit Detail report, right-click and select Delete deposit. Intuit's Desktop articles don't cover voiding a deposit. Accountant and Enterprise can also batch delete or void.

## Void or delete: what each one does

| Transaction | Void | Delete |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Check | QuickBooks keeps the check with a $0.00 amount and adds VOID to the memo. You can enter the check again later. | QuickBooks removes the check entirely. This can't be undone, but you can enter the check again. |
| Bill or bill payment | The bill or payment stays in QuickBooks at a zero amount, as a record. | QuickBooks removes the transaction entirely. Deleting a payment returns the bill to unpaid status. |
| Deposit | Not covered in Intuit's Desktop deposit article. | QuickBooks removes the deposit, and its payments go back to Undeposited Funds. |

*From Intuit's QuickBooks Desktop articles on checks, bills and bank deposits.*

Intuit says to void a check if you want to keep a record of it in QuickBooks. Deleting a bill or payment can also leave the Transaction Journal Detail report showing payments without their bills.

For one transaction at a time, Intuit's Desktop articles behind this guide cover checks, bills, bill payments and deleting a deposit. They don't include steps for voiding a deposit or voiding an invoice. Apart from the batch tool notes in Step 5, they don't walk through deleting a single invoice either.

## Before you start

- Back up the company file before a batch delete or void. Intuit's batch steps include a backup option.
- Check whether the transaction is dated on or before your closing date. That changes what you need (see Step 4).
- Batch delete and void needs the admin or External Accountant login and single-user mode.

For a related task, see how to [reconcile a bank account](https://logistify.ai/guides/quickbooks-desktop/reconcile-bank-account/). To see who changed a transaction before you undo it, use the [Audit Trail report](https://logistify.ai/guides/quickbooks-desktop/audit-trail/).

## Step 1: Void or delete a check

1. Go to Banking > Use Register and choose the account you wrote the check from.
2. Select the check in the register.
3. From the Edit menu, select Void Check to keep it at zero, or Delete Check to remove it.
4. Select Record.

To record a blank or spoiled check as void, create a check for $0.00. Enter a payee and an account in the Expenses section, then go to Edit > Void Check.

## Step 2: Delete a deposit

Intuit's Desktop deposit article covers deleting a deposit and starting over. It doesn't describe voiding one.

1. Go to Reports > Report Center, open the Banking section, and run Deposit Detail.
2. Find and open the deposit.
3. Review the payments listed in the Make Deposits window.
4. Right-click in the window, select Delete deposit, then OK.

Every payment on the deposit goes back to Undeposited Funds, ready for a new deposit. To rebuild the deposit, see how to [clear Undeposited Funds and fix deposits](https://logistify.ai/guides/quickbooks-desktop/fix-undeposited-funds-deposits/).

## Step 3: Void or delete a bill or bill payment

1. Open the bill or the bill payment check.
2. From the Edit menu, select Void Bill/Void Bill Pmt-Check to void it, or Delete Bill/Bill Pmt-Check to delete it.

### Several bills or payments from the A/P register

1. Go to Lists > Chart of Accounts and double-click your Accounts Payable account.
2. In the register, select the bill or bill payment check.
3. From the Edit menu, select Void/Delete Bill/Bill Pmt-Check.
4. Select Record, then Yes. Repeat for the next one.

Deleting a bill payment sends the bill back to unpaid. To pay it again, see how to [enter and pay bills](https://logistify.ai/guides/quickbooks-desktop/enter-and-pay-bills/).

## Step 4: Undo a transaction in a closed period

After you set a closing date, changing or deleting a transaction dated on or before it takes the closing date password and the right permissions. Intuit says those changes then appear on the Closing Date Exception Report.

Voiding a check dated before the closing date that uses an expense account brings up a message. Choose Yes if you want QuickBooks to add two journal entries that balance the affected accounts. Intuit says those entries are optional, and you can void the check without them.

The batch tool can't delete any transaction in a closed period. For how closing dates work, see how to [close the books and set a closing date](https://logistify.ai/guides/quickbooks-desktop/close-books-closing-date/).

## Step 5: Batch delete or void (Accountant and Enterprise)

Intuit says the Batch Delete/Void Transactions tool is in QuickBooks Desktop Accountant 2018, Enterprise and Enterprise Accountant 18.0, and later versions. You need the admin or External Accountant login. The tool doesn't support multicurrency.

1. Go to File > Switch to Single-user Mode. If you see Switch to Multi-user Mode instead, don't select it.
2. Go to Accountant > Batch Delete/Void Transactions.
3. Narrow the list with the TRANSACTION TYPE dropdown. To filter by entered, last modified or transaction date, use SHOW TRANSACTIONS BY with the FROM and TO fields.
4. Check the transactions you want, then select Review & Delete or Review & Void.
5. Select Back Up & Delete or Back Up & Void. The dropdowns also offer Delete only or Void only, which skip the backup.
6. Select Yes to confirm.
7. Select View Deleted/Voided Transaction Report to print a record of what changed.

The Bills option under TRANSACTION TYPE also includes bill payment checks, bill refunds, bill credits, refund checks and finance charges. Check Show linked transactions to see what's linked to each one, in the LINKED TRNS column.

### What the batch tool can't delete

- Invoices with reimbursed expenses, time, mileage or items, and invoices with billable time and costs
- Paychecks and payroll liability checks
- Sales tax payments and online bill payments
- Credit card transactions
- Any transaction in a closed period

Delete these one at a time: open the transaction, then go to Edit > Delete. In editions without the batch tool, Intuit's workaround is to press Ctrl+D while the transaction is open.

## Edge cases

- A card payment taken through QuickBooks Payments: Intuit says you can void it only before the transaction settles. After that, refund it or give a credit.
- A journal entry: open it from Company > Make General Journal Entries and go to Edit > Delete, or reverse it instead.
- A multicurrency file: Intuit says the batch tool doesn't support multicurrency.

For card payments, see how to [refund a customer in QuickBooks Desktop](https://logistify.ai/guides/quickbooks-desktop/refund-customer/). For journal entries, see how to [make and import journal entries](https://logistify.ai/guides/quickbooks-desktop/journal-entries/).

## Where QuickBooks Desktop leaves the work to you

- Choosing void or delete each time. A deleted check can't be brought back, only re-entered.
- Cleanup one transaction at a time in Pro and Premier, which don't have the batch tool.
- Re-entering the correct check, deposit or bill after you void or delete the wrong one.
- Running the Closing Date Exception Report to catch changes to closed periods.
- Building a new deposit after you delete one, since its payments return to Undeposited Funds.

## Frequently Asked Questions

### Should I void or delete a check in QuickBooks Desktop?

Void it if you want to keep a record: the amount becomes $0.00 and VOID goes in the memo. Deleting removes it as if it never happened, and you can't undo that.

### How do I void a check in QuickBooks Desktop?

Go to Banking > Use Register, choose the account and select the check. Then go to Edit > Void Check and select Record.

### How do I delete a deposit in QuickBooks Desktop?

Open the deposit from the Deposit Detail report, right-click in the Make Deposits window and select Delete deposit. Its payments go back to Undeposited Funds.

### What happens to the bill if I delete the bill payment?

The bill goes back to unpaid. Voiding the payment instead keeps a zero-amount record of it.

### Can I batch delete transactions in QuickBooks Desktop Pro or Premier?

No: Intuit lists the batch tool for Accountant 2018, Enterprise and Enterprise Accountant 18.0 and later. In Pro and Premier, you delete one transaction at a time.

### Can I void a check from a closed period?

Yes, with the closing date password and the right permissions. If the check uses an expense account, QuickBooks offers two balancing journal entries, which Intuit says are optional.

## Sources

- [Intuit: Create, modify, and print checks in QuickBooks Desktop](https://quickbooks.intuit.com/learn-support/en-us/help-article/write-checks/create-modify-print-checks/L6KKhHjlA_US_en_US)
- [Intuit: Void or delete a bill or bill payment check in QuickBooks Desktop](https://quickbooks.intuit.com/learn-support/en-us/help-article/delete-payments/void-delete-bill-bill-payment-check/L3BRsO5JM_US_en_US)
- [Intuit: Record and make bank deposits in QuickBooks Desktop](https://quickbooks.intuit.com/learn-support/en-us/help-article/bank-deposits/record-make-bank-deposits-quickbooks-desktop/L2R3J0uic_US_en_US)
- [Intuit: Batch delete or void transactions in QuickBooks Desktop Accountant](https://quickbooks.intuit.com/learn-support/en-us/help-article/reclassify-transactions/batch-delete-void-transactions-quickbooks-desktop/L4WdUr9di_US_en_US)
- [Intuit: Enter transactions by batch in QuickBooks Desktop](https://quickbooks.intuit.com/learn-support/en-us/help-article/invoicing/enter-transactions-batch-quickbooks-desktop/L5eBO2ypV_US_en_US)
- [Intuit: Set or change the closing date and password in QuickBooks Desktop](https://quickbooks.intuit.com/learn-support/en-us/help-article/close-books/set-change-closing-date-closing-date-password/L2uKHmMhZ_US_en_US)
- [Intuit: Close your books in QuickBooks Desktop](https://quickbooks.intuit.com/learn-support/en-us/help-article/close-books/close-books-quickbooks-desktop/L8T1Cgfhk_US_en_US)
- [Intuit: Convert a QuickBooks for Windows file to QuickBooks Desktop for Mac](https://quickbooks.intuit.com/learn-support/en-us/help-article/import-export-data-files/convert-quickbooks-windows-file-quickbooks-mac/L12E3uvBm_US_en_US)
- [Intuit: Void or refund customer payments in QuickBooks Desktop](https://quickbooks.intuit.com/learn-support/en-us/help-article/payments-account/void-refund-customer-payments-quickbooks-desktop/L8tjAWYcB_US_en_US)
- [Intuit: Create a journal entry in QuickBooks Desktop for Windows or Mac](https://quickbooks.intuit.com/learn-support/en-us/help-article/journal-entries/create-journal-entry-quickbooks-desktop-windows/L3UuQaxmb_US_en_US)
- [Intuit: Features available and tasks you can perform in single or multi-user mode in QuickBooks Desktop](https://quickbooks.intuit.com/learn-support/en-us/help-article/small-business-processes/features-available-tasks-perform-single-multi-user/L2OQW4SYg_US_en_US)