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Catch-up bookkeeping · Xero

Importing old bank statements into Xero

A bookkeeping catch-up usually starts with a folder of PDF statements, not a live bank feed. Xero has its own PDF bank statement import with specific file requirements. Here's what that covers, and how to handle years of statements, or statements Xero's own importer can't take, at once.

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What Xero's own PDF bank statement import requires

Checked 2026-09-28.

Catching up years of statements at once

  1. 1Convert every statement PDF through Arkrel first. Xero's own PDF import caps each file at 100 pages and one account per file, so a multi-year catch-up across many statements, several accounts, or a statement Xero's importer rejects (a photo instead of a scan, a password-protected export, a statement over 100 pages) converts the same way through Arkrel regardless.
  2. 2Check every balance before anything reaches your books, the same way whether it's one statement or a hundred: opening balance, every credit and debit, and the closing balance, with the exact line flagged if a statement's own numbers don't add up.
  3. 3Import the Xero CSV or OFX file through the bank account's Import a Statement flow, mapping Date and Amount plus whichever of Payee, Description, Reference and Cheque Number your file has, then reconcile in Xero as usual.

Every statement checked before you download

Arkrel reads the transaction table in any bank's PDF, not a specific bank's template, the same way whether you're converting one statement or a hundred: the opening balance, plus every credit, minus every debit, must equal the closing balance, and on a statement that prints a running balance, each row must follow from the one before it. A statement that fails either check is still exported when you ask for it, but the download is marked, and the dashboard or free tool shows exactly which check failed and on which line.

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Use the free bank statement pdf to csv/excel tool: no signup, up to 3 pages, results in seconds.

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Do I need the paid plan for a multi-year catch-up?
Not for a single short statement: the free bank-statement-to-CSV tool includes QuickBooks CSV, Xero CSV and OFX downloads at no cost, up to 3 pages per statement with no account. A catch-up spanning many statements needs a paid plan or a one-time page pack.
What if a statement's balance doesn't reconcile?
You still get the file. Arkrel marks the document partial or needs review and shows exactly which check failed and by how much, so you fix the one flagged row rather than reconciling against a total that's silently off.
Can I catch up statements from more than one bank in the same import?
Yes. Arkrel reads the transaction table in any bank's PDF, so statements from several banks convert the same way, one at a time, into the same Xero CSV or OFX format.
What if my statement doesn't meet Xero's PDF import requirements?
Xero's own PDF import has specific requirements: English, 35MB or less, at least 200 DPI, scanned straight, no more than 100 pages, and not password protected. A scanned or photographed statement that doesn't meet those, or an older statement your organization's plan doesn't support for PDF import, still converts through Arkrel into a CSV or OFX file for Xero's regular statement import.
Catching up in QuickBooks instead?Xero import guideBank statement extraction API

By bank

Each bank publishes its own window for downloading transactions natively. See the documented window and the PDF-conversion path for your bank.

Wells FargoU.S. BankChaseCapital OneBank of AmericaAmerican ExpressNavy FederalCitiTD BankTD Canada TrustAll banks