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EnvisionDesignSolutions
New Member
June 30, 2026
Question

Cannot update my custom sales tax rates. Shows the Before and After which is correct, but when I hit Edit to save the change it does not updated

  • June 30, 2026
  • 1 reply
  • 51 views

I have tried different browsers, incognito mode 2 different computers and 2 different QB accounts.

Is this normal behavior?

Is the only answer to re-enter all the custom rates (I checked a few, none update.)

1 reply

JsmithCO
JsmithCO
New Member
June 30, 2026

This is a known issue in QuickBooks Online where the sales tax rate edit screen appears to accept the change but the old rate persists. Our team has seen this happen when the browser cache holds onto the previous rate value, or when there is an underlying agency/tax component conflict that silently blocks the save.

First, try the edit in a private or incognito browser window. If the new rate saves correctly there, clear your regular browser cache and cookies and the problem should be resolved in your normal browser.

If that does not work, go to Taxes > Sales Tax Settings > Tax Rates and Agencies. Find the rate in question, and instead of editing it in place, make the existing custom rate inactive, then create a brand-new custom rate with the correct percentage. Existing transactions keep the old rate, but new transactions will use the new one. This avoids the stuck-edit problem entirely.

One more thing to check: if the rate is an "agency-added" rate (one QuickBooks pulled in automatically based on your business location), QuickBooks sometimes locks the percentage. In that case you must create a new custom rate rather than editing the system-generated one.

If none of these steps work, it is worth trying from a different device entirely to rule out a local browser extension or security tool interfering with the save request.

QuickBooks ProAdvisor | 20 Years of Experience Bookkeeping • QBO Setup • Cleanup • Reconciliations • Financial Reporting
E
EnvisionDesignSolutionsAuthor
New Member
July 1, 2026

Hi, thanks for responding, but you clearly didn’t read my post.

 

-→  I have tried different browsers, incognito mode 2 different computers and 2 different QB accounts.

username2217220
username2217220
New Member
July 1, 2026

This one trips up a lot of people, and the good news is nothing is broken on your end. Since it reproduces across different browsers, incognito, two computers, and two QuickBooks accounts, we can rule out cache or a bad session entirely. What you're seeing is server-side behavior, and it's actually by design.

If you're on Automated Sales Tax (which most QBO accounts now are), a custom rate becomes locked once it has been used on even one transaction. The edit screen will still let you type a new percentage and show you the Before / After preview, but the save quietly does
nothing. That's QuickBooks protecting the tax already calculated on your posted invoices and prior filings. Changing the rate in place would silently alter that history, so it blocks the write without telling you.

The supported way to change a used rate is to replace it rather than edit it:

1. Go to Taxes > Sales tax > Sales tax settings (or Edit rates under your custom rates).
2. Find the rate you want to change and set it to Inactive. Do not try to edit the percentage.
3. Click Add rate and create a new custom rate at the correct percentage, with a name that makes the change obvious, for example "County Tax 8.25% (eff 2026)".
4. Use the new rate going forward.

Your past transactions keep the old, now-inactive rate, so your reports and filed returns stay accurate. That's exactly what QuickBooks is preserving by refusing the in-place edit.

A couple of notes:

- Combined rate? You can't edit a combined rate directly. Deactivate and recreate the underlying component rates, then rebuild the combined rate from the corrected components.
- Older Manual Sales Tax account? There, custom rates do edit in place. If saving still fails on manual tax, that's a genuine glitch, and the same deactivate-and-recreate steps will get you unstuck.

To your direct questions: yes, this is normal for a rate that's already been used, and no, you don't have to re-enter everything. You only recreate the specific rates you're changing, as new rates with the old ones made inactive.

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