The development of accounting software has made bookkeeping and finances easier than ever. With a cluster of options to choose from, the software may be used to perform almost every one of the complex bookkeeping tasks that were once handled manually. Moreover, the bank auto-connect option enables one to import their bank statements into the accounting software of your choice. This option allows for all bank transactions to be updated automatically in bookkeeping records. Talk about convenience, right? However, there are exceptions to this import functionality, and a few are discussed in the paragraphs that follow.
Access denied
Despite a company choosing to use accounting software to ease the burden of keeping track of business finances, there may be restrictions imposed on access to transactions by their bank. For instance, integration of the software with the bank’s internal system may not be allowed. Moreover, the bank could refuse access to any business bank transactions to the software. In such a case, importing bank statements into accounting software is likely to fail. This might as well be a safeguard or internal control implemented by the bank’s management to ensure secure access and security against vulnerable accounting software. So while this is an inconvenience for your bookkeeping, the bank sees these measures as important to keeping your personal data safeguarded.
Format unsupported
Another reason for import failure may be attributed to formatting issues that have become a serious matter worth contemplating recently. The data could be in such a format that the accounting software cannot easily import it. Depending on whether the software has a potency for adjusting to every data format, this may impede the seamless process of importing bank statements into accounting software. Therefore, the software must support the type of format that the data entails allowing the import. In addition to this, the software may not support importing bank statements for data that may be older than a few weeks. An alternate importing mechanism may have to be installed to do so. Be sure to do your research before deciding on accounting software.
Connectivity issues
When importing bank statements into accounting software, the connection may not be supported at all times from every remote location. Since banks have implemented internal controls for safety purposes, connectivity of the software with the bank could be an issue. Imagine what could happen if accessing information from the bank was this easy. Therefore, the connection may be allowed for a limited amount of time and only at certain times, per the terms and regulations agreed upon with the bank.
Tax separation
Another reason why importing bank statements into accounting software may fail is that the software is not capable of separating the tax on purchases from the transactions. Tax calculations are an essential matter for many businesses, and these must be bifurcated individually to estimate the total tax figure. Owing to variable tax rates on different products, these taxes may not be separated as intended or with complete accuracy.
Dubious accuracy
One of the most crucial issues relates to the accuracy of the categorization of data. Accounting software can input data with perfection. However, categorization of each transaction is not a possibility unless a criterion for each accounting element and its class has been defined in the software. Without these, the classification of data from the bank statement may be a dubious representation by the software. Moreover, bank statements tend to provide a limited amount of information such as date, amount, and information regarding the supplier. Details are usually not recorded on statements which makes this classification even more skeptical.
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