Copy Xero bank rules between organisations by hand, and document them
Xero has no export or import for bank rules, so to copy them to a new organisation you write each rule down and rebuild it in the same order. This guide gives that routine, the checks that stop a rebuild from failing and a free CSV template.
Download the bank rules template (CSV)
What Xero offers today
There is no built-in export or import for bank rules. The request Bank Rules: ability to import and export on Xero Product Ideas had 564 votes on 13 November 2026 and the status Accepted, after Xero's community manager wrote on 21 January 2026 that the team will look into how it might fit the roadmap, with comments from accountants through 2026.
Rules live inside each organisation, so a new organisation starts empty. Bank rules are found under Banking in the Xero menu, or from the bank account's Manage account menu, depending on your Xero version; the official help is on Xero Central. The same article lists the user access needed to create them.
How to copy bank rules to a new organisation
- Write the rules down in the source organisation. Open the list of bank rules for each bank account. Note the rule type (spend money, receive money or transfer money) and the order, because Xero applies the first rule that matches. Open each rule and record the conditions (field, operator, value), the contact, the account it allocates to, the tax rate and any description, reference or tracking categories. Use one row per rule in the template, with a priority number, so the order survives.
- Check that the new organisation has what the rules point at. Most rebuild problems are not the rules but the things they refer to: the same chart of accounts codes and names, the same tax rates, any tracking categories and the contacts named in the rules. A rule that points at an account the new client does not have cannot be created as written.
- Rebuild in priority order. Create the rules in the new organisation in the same order as your sheet and tick the done column on each row as you go, so an interrupted setup can be resumed. Keep names identical to the source rules, which makes the next comparison and the next client easier.
- Test with real statement lines. When the first bank feed or statement import arrives, check a handful of lines for each rule type: the suggestion should match your sheet. Tick the test column only when you have seen a rule fire. Fix a line that matches the wrong rule by reordering, not by adding more rules.
- Keep the sheet as the firm's record. The filled-in sheet is the documentation: what each rule does, in what order, for which client. Store it with the client file. When Xero or the client changes, change the sheet and the rule together and note the date.
Mistakes that cost time
- Rebuilding rules before the chart of accounts is final: the allocations change and the rules must be edited again.
- Broad conditions, for example a very short text, that match unrelated lines. Prefer the most specific text from the statement.
- Forgetting transfers: transfer rules need both bank accounts to exist in the new organisation.
- No test line: a rule that never fired is not yet a checked rule.
Tell me if a tool for this appears
We do not offer a tool for this and are not promising one. If a way to export and import bank rules becomes practical, leave your e-mail address and we will write once. Nothing else.
Questions people ask
Can you export bank rules from Xero?
No. Xero has no built-in export or import for bank rules. Its Product Ideas request for it had 564 votes on 13 November 2026 and the status Accepted.
How do I copy bank rules to a new Xero organisation?
Write each rule down with its type, order, conditions, contact, account and tax rate, check that the new organisation has the same accounts, tax rates, tracking categories and contacts, then rebuild the rules in the same order and test them with real statement lines.
Where do I find bank rules in Xero?
Under Banking in the Xero menu, or from the bank account's Manage account menu, depending on your Xero version. Xero Central's article About bank rules is the official help.
Why does a rule not match in the new organisation?
Usually because it points at an account, tax rate, tracking category or contact the new organisation does not have, or because the rules are in a different order. Xero applies the first rule that matches.
Atesen Software is independent. Xero is a trademark of Xero Limited, and this page is not affiliated with or endorsed by Xero. The Xero Product Ideas and Xero Central pages were checked on 13 November 2026; menus can change. Questions: support@atesensoftware.com.