How to create a draft invoice for approval?

I can guide you create a draft invoice for approval, Nicole.Lim.

You can create an estimate for this one. Here's how:

1. Click Plus icon (+) at the top.
2. Under Customers, select Estimate.
3. Add the Customer's name. 
4. Verify the Estimate Date, then enter the Expiration Date (optional).
5. Enter the Service Date, Product/Service, Description, Qty, Rate, Amount & Customer message.
6. Once done, click Save.

For more details about estimates, you can check out this article: https://community.intuit.com/articles/1145302.

Once the estimate will be approved, you can convert it into an invoice. You can follow the detailed steps in this article: Convert an estimate into an invoice in QuickBooks Online.

Feel free to leave a comment below if you have more questions. I'd be glad to answer them. Thanks!

is there a way to create a draft invoice with Quickbooks online version.  I don't see the options listed below in my version

Let me share this insight on how to draft invoice @Capermartin,

Aside from creating an estimate, you can also consider creating a recurring transaction to set the invoice as a draft. Let me show you how.

To create a recurring invoice, here's how:

1. Go to the Create ⨁ icon.
2. Choose Invoice under Customers.
3. Enter the necessary information.
4. At the bottom, click the Make recurring option.
5. Then modify the Recurring Invoice.
6. In the Recurring invoice page, choose Unscheduled from Type drop-down arrow.
7. Hit the Save template.

To manage the recurring transactions, here’s how:

1. Go to the Gear ⚙ icon.
2. Choose Recurring Transactions under the List section.
3. Locate the created recurring invoice you want to manage.

Also, adding this article if you wanted to customize and make designs to your invoices: Customize your invoice emails.

If you have other questions, feel free to reply to the comment section below. We're always here to help.

The simplest solution would be to allow us to have the option to mark an invoice as 'DRAFT', rather than jump through the hoops of creating an estimate or recurring invoice. Simply an invoice that has been created but not sent should be a DRAFT by default like every other document creating process.

Thanks

It appears to be possible to create estimates as drafts. What I have yet to figure out yet is what incantations must be performed in order to view or find any hint of that stuff anywhere. 

As a general usability feedback for Quickbooks I'd recommend placing functions belonging to the same feature set somewhere within the same vicinity of each other. For example, if there is an ability to create invoices then somewhere nearby there should be an option to view those invoices. 

While I do enjoy the rube goldberg puzzle design of your software and get that it's profitable for the accounting and tax prep industries, sometimes I just need to be able to get my client an estimate they're waiting on without the necessity of 90 minutes of research into what incantations must be performed to do the thing all other software just does. 

For example, when I click "post" below, this forum will take me to the page where my post is. When I click "save" on an invoice in my other accounting app it takes me to a list of said invoices. Quickbooks disappears your work and tells you to upgrade.