How to check supplier ABNs from QuickBooks Online
QuickBooks Online lets you record an ABN against each supplier, but it doesn't check that number against the Australian Business Register. A supplier whose ABN was cancelled, or who stopped being registered for GST, looks exactly the same in your supplier list as one who didn't.
1. Export the Supplier Contact List
QuickBooks' Australian help describes exporting lists from Reports: open the Supplier Contact List report, customise the columns, then use the export icon and choose Export to Excel.
When you customise the columns, include the supplier's ABN (business ID) column if your view offers it, along with Supplier, Company, Email and the billing address.
Some QuickBooks views mask tax IDs or don't offer the column. QuickBooks community answers suggest switching the report to classic view, or keeping the ABN in each supplier's Notes field and adding the Notes column. If the Notes field holds only the ABN, choose Notes as the ABN column when you upload.
2. Upload the Excel file without editing it
QuickBooks puts your company name and the report title above the column headings, and a timestamp at the bottom. ClearABN finds the real heading row and skips those lines, so you don't need to delete anything first.
If the ABNs come through partly hidden (for example XXXXXXX5556), or Excel has turned them into numbers like 3.31E+10, ClearABN says so before the check runs, so you can export again rather than chase false flags.
3. Review the results
Each ABN gets the official checksum and a lookup on the Australian Business Register for ABN status, entity name, business names and GST registration. The first 25 suppliers per check are free.
Rows are flagged when the ABN is missing, fails the checksum, is cancelled, is not on the register, has no current GST registration, or the supplier name doesn't closely match the registered names.
4. Keep the record
Download the audit CSV and PDF showing what the register said on the day you checked, then update the suppliers that need it in QuickBooks. ClearABN reports register information only; it isn't tax advice.
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Official sources
ClearABN shows Australian Business Register facts and the result of an ABN checksum. It does not provide tax, legal or financial advice. Links go to the ATO and the Australian Business Register so you can read their pages yourself.