Why are Paypal records imported into QBO via a CSV file, with a mix of sales

Wow, this is my question, which I just entered in QBO's in-app help, and came here to check on, and their system has completely butchered it!

The full question was:

Why are Paypal records imported into QBO via a CSV file, with a mix of sales & withdrawals (so w/positive & negative amounts) only appearing in QBO with POSITIVE values?

And the details (which they have removed all line breaks from) should read:

I imported older Paypal records into QBO using a CSV file. The transactions are a mix of sales and withdrawals, with the withdrawals (of course) having negative amounts. But once imported into QBO, the withdrawals are now all shown with positive values! So I cannot categorize them as OUTGOING transfers (to my checking account), which is what I am trying to do.

This seems like a bug.

For example, a transaction in the CSV file that reads like this:

Type: General Withdrawal, Gross: -66.70

Appears in QBO after CSV import as:
Type: General Withdrawal, Amount: 66.70

Note the lack of the negative sign before the amount!

So when reviewing/confirming this transaction in QBO, I can select "Record as transfer", but menu under that reads "Transferred from" instead of "Transferred to", so it's really quite messed up!

PS: This is my first few days trying out Quickbooks, and it really has not made a good first impression, between the bugginess of QBO (there are a couple other bugs I've hit too) and the bugginess of trying to use their help system.

I'm here to help you import your bank file into QuickBooks Online easy and simple, BeetleBailey.

When importing CSV Files to QuickBooks, there are several format restrictions that need to be followed. This way, you can make sure that your transactions can successfully be imported.

These are the formatting restrictions:

• Special characters are not allowed.
  • Do not use characters such as #, %, and & anywhere in the file.
  • Do not use ( ) for negative amounts (use -234, not (234) for negative figures).
  • Do not include currency symbols ($234 should be 234).
  • Do not use commas to separate thousands (2, 111 should be 2111).
• Zeros (0) are not allowed anywhere in the file ($0 should be left blank).

An error occurs when the mapping of your bank file is incorrect. Make sure to plot the right columns in the mapping stage so that QuickBooks Online (QBO) will read the data. You can also upload your bank statements using a CSV file. This data uses either a 3 (Date, Description, and Amount) or 4-column (Date, Description, Credit, and Debit) format. Change the names to match the titles in the system.

Check out this article for the sample template format: Format CSV files in Excel to get bank transactions into QuickBooks.

Let me know if you have other questions about importing or if you ran into a different situation by adding a reply below so I can look further into this. I'm always ready to assist.

First, let me say that I was using the CSV file as generated by Paypal, so I'm not authoring the format from scratch.

Second, about the prohibitions on file content you listed:

> Do not use characters such as #, %, and & anywhere in the file.

That doesn't make a lot of sense - you mean even for content in quotes (""), like someone's address? Addresses and business names both can include # and & characters

> Zeros (0) are not allowed anywhere in the file

This REALLY doesn't make sense – surely you are joking?

Third and last: I will attach a screenshot I took of the CSV import settings I used in Quickbooks Online. As you say,

> An error occurs when the mapping of your bank file is incorrect. Make sure to plot the right columns in the mapping stage so that QuickBooks Online (QBO) will read the data.

And perhaps this was the issue. In the "Gross" column appeared both money received AND money sent – because like many types of accounts, my Paypal account would both receive and send money! If Quickbooks' file importing completely disregards the sign of the amount (meaning, whether it is positive or negative,  + or -), then that is a real problem!

Thanks for explaining further, @BeetleBailey. As additional insights, transactions will be shown in reverse when importing CSV files for credit card (CC) accounts such as PayPal.

Ensure you select the corresponding CC account (not a bank account) in QuickBooks Online (QBO) so they will be posted correctly. 

Here's how:

1. Go to the Banking menu, then go to the Banking page.
2. Select File upload at the right, then tick Browse.
3. Pick the file you downloaded from your bank, then click Open, and then Next.
4. In the QuickBooks Account drop-down list, choose the credit card account then Next.
5. Select a Date, date format, Description, and Account, then Next again.
6. Pick the checkboxes of the transactions to import and hit Next.
7. Click Yes and Let's go! once completed.

For more information, read through the Fine-tune the formatting for credit card accounts section outlined in this help article: Format CSV files in Excel to get bank transactions into QuickBooks.

After you have checked the transactions into your accounts, it's now time to match and categorize them in QuickBooks.

Let me know how these steps work for you. I want to make sure you're all set with your Paypal transactions. Take care!

I'm sorry but that just doesn't make sense. When I used the "Link Account" function in QBO, the Paypal account showed up as "Paypal Bank". And that's how it should be. It's not a credit account. I don't have a line of credit on it.

The transactions as automatically imported with the QBO "Link Account" function are appearing correctly in the QBO Transactions > Banking view.

However, because Paypal only imports the last 18 months of data that way (via an account link), I am trying to import previous years of data using a downloaded CSV file from Paypal, and that is where this problem is appearing.

> Thanks for explaining further, @BeetleBailey. As additional insights, transactions will be shown in reverse when importing CSV files for credit card (CC) accounts such as PayPal.

>

> Ensure you select the corresponding CC account (not a bank account) in QuickBooks Online (QBO) so they will be posted correctly. 

Hello BeetleBailey!

Thanks for the reply. Let me further assist you in importing your Paypal transactions.

When using a CSV file, how the transactions are being imported is based on the format. I suggest you open the CSV file on Excel to review it. From there, you can edit the file by following the steps in this article: Format CSV files in Excel to get bank transactions into QuickBooks.

Some banks or financial institutions format CSV files differently. QuickBooks Online allows you to use either 3-column or 4-column format. You can choose any of these to ensure accuracy when importing the transactions.

For the incorrectly imported entries, make sure to exclude them so it won't mess up your data. Once done, you can now categorize and match them.

I also added this link for the steps on how to balance your accounts in QuickBooks Online: Reconcile an account in QuickBooks Online.

Leave a comment again here if you need more help. Take care always!