Bank Transfer

Manage bank transfers in QuickBooks Online

Bank transfers allow you to move funds between accounts and accept payments from clients. Because the term “bank transfer” can refer to several different workflows in QuickBooks Online, it is important to select the right method for your specific situation.

Move money between your own accounts

If you need to move funds from one bank account to another (for example, from a checking account to a savings account), use the Transfer feature.

• Go to the + New menu and select Transfer.
• Select the bank account you are moving funds From.
• Select the bank account you are moving funds To.
• Enter the Amount and the Date.
• Select Save and close.

Note: A transfer is strictly the movement of funds from one account to another. It does not pay for expenses. If you transfer funds to a specific account to cover future expenses, you must enter the individual expense transactions separately after the transfer is complete.

Record a bill payment made via online bank transfer

If you paid a vendor bill using an online bank transfer (often referred to as an ACH or wire payment), you need to record this correctly in the system.

When you pay a bill from a checking account, QuickBooks Online typically categorizes the payment method as “Check.” To accurately reflect that the payment was made via online bank transfer:

1. Go to Expenses and select Vendors.
2. Open the specific bill payment.
3. In the Ref no. or Check # field, enter an identifier such as OBT (Online Bank Transfer).
4. Save the changes.

Accept bank transfer payments from customers

You can receive payments from customers via bank transfer (ACH) through QuickBooks Payments. This allows your clients to pay invoices directly from their bank account.

• For clients: When you send an invoice, the customer can select the bank transfer payment option on the payment screen. They authorize the payment, and the funds are deposited into your bank account.
• For setup: To enable these features or understand the specific fees and processing times, you may need to contact the Merchant Service Department. You can reach them through the Contact Us page on the Intuit support site.

Limitations on recurring bank transfers

Currently, QuickBooks Online does not support creating recurring sales receipts or recurring invoices that process automatically via bank transfer (ACH).

When setting up a recurring transaction, you must select a credit card as the payment method to enable automatic processing. If you require recurring bank transfers, we recommend sending feedback to our product development team to help us prioritize this feature for future updates.

Troubleshooting bank rules for transfers

If you use Bank Rules to automatically categorize downloaded transactions, you may encounter issues where a rule for a bank transfer does not apply correctly. In some cases, the transfer may still appear as an “Uncategorized Asset.”

If your rules are not applying to bank transfers:

• Manual categorization: Until the issue is resolved, manually categorize the transfer in the Banking tab.
• Check for updates: Our engineering team actively works to resolve known issues with banking rules. Ensure your software is updated to the latest version.

Trust accounting and bank transfers

If you are managing trust accounts (common for legal firms), simply transferring funds from a trust account to an operating account does not automatically apply those funds to a client invoice.

To avoid duplicating funds or creating accounting errors:

1. Record the transfer of money from the trust account to the operating account.
2. Separately, apply the funds to the client invoice using the Receive Payment feature in the operating account.

This ensures the bank transfer and the invoice payment are recorded distinctly without counting the same funds twice.