An invoice approved for bad-debt write-off should not remain as expected cash in a four-week collections forecast. Separate three decisions: whether the invoice is still legally and operationally open, whether management supports any near-term receipt assumption, and how the business records the accounting or tax treatment. The forecast controls only the expected-cash view.
Intuit's bad-debt guidance explains that a completed write-off clears the open invoice and records the loss, and it advises consulting an accountant where appropriate. Stripe's invoice-status documentation distinguishes open, void, paid, and uncollectible states in a billing workflow. These systems illustrate why source status and management expectation must stay explicit, even though AR Pulse does not change either system.
Use a three-state forecast rule
- **Open and supported:** current evidence supports an expected week or a conditional range.
- **Open but unsupported:** the invoice remains in AR, but no current evidence supports cash inside four weeks; keep it visible as unconfirmed or outside the expected range.
- **Approved write-off or source-closed:** the authorized source no longer presents a collectible open balance; expected cash is zero.
Age alone should not automatically create a write-off or an expected receipt. The finance owner needs a documented management decision and the appropriate accounting review.
Preserve the source and decision separately
The source row provides invoice identifier, customer, dates, original amount, open amount, and snapshot date. The forecast record adds evidence status, expected week, owner, review date, and an exclusion reason. A write-off decision should never be represented by deleting the row from the working file without explanation.
Record the decision date, authorized owner, reason category, affected amount, prior forecast treatment, current treatment, accounting status, and a link to the new source snapshot when available.
Handle timing differences without double counting
Management may remove an invoice from expected cash before the accounting workflow is complete. In that case, leave the source balance visible but classify it as excluded from the four-week expected range. Once the books are updated, confirm that the invoice no longer contributes an open balance.
The reverse can also occur: an invoice can be marked uncollectible or written off and later receive payment. Treat any later cash as a new observed event. Do not keep a speculative receipt in the original forecast merely because recovery remains possible.
Review the surrounding population
A write-off candidate may reveal a broader source-quality issue. Check for unapplied payments, credits, duplicates, replacements, disputes, and prior promises before concluding that the current open amount is valid. Use the unapplied-payment guide and duplicate-invoice screen to prevent a bookkeeping exception from being mistaken for an uncollectible customer balance.
A compact decision record
For each excluded invoice, preserve:
- invoice and source-row reference;
- current open amount and report date;
- last reliable evidence and observed date;
- management decision and owner;
- accounting-review status;
- forecast treatment and effective date;
- next review or source-refresh date.
The collection assumptions template can retain this boundary without converting an uncertain invoice into a guaranteed receipt.
Decision rule
Do not forecast an approved write-off as expected cash. If the invoice is still open but unsupported, show the source balance and exclude it transparently from the four-week range. Leave accounting and tax treatment to the authorized business owner and accountant.
AR Pulse turns an authorized QuickBooks receivables export into a ranked cash-action list and a four-week collections range. It does not perform collections, change books, or promise a cash outcome. Finance owners can apply for AR Pulse.