General questions
What is StretchBooks? The accounting app in StretchSuite — the suite's QuickBooks equivalent. It covers estimates, invoices, payments, expenses, bills, a chart of accounts, tax codes, and reports, all scoped to your organization.
Do I need accounting knowledge? No. Build documents from line items (description, quantity, price, tax code) and StretchBooks handles the tax and totals.
Who can see my books? Only your organization. StretchBooks is org-scoped — there's no way to view another organization's data, and your data is only visible to your organization.
What currency does it use? CAD by default. Change the base currency in Settings, and override per customer, vendor, or document.
Invoices and estimates
How are invoices numbered? From your invoice prefix plus a running counter in Settings (for example INV-1042). The counter advances by one each time and never reuses a number.
Can I edit an invoice after sending? Yes — you can update details and status. StretchBooks never deletes an invoice; you void or write off instead, which preserves the audit trail.
How do I turn a quote into an invoice? Open the accepted estimate and choose Convert to invoice. It reuses the customer and line items; clicking convert twice won't create a duplicate.
Why can't I send my invoice or estimate? Sending requires an active customer. Attach one, then send.
Payments
How do I record a payment? In Payments → New, select the invoice, enter the amount and method, and save. The invoice becomes Partially paid or Paid.
Can customers pay online? Yes, when your operator enables online payments — customers pay the balance by card via secure Stripe Checkout and the invoice is marked paid automatically. Until then, record payments manually.
Why can't I record a payment? Payments apply only to issued/open invoices with a balance — not drafts, void, or already-paid invoices — and can't exceed the balance due.
Expenses, bills, and vendors
Expense or bill — which do I use? If the money is already spent, record an expense (coded to an expense account). If you owe a vendor and it's due later, record a bill (it becomes a payable).
Why must I pick an account for an expense? Expenses are coded to an active expense account so your Profit & Loss breaks down by category.
Reports and tax
Why doesn't Profit & Loss match my bank balance? P&L is an accrual-style view from your invoices, expenses, and bills — not your cash balance. Drafts and unposted items don't count.
How do I prepare a GST/HST return? Run the Tax Summary for your period. It nets sales tax collected against purchase tax paid to give net tax due. Record tax on expenses and bills so input tax credits are captured.
What are the aging buckets? current, 1–30, 31–60, 61–90, and 90+ days, as of a date you choose.
Common error messages
- "Records in sent status require an active customer." Attach an active customer before sending.
- "The selected customer/vendor/account was not found" or "...must be active." The reference is missing or inactive — pick an active one, or reactivate it in the relevant tab.
- "Tax code not found or inactive." A line uses a bad tax code — choose an active code (for example GST 5%) or clear it.
- "Expenses must be assigned to an active expense account." Choose an active expense-type account.
- "This record requires an active vendor." Bills need a vendor — select or create an active one.
- "Payment amount cannot exceed the invoice balance." Enter the balance or less.
- "Payments can only be recorded against issued or open invoices." Send the draft first, or choose a different invoice.
- "This invoice is already fully paid." Nothing is due; a payment may already be recorded.
- "Online payments aren't enabled yet." Ask your operator to enable card checkout; record manually meanwhile.
- "StretchBooks settings record was not found." Your organization's settings need initializing — open Settings and save your defaults.
Still stuck?
- Confirm the customer/vendor/account you're using is active.
- Check Settings for the right currency, terms, tax default, and numbering.
- Make sure documents are in the right status (send drafts, post expenses) so they show in the Dashboard and reports.
- For anything an operator controls (online payments, AI capture, bank feeds), confirm the feature is enabled for your organization.
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