Guides & fixes
When a statement will not import
The errors that stop a bank statement reaching your books, what each one actually means, and how to fix it. Written from the file formats up, because most of these messages describe a symptom rather than a cause.
The short answer
When a bank statement will not import
Most import errors describe a symptom, not a cause: OL-301 talks about a connection when the problem is a tag in the file, “invalid date” appears when day and month have swapped, and a balance that does not match usually means a row went missing earlier. These guides work from the file format up, so you can see the cause and fix it once.
QuickBooks
QuickBooks import errors
OL-301, OL-249, "unable to verify the financial institution", duplicates and files that will not import at all.
QuickBooks error OL-301: what causes it, and how to fix it
QuickBooks error OL-301 rarely means your bank is down. What it means, how to read the .qbo file to find the cause, and step-by-step fixes for each case.
10 min readQuickBooks error OL-249 when importing a Web Connect file
QuickBooks error OL-249 usually means the file and the account do not match. How it differs from OL-301, how to confirm the cause, and the fixes in Desktop.
9 min readQuickBooks “unable to verify the financial institution”: what it means and how to fix it
QuickBooks says it is unable to verify the financial institution, or the file is not from a supported one. The tag behind it, how to check it, and the ways out.
9 min readDuplicate transactions after importing a QBO file
Duplicate transactions in QuickBooks after a QBO import? Why it happens, what FITID has to do with it, and how to clean up in Online and Desktop safely.
9 min readQuickBooks won’t import my .qbo file: 9 things to check
QBO file not importing into QuickBooks Online or Desktop? A nine-point checklist in the order that finds the cause fastest, with every error message decoded.
10 min read
Quicken, Xero, Tally and Excel
Other import errors
Quicken QFX failures, Xero CSV mapping, date formats, balances that do not match, missing rows and rejected Tally vouchers.
QFX file not importing into Quicken: causes and fixes
Why a QFX file won’t import into Quicken: an unverified bank ID, a bank that dropped Web Connect, the wrong account, duplicates. The messages and each fix.
9 min readXero CSV import failed: fixing column mapping and date errors
Why Xero rejects a bank statement CSV or imports it wrong: the amount column, the saved date format, header rows and blank lines. Each error, its cause and fix.
9 min read“Invalid date format” when importing bank transactions
Why a bank import says “invalid date format”, the rows that import silently in the wrong month, and how to fix the dates for Xero, QuickBooks, Sage or Quicken.
9 min readWhy your imported balance doesn’t match the statement
Imported balance doesn’t agree with the bank statement? Read the size and sign of the gap to find the cause: a dropped row, a flipped sign, a misread digit.
9 min readMissing transactions after a PDF to Excel conversion
Rows go missing from converted bank statements in a few predictable places. Where to look, how to prove nothing is missing, and how to catch it before import.
9 min readQIF import creates the wrong account type
QIF names its account type in one header line. Get it wrong and transactions land in a new or wrong account, or with reversed signs. How it works, and fixes.
8 min readTally XML import errors: voucher rejected or not imported
Why TallyPrime rejects vouchers in an XML import: unbalanced totals, missing ledgers, bad XML, wrong dates. How to read Tally.imp and the Exceptions report.
10 min read
File formats
Bank statement file formats, explained
What is inside a QBO, QFX, OFX, QIF, IIF, CSV or Tally XML file, and which one your software actually needs.
QBO vs QFX vs OFX vs QIF: which one does your software need?
QBO, QFX and OFX are one format with different requirements; QIF is far older. What separates them, the fields inside, and which your software accepts.
11 min readWhat is INTU.BID, and why does QuickBooks check it?
One tag inside a .qbo or .qfx file decides whether QuickBooks or Quicken accepts it. What INTU.BID is, where to find yours, and what to do when there is none.
9 min readWhat is a FITID, and why you keep getting duplicate transactions
One field decides whether re-importing a statement is harmless or doubles your books. How FITIDs work in OFX, QBO and QFX, and how converters get them wrong.
9 min readIIF vs QBO for QuickBooks Desktop
Both import into QuickBooks Desktop and behave completely differently. What an IIF file is, how it compares with a Web Connect QBO, and when each is right.
10 min readWhat is a QuickBooks Web Connect file?
A Web Connect file is the .qbo you download from your bank and import by hand. How it differs from Direct Connect and Express Web Connect, and what is inside.
9 min readThe OFX format, explained for accountants
OFX is the format underneath QBO and QFX, and the one most non-Intuit software accepts. What an OFX file contains, how to read one, and why it needs no bank ID.
11 min readCSV or Excel for bank statement data: which should you use?
CSV imports almost everywhere and keeps nothing but text. Excel keeps types and is refused by most statement importers. Which to pick, and the traps in each.
10 min readThe Tally XML voucher format, explained
TallyPrime imports vouchers in its own XML envelope. The structure tag by tag, why debits are negative, how ledgers are matched, and what gets a file rejected.
10 min readCAMT.053, MT940 and BAI2: the corporate statement formats
The three formats banks use to send statements to treasury and ERP systems: what each looks like field by field, who reads them, and where MT940 is heading.
11 min readBank statement file formats: a complete reference
Every format bank statements come in or convert to (CSV, Excel, OFX, QBO, QFX, QIF, IIF, Tally XML, CAMT.053, MT940, BAI2) and what each one requires.
12 min read