Bank Import

Overview#

• Bank Statements may be imported from various banks and Payfast.
• The supported file formats are .ofx and .csv.
• All the bank transactions can be imported but you can choose which transactions to post to the ledger and which to enter manually later.
• Bank statements are imported without any changes.
• Entries that are imported but not entered can be cancelled in BOS Professional to create an audit trail.

Settings#

User Settings#

Accounting Settings#

Statement of Financial Position > Assets > Bank:

• Lets you select an Import option from the dropdown list in the Import column for each Bank Account.
• Options on the dropdown list:
  • Payfast (.csv): See Payfast section below.
  • SA ABSA (.ofx): Has unique FITID; Has closing tags; Date format: yyyymmdd.
  • SA ABSA (.csv): No unique FITID; You must manage the transactions you import. Date format: yyyymmdd.
  • SA FNB (.ofx): Has unique FITID; Does not have closing tags; Date format: yyyymmdd.
  • SA FNB - No FITID Check (.ofx): No FITID check.
  • SA Investec (.ofx): Does not have unique FITID; Does not have closing tags; Date format: yyyymmdd (File has leading spaces in front of tags.)
  • SA Investec (.csv) - July 26: Does not have unique FITID; Does not have closing tags; Date format: yyyymmdd (File has leading spaces in front of tags.)
  • SA Nedbank (.ofx): Does not have unique FITID; Has closing tags; Date format: yyyymmdd.
  • SA Nedbank - Credit Card (.csv): Does not have unique FITID; Does not have a balance; Does not have closing tags; Date format: mmddyyyy.
  • SA Standard (.csv): Custom CSV; Date format: yyyymmdd.
  • SA Standard - Option 1 (.ofx): No FITID check.
  • SA Standard - Option 2 (.ofx) - April 26: No unique FITID (Date+ID); Does not have closing tags; Date format: yyyymmdd. You must manage the transactions you import.
  • SA Standard (.ofx) - July 26: Has unique FITID (Date+ID); Does not have closing tags; Date format: yyyymmdd.
  • SA Capitec (.ofx): No FITID check; Date format: YYYYMMDD000000; A Fees transaction is added for every transaction that attracts fees.
• When an import file has a unique FITID value, duplicates are automatically excluded.
• When a unique ID is not provided, all the transactions in the Import file are imported and you must check that entries are not duplicated, and that all the entries are imported (e.g. by doing a Bank Reconciliation).

General Settings#

Bank Import Screen#

Buttons Explained#

Data Filters Explained#

Fields Explained#

Importing#

For step-by-step instructions, see the Bank Import Tutorial.

Menu (button) > Import works in one of two ways, set for everyone by the general setting Copy and Paste Bank Import file (see General Settings):

• No: a file dialog opens. Select the .ofx or .csv file and click Open (button).
• Yes: a box opens with the caption "Paste the file contents below". Paste the file's content and click Import (button). If the box is empty, the message "Import failed. Paste the file contents in the space provided." appears.

After the Import#

• The message "Import successful. BatchID …" confirms the batch, and the grid view shows the imported transactions.
• If nothing was imported, the message "Zero records have been imported. Possible cause: All the transactions in the import file are duplicate Transactions." appears.
• If the bank account has no Import option (see Accounting Settings), the message "The Bank Import Settings are incomplete. See online documentation." appears.
• If the import file does not match the selected bank, an error is returned.
• After a file is imported from a file dialog, it is renamed "Imported - BatchID … - date - original file name" and moved to an Imported folder next to it. The folder is created if it does not exist.
• Double-click the transactions one by one to process them (see Edit Bank Transaction).
• When a transaction is linked to a bank transaction, the date on the Ledger transaction cannot be updated.
• A warning ("Warning: Duplicate Transaction") appears when you view a duplicate transaction: one with the same Date, Amount and Description as another transaction.

Payfast Import#

1. Payfast Statements (.csv) can be imported using the Bank Import feature.
2. The Payfast Bank Account is identified by the Import setting = Payfast (.csv).
3. Multiple Payfast accounts may be used, but the account number cannot be verified during the import process.
   • Note: You must select the correct Payfast account when importing.
4. The PF Payment ID column checks and excludes duplicate transactions (Using the FITID column).
5. The Gross amount on Credit transactions is imported.
6. The Fees on Credit transactions are totalled to a separate item named: Fees on Credit Transactions (Batch #).
7. The Net amount is imported for Debit transactions.

Edit Bank Transaction#

Buttons Explained#

Matching Text and Items Explained#

1. Matching records lets you quickly record recurring transactions (e.g. bank charges).
2. A record matches if the selected matching text matches a previous entry.
3. If a matching record is found, click Update (button) to copy the current transaction to the Ledger.
   1. The accounts are prefilled based on the previous matching record.
   2. The description and amounts are updated from the current transaction.
4. If a transaction is recurring and no matching records are found, you can create a record.

Fields Explained#

Matching Records Explained#

The list of previous entries that contain the matching text.