How to Import Bank Statements into QuickFile

To import bank statements into QuickFile, open the correct bank account, choose Options, then Upload Statement, and upload a CSV, OFX, QBO or QIF file. If your only source is a PDF or image, first extract the transaction rows to CSV, then choose Other in QuickFile and map the date, description and amount fields. Import only the missing period, then compare the resulting ledger with dated balances on the statement.

Start by fixing three points in writing: the QuickFile bank account, the first and last missing dates, and the source that covers them. Check the existing ledger on both sides of the gap. A feed or earlier import may already have supplied some transactions from the first or last day, so using an entire statement without reviewing the overlap can create duplicates.

Use the bank's native transaction download when it is available in a supported format and contains the required period. There is no benefit in converting an already structured file simply to produce another CSV. If you need help deciding between the available sources, choose a bank download or convert a statement to a spreadsheet before preparing the QuickFile import.

A statement PDF uploaded to Document Manager remains supporting evidence; it does not create bank-account transactions. In the same way, a completed file upload shows that QuickFile processed the rows, not that the period is complete or the ledger reconciles to the bank.

Turn PDF or image statements into a reviewable CSV

When the archive contains only PDFs or scans, build a review dataset before creating the import file. Each transaction needs its date, complete description and money direction. The amount can be held in one signed column or in separate money-in and money-out columns, provided the structure remains consistent throughout the file.

Keep more evidence in the review copy than in the CSV you will upload. Retain the source filename, page reference, statement boundary, displayed balance and any note that identifies a row requiring attention. These references let a reviewer trace an extracted value to its source without searching through every page.

The import CSV should contain transaction rows only. Remove opening and brought-forward balances, closing balances, repeated column headings, page totals and other page furniture. A running balance is a control for checking the sequence, not an amount received or paid. Likewise, do not infer that every debit is negative or every credit is positive: confirm the statement's column labels and sign convention against actual entries. A precise extraction instruction can define bank-statement fields, signs and balance checks before the data is prepared.

Invoice Data Extraction can convert PDF bank statements to CSV, as well as XLSX or JSON, when a bank does not provide a usable transaction file. The output retains source references for review, and individual results can be marked Review Needed with an explanation of what to check. Keep those references in the review copy even if QuickFile needs a narrower set of columns.

This preparation step does not reconnect a bank feed, post transactions directly into QuickFile, create QBO, OFX or QIF files, or reconcile the account. You still control the import mapping and verify the result against the statement.

Upload and map the CSV in QuickFile

Open the bank account that should receive the transactions. Under Options, select Upload Statement. QuickFile's bank-statement import guide describes named bank templates as well as Other for a custom CSV mapping. Use a named template only when the file has the layout that template is designed to parse. For an extracted or otherwise prepared CSV, choose Other.

Map Transaction Date and Description, then map either a single Amount column or separate Money In and Money Out columns. Match the mapping to the file in front of you. Do not map a running-balance column as an amount merely because it contains currency values.

Inspect the preview using recognisable receipts and payments from the statement. If a payment appears as money in, or a receipt appears as money out, correct the column mapping or sign-reversal setting before importing. Checking one positive and one negative example is more reliable than assuming the CSV follows the convention used by another bank.

QuickFile can save a custom mapping for later imports. Reuse it only after confirming that the new file has the same column order and sign convention. A saved mapping records an earlier choice; it cannot establish that a bank export or extraction layout has remained unchanged.

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Backfill a bank-feed gap without duplicating transactions

For a QuickFile bank feed with missing transactions, define the backfill window from the ledger and the statement together. Note the last complete feed transaction before the gap and the first reliable transaction after it. Day boundaries alone are not enough when the ledger already contains some activity from either date.

Restrict the import file to the missing rows. Importing a full monthly statement by default creates more overlap to resolve and makes a later discrepancy harder to trace. Keep adjacent statement transactions in the review copy so that you can confirm where the cut was made without including them in the upload.

QuickFile's potential-duplicate prompts are evidence of a possible match, not instructions to accept or skip a whole batch. Compare the date, full description and amount of each candidate with the existing ledger entry. Two payments of the same value are not necessarily duplicates; use the payee details, source reference and surrounding activity to distinguish a true overlap from a legitimate repeated transaction.

Reconcile the imported period to dated statement balances

A completed upload confirms that QuickFile accepted the file; it does not confirm that every transaction is present once, in the correct direction, on the correct date. Compare the QuickFile ledger with the statement at dated control points. Use the balance immediately before the imported period, any intermediate statement balances available, and the period-end balance.

If the balances differ, find the first date or transaction where the statement and ledger stop agreeing. That point narrows the investigation. Check the rows from there for an omission, a transaction imported twice, a reversed sign, an incorrect date or a balance or total mistakenly included as a transaction.

If a payment is present but has no supplier record to match, bring the corresponding purchase invoices into QuickFile before completing the reconciliation.

Where several statements cover the gap, reconcile each statement boundary separately rather than waiting until the final period balance. A difference introduced in the first file can otherwise be hidden among later transactions. For the wider control process, including matching and documenting exceptions, use the guide to reconcile a bank statement against the ledger.

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Keep the source statements and review trail

Keep the original statements after the QuickFile import has reconciled. Also retain the review copy that connects each prepared row to its source file and page, along with the checks or corrections made before upload. The records serve different purposes: the statement is the source evidence, the review copy documents how that evidence became import data, and QuickFile holds the resulting ledger entries.

For UK limited companies, the GOV.UK company record-keeping guidance says relevant financial documents, including bank statements, must be kept, and company records retained for six years from the end of the financial year they relate to. That statement is specific to limited companies. Sole traders, partnerships and other organisations should apply the record-retention rules that govern their own structure and circumstances.