As Intuit phases out QuickBooks Desktop (QBD), home care agencies are facing an important shift. The sooner you plan your QuickBooks Online transition, the smoother your year will run. With Desktop support ending on a rolling schedule and syncing reliability becoming less predictable, now is the ideal time to prepare for a clean, stable move to QuickBooks Online Edition (QBOE).

Many agencies are preparing to migrate from QuickBooks Desktop to QuickBooks Online, and creating a plan will help the process move smoothly. Home care agency owner smiling while managing a smooth QuickBooks Online transition on a laptop.

If your fiscal year begins in January, kicking off your transition on January 1 gives you a fresh financial start, eliminates data overlap, and prevents the scramble that comes with hard cutoff deadlines. Even better, it ensures your Rosemark syncing remains consistent all year long.

Why QuickBooks Desktop Is Going Away

Intuit has already begun retiring QBD, with support end dates quickly approaching. As each version reaches the end of its lifecycle, critical updates, services, and security protections will disappear, even if the software still appears functional.

Important deadlines:

  • QuickBooks Desktop Pro and Premier subscriptions ended: 9/30/24
  • Support for QBD 2022 and older: ended 5/31/25
  • Support for QBD 2023: ends 5/31/26
  • Support for QBD 2024, the final version: ends 5/31/27

After these cutoff points, agencies lose payroll services, bank feeds, updates, and access to Intuit assistance. Outdated and unsupported versions also pose risks for Rosemark syncing, which can lead to invoicing errors and payroll delays that are difficult to unwind.

Planning your QuickBooks Online transition before deadlines hit will help your agency avoid these disruptions.

The Best Time for a QuickBooks Online Transition is Now

Home care agencies that move to QBOE at the start of their fiscal year benefit from:

  • A new set of books on day one
  • Easier reconciliation and reporting
  • No crossover between Desktop and Online
  • Lower risk of broken syncs
  • A predictable timeline instead of an emergency migration

Start Fresh: Why a New QuickBooks Online File Matters

During your QuickBooks Online transition, you will have the option to import data from your QuickBooks Desktop file. For home care agencies, this usually leads to long-term problems.

Importing often causes:

  • Customer hierarchy conflicts
  • Projects as Customers errors
  • Mismatched service items
  • Broken income account mapping
  • Duplicate customer records
  • Stale object errors
  • Persistent Rosemark syncing issues

Because of these frequent issues, both Intuit and Rosemark strongly recommend starting with a new QBOE file.

A fresh file avoids complications, saves time, and provides clean accounts, service items, and customer records.

If you choose to import your Desktop data, setup becomes more complex and may require additional support hours.

These small preparation steps will help you transition more smoothly.

Your Step-by-Step QuickBooks Online Transition Checklist

Before beginning, confirm your fiscal year start date, intended QBO plan, chart of accounts, and Rosemark service items list. Once you are ready, follow these steps:

  1. Choose Your QuickBooks Online Plan
    Select the plan that fits your agency’s accounting and payroll needs. If you are unsure, we can help you compare options based on your workflow.
  2. Create Your New QBOE File
    This is the most important step for ensuring smooth syncing with Rosemark.
  3. Align Your Chart of Accounts
    Your income and expense accounts must match exactly between Rosemark and QBOE.
  4. Match Your Service Items
    Each Service Type in Rosemark needs a corresponding Service Item in QBOE with matching names and income accounts.
  5. Prepare for Customer Sync
    Once your file is ready, Rosemark will guide you through sending customer profiles over. Small cleanup steps are normal.
  6. Schedule Your Transition Window
    We recommend:
  • Two weeks of advance notice
  • Two to three setup meetings, about 45 minutes each

Starting in early December ensures a smooth January 1 go-live date.

What Happens If You Delay Your Transition

Waiting too long increases the likelihood of sync errors caused by unsupported versions and disruptions to billing or payroll during busy periods. Delaying often leads to rushed migrations that leave less time for cleanup and result in data inconsistencies between Desktop and Online.

Planning ahead will help your care team avoid these avoidable frustrations.

What Daily Workflow Looks Like After You Are Live

Your routine will not change significantly. Most agencies find QuickBooks Online just as intuitive, and often easier, than Desktop.

Inside Rosemark, you will continue to:

  • Sync customers
  • Export invoices
  • Export shifts and payroll
  • Verify data inside QuickBooks

The setup phase is where most of the work happens. Once you are connected, your daily billing and payroll workflow remains familiar.

Set Yourself Up for a Stronger Year Ahead

Making your QuickBooks Online transition at the start of the year sets your agency up for:

  • A clean financial slate
  • No last-minute rush when Intuit shuts down services
  • Reliable syncing with Rosemark
  • More accurate invoices and payroll
  • Fewer errors and less frustration

This transition happens once, and doing it correctly pays off for years to come.

If you are ready to start your QuickBooks Online transition, our team is here to help you set everything up smoothly.

Nicky Reynolds

Nicky's background in marketing and public relations spans over 2 decades. She began in the travel and tourism industry, where she was lucky enough to explore the world. She then went to work for an NBC affiliate and a digital marketing agency. Her experience with marketing and PR for a variety of industries eventually led her to Rosemark, where she has propelled the company's marketing efforts through SEO, SEM, and social media.
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