Welcome to the IIF Transaction Creator FAQ.

We’ve tried to sort this FAQ based on topic as well as frequency of questions asked.

Quick Links Home Purchase Information Contact Information QuickBooks Tips	Question	Answer
	Can I really import transactions into QuickBooks?	Yes. Most transactions can be imported into QuickBooks using the IIF Transaction Creator.
	What types of transactions can be imported?	Most transactions can be imported, including these types: Bill, Bill Credit, Bill Payment, Check, Credit Card Charge, Credit Card Credit, Credit Memo, Deposit, Estimate, General Journal, Inventory Adjustment, Invoice, Item Receipt, Payment, Purchase Order, Sales Receipt, Sales Tax Payment, Stmt Charge, Transfer
	What transactions types cannot be imported?	QuickBooks will not import Paychecks and other payroll transactions and will not import Sales Orders.
	What do I need to include on my worksheet?	For most transactions you can specify details to the point where all you really need on your worksheet is an Amount in order to import the transactions. Others require more information, such as a customer for an Invoice and a vendor for a Bill.
	What are the basic steps to get the IIF Transaction Creator ready to use?	The basic steps are: 1. Download and install the IIF Creator from our site. 2. Install it, and then when you restart Excel it will appear on Excel’s menu.
	What are the basic steps to use the IIF Creator with QuickBooks	The basic steps are: 1. Create a worksheet that conforms to one of the layouts the IIF Creator is expecting. 2. Create an IIF file from the worksheet. 3. Import the IIF file into QuickBooks.
	What versions of QuickBooks are supported?	· The IIF Creator will create IIF files that will work with QuickBooks 2000 and newer versions. · All Enterprise versions are supported. · QuickBooks for Canada, the UK, and Australia are also supported.
	What are my transactions supposed to look like in Excel?	Use the examples you can access from the IIF Creator’s menu. You can view previously saved examples for many transaction types and you can also see your own data directly from your QuickBooks file.
	What happens if new list records are encountered, like customers or accounts?	The IIF Creator will automatically add these items to the IIF file if they’re needed. Otherwise, QuickBooks will automatically add them during import.
	Do I have to specify every field of data I want imported?	Normally when you import into QuickBooks most every data field must be included in the file. The IIF Transaction Creator will glean information from your lists, which are synced with your QuickBooks file, and add that to your transactions, filling in the blanks.
	Can I import checks that are ready to print?	Yes, you can set the print status to “To Print” on your worksheet and checks are ready to print. This also works for other transactions that can be printed, like Invoices and Sales Receipts.
	Can I import transactions in multiple currencies?	No. Unfortunately, QuickBooks will only import transactions in the home currency for the file you are importing into. This is a QuickBooks limitation.
	Can I update transactions that already exist?	No. When importing into QuickBooks transactions are always added to QuickBooks, never changing ones that already exist. This is a QuickBooks limitation.
	Can I import transactions using the First Name and Last Name fields instead of the Name field?	You can add the First Name and Last Name columns to your worksheet, if your source data has names this way. The IIF Creator will use then instead of a Name column.
	When importing, why do I get the message “You can’t change the type of account?”	This happens when you fail to reintegrate your lists before creating an IIF file, the IIF Creator encounters a ‘new’ account, and that account actually already exists in QuickBooks, but is of a different account type. To avoid this, integrate your lists before creating a new IIF file if any of the following is true: 1. You are using ‘new’ accounts on your worksheet that you have also added to QuickBooks. 2. Your previous import of an IIF file from the IIF Creator created new accounts that might be of a different type than accounts in the current IIF file.
	When importing, why do I get the message “You can’t change the type of a name?”	Like accounts, this happens when you fail to reintegrate your lists before creating an IIF file, the IIF Creator encounters a ‘new’ name, and that name actually already exists in QuickBooks, but is of a different name type (customer, vendor, other name, employee.) To avoid this, integrate your lists before creating a new IIF file if any of the following is true: 1. You are using ‘new’ names on your worksheet that you have also added to QuickBooks. 2. Your previous import of an IIF file from the IIF Creator created new name that might be of a different type than names in the current IIF file.
	When importing, why do I get the message “The tax field cannot be blank?”	This happens when you have the sales tax feature turned on and there is no sales tax line item included on a sales form, like an Invoice or Sales Receipt. To avoid it, do one of the following: 1. Turn off sales tax in preferences. 2. When creating the IIF file, check the box to automatically add a sales tax item to each sales form, if missing. 3. Include a sales tax line item on each sales form on your worksheet.
	When importing, I get a cryptic “Invalid Transaction” message and the file will not import.	Usually this means an ‘invalid’ (not allowed) account type or name type was used on the transaction. This is usually avoided when using the IIF Transaction Creator. There are two ways to ensure this doesn’t happen: 1. The IIF Creator usually avoids this problem automatically if you tell it what Type of transactions you have on your worksheet. Use the Type column for this. 2. Sync your lists with your company file before creating the IIF file. 3. Examine that accounts you’re using on your transactions to see if they are allowed by QuickBooks for that transaction type. You can compare them to existing examples from your file.
	How to I specify a sub-account to use?	In the Account or Split Account column, ether both the parent account and the subaccount names, with a “:” in-between the names, like “Travel:Party”
	What if I specify a value for a field and it is too long?	QuickBooks has various field length limitations. For example, a customer name can be 42 characters long. If you specify a name that is too long, either the IIF Creator or QuickBooks will truncate it during import.
	Can I use the IIF Transaction creator with more than one of my company files?	Yes, by reintegrating the company’s lists as you create an IIF file from a worksheet, the IIF Creator becomes aware of the second/alternate company and will create an IIF file that is compatible with it. Note that the license for the IIF Creator is a single user license, so if there will be multiple users of the IIF Creator, please purchase a copy for each user.
	Can I import an invoice that is ready to be emailed?	Yes, you can include an email on your worksheet, or if the customer already exists with an email, you can include a column to set the invoice to be emailed after import.
	Can I import Time entries using the IIF Creator?	No, but you can using our XL Timesheet for QuickBooks add-in.
	Can I import QIF files using the IIF Creator?	No, but you can using our QIF to IIF Converter add-in.
	I’m trying to load the IIF Creator on the Mac using Excel 2008.	It won’t work. Microsoft removed support for add-ins as well as other cross-platform features that continue to be available on Windows. Many Mac customers were upset by this and MS has since added support back to Excel 2011 for the Mac.
	I’ve run out of the trial and need to extend it. Can you help?	Yes. Please email support for help.

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