Import errors

QuickBooks Desktop 2022 or 2023 won't import bank files? Try IIF

QuickBooks Desktop 2023 bank feeds ended in 2026; Intuit staff said 2022 feeds would end in 2025. What IIF import is and how to run it safely.

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On this page
  1. What stopped working in Desktop 2022 and 2023
  2. What an IIF file is
  3. Before you import an IIF file
  4. From a PDF statement to an IIF file
  5. Sources

Intuit discontinued QuickBooks Desktop 2023 after May 31, 2026: you can no longer download transactions, and you may see a message that QuickBooks Desktop is unable to verify the financial institution information (Intuit (opens in a new tab)). For Desktop 2022, Intuit staff said in the Intuit community in 2024 that add-on services, including online bank feeds, would be discontinued on May 31, 2025 (Intuit community (opens in a new tab)). An IIF file is imported from the File menu, under Utilities, Import, Import IIF (Intuit (opens in a new tab)). Intuit's policy does not mention IIF either way, so back up your company file and try the import on a copy before you rely on it.

What stopped working in Desktop 2022 and 2023

QuickBooks Desktop 2023 was discontinued after May 31, 2026. That covers Desktop Pro Plus, Premier Plus, Mac Plus and Enterprise Solutions 23.0 (Intuit (opens in a new tab)). On Desktop 2023 after that date you lose online bank feeds, you can't download transactions, and uploading transactions is discontinued too. Intuit gives this as an example of the error you may see:

"QuickBooks Desktop is unable to verify the Financial Institution Information for this download."

For QuickBooks Desktop 2022, Intuit's QuickBooks Team said in its community in September 2024 that add-on services, including payroll, payments and online bank feeds, would be discontinued on May 31, 2025 (Intuit community (opens in a new tab)).

A bank's .qbo download goes through Web Connect, and importing Web Connect files requires you to sign in to your Intuit Account within QuickBooks Desktop (Intuit (opens in a new tab)). One of Intuit's fixes for Web Connect errors is to make sure you're using a supported version of QuickBooks Desktop (Intuit (opens in a new tab)). The other fixes are in QuickBooks unable to verify financial institution.

Upgrading is Intuit's route. QuickBooks Desktop Plus 2024 and Desktop Enterprise 24.0 were its final annual releases (Intuit (opens in a new tab)), and existing Desktop Plus and Desktop Enterprise subscribers receive version 2024 at no extra cost as part of their annual plan.

Convert a PDF statement for free

Upload a text PDF bank or credit-card statement and see whether its transactions add up to its own balances before you download Excel or CSV. Up to 10 pages a day, no account needed.

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What an IIF file is

IIF (Intuit Interchange Format) files are plain ASCII text with tab-separated values (Intuit (opens in a new tab)). Intuit's IIF overview page covers an import kit, sample files and headers. Intuit does not offer assisted technical support for creating or importing IIF files.

To import one in QuickBooks Desktop (Intuit (opens in a new tab)):

  1. Sign in to your company file as an admin.
  2. Go to the File menu, then select Utilities.
  3. Select Import, then select Import IIF.
  4. Select the IIF file, then select Open.
  5. Select OK to confirm the import.

In QuickBooks Desktop 2019 and later, the improved IIF import scans the file for errors first (Intuit (opens in a new tab)). Records that fail go into a new IIF file with the error details, which Review now opens.

What Intuit does not say. The discontinuation policy lists what stops on a discontinued version, and IIF is not on that list. We found no Intuit page that says whether IIF import keeps working after a version is discontinued. Treat it as something to test on your own install, not a promise.

Before you import an IIF file

Back up first. An import in QuickBooks Desktop cannot be undone, so create a backup of your company file before any import (Intuit (opens in a new tab)). If something goes wrong, you restore that backup.

Use account names that already exist. If you import a transaction with an account that is not already created in QuickBooks, that account will be created as a new bank account (Intuit (opens in a new tab)). Type the bank or credit card account and the offset account exactly as your chart of accounts shows them.

Try a copy first. Restore your backup as a separate company file, import there, and compare the register with the statement. Check your data carefully after importing to make sure it is complete and accurate.

Import each file once. Keep track of which statements you have imported, so the same rows do not go in twice.

From a PDF statement to an IIF file

StatementLoom reads a text PDF bank or credit card statement, not a scan, and lets you download IIF only once the opening balance plus every transaction equals the closing balance. IIF downloads need a free account, and work one statement at a time:

  • You type the QuickBooks account the statement belongs to and an offset account, by default Ask My Accountant.
  • Each row with a non-zero amount becomes one transaction on your account and one split on the offset account for the exact opposite amount.
  • Before the download, StatementLoom reads the file back and refuses it unless every transaction balances and the total equals closing minus opening.
  • Intuit's IIF transaction example has columns for the type, date, account, name, class and amount, and none for a currency (Intuit (opens in a new tab)), so StatementLoom exports only statements in US dollars as IIF.
  • If this statement, or another statement of the same client for an overlapping period, was already downloaded as IIF, the download form says so.

The free converter gives Excel or CSV without an account, after the same balance check. If you only have a list of transactions, the statement balance checker checks that it adds up from the opening to the closing balance. On a supported version of QuickBooks Desktop, the .qbo route still applies: see PDF to QBO.

Sources

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Frequently asked questions

Can QuickBooks Desktop 2023 still download bank transactions?

No. Intuit says Desktop 2023 was discontinued after May 31, 2026, that you won't be able to download transactions, and that uploading transactions will also be discontinued.

Does IIF import still work on a discontinued Desktop version?

Intuit's discontinuation policy does not mention IIF, and we found no Intuit page that says either way. Test the import on a backup copy of your company file first.

Can I undo an IIF import?

No. Intuit says you cannot undo an import in QuickBooks Desktop, so back up your company file before every import.

Convert a PDF statement for free

Upload a text PDF bank or credit-card statement and see whether its transactions add up to its own balances before you download Excel or CSV. Up to 10 pages a day, no account needed.

Open the free converter Create a free account