Overview

This article explains how to use the Manual Statement Import feature in the Bank Sync page of Inn-Flow. This feature is designed to help clients whose banks are not fully supported by Plaid, allowing them to upload bank statements and reconcile transactions manually with ease. This is available for all types of accounts (Operating, Miscellaneous, Payroll, and Credit Card).


Prerequisites

To utilize the manual statement upload feature, the client will need our Advanced Accounting Subscription and users will need permission to the Bank Sync Page for that account type within Administration > Roles and Permission.


Understanding the Benefits of Manual Statement Uploads

  1. Time Efficiency: Automating the process of importing transactions from your statements saves you significant time compared to manual entry, allowing you to focus on other important tasks.

  2. Flexibility: The ability to manually upload statements provides flexibility for clients whose banks are not supported by automatic sync features, ensuring that all transactions can be included in the system regardless of bank compatibility.

  3. Custom Mapping: The option to create and reuse mapping rules allows you to streamline future uploads, making the process quicker and more consistent.

  4. Improved Reconciliation: With accurate and complete transaction data, reconciling your bank transactions with invoices becomes more straightforward, reducing discrepancies and enhancing financial accuracy.


Step-by-Step Guide


Step 1: Navigate to the Bank Sync Module

  1. Log in to the system with your user credentials.

  2. From the main menu, navigate to the "Accounting" module.

  3. Select "Bank Sync" from the menu.


Step 2: View and Manage Bank Transactions

  1. Account Drop-down Options: Users will see all accounts for the selected EHID, separated into synced accounts (a connection made via Plaid) and other accounts (not synced to any banks).

  2. Accounts will only move to the Synced Account section if and only if a connection is made for that account via Plaid, accounts with Manual statement uploads will continue to remain in the Other Accounts section.


Note: If a user has no synced accounts or if all accounts are synced, the accounts will not be displayed in separate sections. In such cases, the dropdown will simply list the available accounts without dividing them into "Synced Accounts" and "Other Accounts."


Step 3: Understand the Top Right Buttons

  1. If no bank account is selected from the Account Name drop-down option, for an EHID, the user will only see the “Bank Sync” button. For more details on Bank Sync connections see the knowledge base article How to set up Bank Sync?

  2. If a synced account is selected, the “Manual Statement Upload” button will not be visible since this account is already synced.

  3. If a non-synced account is selected, both the “Manual Statement Upload” and the “Bank Sync Connections” buttons will be visible.




Step 4: Uploading a Bank Statement 

  1. Click on the “Manual Statement Upload” button.

  2. Once selected the upload modal will appear.

  3. The modal includes a step-by-step guide for uploading statements with a specific icon for each step.


Step 5: Choosing a Mapping Rule and File (Step 1)

  1. For the first step, you will see a dropdown menu labeled "Choose Mapping Rule."
  2. By default, no option will be selected.
  3. You can select from a list of existing mapping rules or choose to create a new one.
  4. When "Create Mapping Rule" is selected, a new input field labeled "New Mapping Rule Name" will appear.
  • Enter a name for the new mapping rule.
  • The input field is required and limited to 50 characters.
  • The system will validate that the entered name is unique.



Step 6: File Upload Area

  1. You will see an option to drag and drop files or use a file selector dialog to upload files.

  2. Supported file formats are CSV and Excel (.xls).

Step 7: Understanding Mapping Rules

  1. An info icon below the upload option explains what a mapping rule is:

  • What is a Mapping Rule? A mapping rule helps you streamline the process of uploading financial statements by automatically matching columns from your uploaded file to the correct fields in Inn-Flow.
  • Creating a New Mapping Rule: To create a new mapping rule, select "Create Mapping Rule" from the dropdown, then map the columns for the uploaded file. Once saved, you can use this rule for future uploads to save time.


Step 8: Proceeding with the Upload

  1. The mapping rule selection dropdown is required before proceeding to the next step.

  2. The "Next" button will be greyed out until all required fields are filled out.

  3. You can cancel the upload at any time by selecting the "X" on the top right corner or the "Cancel" button at the bottom right corner.

  4. Once a supported file is selected and a mapping rule is chosen, the "Next" button will become active.

  5. Click "Next" to be directed to the column mapping interface.


Step 9: Map Statement Columns to Inn-Flow (Step 2)

  1. After clicking the "Next" button on the initial manual statement upload screen, you will be directed to the column mapping interface.

  2. Within the top left you will see the name of the uploaded file and the selected mapping rule.

  3. A progress indicator shows the current step in the upload process and is highlighted to guide you through the process.

  4. A brief description of the current step is displayed: “Map the columns from your uploaded statement to the corresponding Inn-Flow fields using the drop-downs.”


Step 10: Preview and Map Columns

  1. Upon uploading a statement, the system initially displays the first 5 rows of data for mapping.

  2. Click the "Show 5 More Rows" button to load and display the next 5 rows from the uploaded statement.

  3. Each column in the preview has a header indicating the statement column.



Step 11: Use the Column Mapping Interface

  1. Each preview column has a dropdown menu above it, labeled "Select Inn-Flow Column," allowing you to map it to the corresponding Inn-Flow field.

  2. The dropdown menu includes all available Inn-Flow fields that you can map to, such as:

  • Amount
  • Check No.
  • Credit
  • Debit
  • Date
  • Description
  • Custom Field
  • Custom Field: The custom field can be used to map any additional data from your statement that does not fit into the standard categories of Amount, Date, and Description. This field will be displayed in the Bank Sync page as a column header called 'Custom Field', users will not be able to edit this field.

  • Use Case Example: Within American Express statements, users may encounter an "Authorized User" field specifying which employee made a purchase. This field can be mapped to a custom field in Inn-Flow. This helps clients identify which employee made a purchase, aiding in associating transactions with the correct hotel or property, especially in multi-property management scenarios.

Step 12: Ensure Unique Column Mapping

  1. The system ensures that only one column is mapped to each Inn-Flow field at any time.

  2. A confirmation prompt will appear if you select an Inn-Flow field from the dropdown that has already been mapped to another column.

  3. If you click "Cancel," the system closes the prompt without changing the current mappings.

  4. If you click "Yes," the system reassigns the selected Inn-Flow field to the new column and removes the mapping from the previous column.

Step 13: Validations and Completing the Mapping

  1. The system validates that the required columns (Date and one of either Amount, Credit, or Debit fields) have been mapped before allowing you to proceed.

  2. When entering the column mapping interface, the "Next" button is inactive (greyed out).

  3. The "Next" button becomes active once all required columns are mapped.

  4. If you unmap a required column, the "Next" button reverts to its inactive state.

  5. Click "Next" to proceed and save the mapping configuration.

Important Note: Only rows that include the fields you've mapped (e.g., Date, Description, Amount, and Custom Fields) will be imported. If a row does not contain these mapped items, it will not be included in the import process.


Step 14: Handling Previously Uploaded Transactions

  1. After uploading the statement, the system will check for duplicate transactions.

  2. The system will automatically check for duplicate transactions based on predefined criteria (e.g., date and amount) when the statement is uploaded. 

  3. If duplicates are found, a notification will appear at the top of the screen indicating the number of duplicate transactions previously imported. 

  4. Duplicate transactions will be shown within the table and be highlighted with the label “Duplicate” next to each detected instance for easy identification. 

  5. All detected duplicates will be automatically sorted at the top of the transaction list. 

  6. Users can now review all transactions, with checkboxes provided for selecting or deselecting duplicate transactions for import. 

  7. Non-duplicate transactions will have no checkboxes enabled by default, while duplicates will require manual selection. 



Step 15: Review Fields

  1. Upon successful upload of the file, the system displays a message at the top of the interface indicating "Successfully uploaded. Please review before importing."

  2. Only rows that had a required field (Date and one of either Amount, Credit, or Debit fields) will appear on the review page.

  3. Any column that did not have a map drop-down field selected will not show on the review page.

  4. The user will see a Check/Type Column, even if they did not select this, and this will be filled in with either withdrawal or deposit.

  5. If the dataset is large, the table is scrollable to allow users to review all rows.




Step 16: Finalizing the Import

  1. The "Import" button should be active and allow you to finalize the import process if all required fields are filled out; otherwise, it will be greyed out.

  2. The system validates that at least one row is selected for import before allowing you to proceed.

  3. Once you select import, a toast message will appear indicating "Upload Successful," and the modal will close, landing you on the Bank Sync list view page.


Step 17: Bank Sync Page

  1. All functionality available for bank synced transactions will be applicable for these manual uploads, including finding matched transactions.

  2. Imported transactions that are recognized as duplicates but have been reconciled with an invoice will be removed from the list and categorized under the Completed filter. 


Step 18: Identify the Manual Upload Account Indicator

  1. If an account has had a previous manual upload, the system will display "Last manual upload: with a Time Stamp in the top right corner.

  2. No information will be provided if no previous manual upload was done for the selected account.

  3. If the account is synced with a bank using Plaid, you will see your bank synced information.


Understanding the Benefits of Manual Statement Uploads

  • Time Efficiency: Automating the process of importing transactions from your statements saves you significant time compared to manual entry, allowing you to focus on other important tasks.
  • Flexibility: The ability to manually upload statements provides flexibility for clients whose banks are not supported by automatic sync features, ensuring that all transactions can be included in the system regardless of bank compatibility.
  • Custom Mapping: The option to create and reuse mapping rules allows you to streamline future uploads, making the process quicker and more consistent.
  • Improved Reconciliation: With accurate and complete transaction data, reconciling your bank transactions with invoices becomes more straightforward, reducing discrepancies and enhancing financial accuracy.