QuickBooks has released ‘Batch Import of Journal Entries’. QuickBooks users can now import a batch of journal entries directly into QuickBooks Online. This precludes users from having to re-key the Journal Entries that their accountants or bookkeepers perform at the end of a fiscal period, when they are not making those entries directly into the client’s QuickBooks via QBO Accountant.
In fact, this new feature allows for the import of a Journal Entry from a CSV file with as many as 1,000 rows of data. But you must ‘turn-off account numbers’ in the QuickBooks Online file where you intend to import one or more journal entries ‘before’ you attempt the import. Once the journal entry (entries) have been imported, you can turn account number back on.
Another key detail is to ensure that any new ‘accounts’ you might be using in your journal entries have been added to your QuickBooks Online Chart of Accounts prior to importing.
Steps to import Journal Entries
There are two steps involved, set-up and verify your spreadsheet of information, and actually importing your spreadsheet data.
First - Verify you journal entry spreadsheet
The CSV file you intend to import must have the following information within it as columns:
- Journal No.
- Journal Date
- Account Name
- Journal Entry Description
- Journal Entry Names (Vendor, Customer, etc.)
- Debits
- Credits
- Location
- Class
- Memo
Be aware, if you turned on the setting designed to warn you if a duplicate journal entry is used you should turn off preference prior to attempting to import the CSV file containing your journal entries.
In addition, if you intend to import either classes or location within any of the journal entries you wish to import, you must turn on those options under settings prior to attempting to import any journal entry with class or location.
Second – Import your Journal Entry (entries)
1) Go to Settings ⚙️, then select Import Data.
2) Select Journal Entries.
3 ) On the next page, select Download a sample file if you need help formatting your journal entries.
4) On the same page, select Browse, then find and select your CSV file.
5) From the Windows File Import window, select Open, then Next.
6) Map your information. Your Field represents the headers on your spreadsheet. From each small arrow ▼ icon, select the one that matches a field in QuickBooks Online.
7) In the Import journal entries window, If there’s an error (like the one shown below), select Previous, then edit your QuickBooks file and try again. (In my case I actually had Johnson Ranch misspelled in my QuickBooks file, not in my spreadsheet.)
8) If there is nothing wrong with your data, select Next.
9) Select Complete import.
10) QuickBooks Displays ‘Nicely Done’, select OK.
That's it, you are good to go.
If you needed to add more lines to the same journal entry add them with the same Date, and the same Number.
If you want to add multiple journal entries to the same spreadsheet (to be imported at one time), just change the number... each number change triggers a single import to create multiple journal entries (as shown in my example below).
Importing this one spreadsheet would create three individual journal entries, that's what makes this process 'batch'... and, "that's No Bull!"
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