Xero the Hero: Transfer Bank Rules

We have all been eagerly awaiting bank transfer rules. We are so excited to find out that this Xero update has been released! What exactly are bank transfer rules and why are we so excited about them? 

What are Transfer Rules?

Bank transfer rules are basically bank rules for bank transfers and credit card payments. Previously there were rules only for spend and receive money transactions. Having bank transfer rules will save Xero users even more time. We are big bank rule lovers here at BBB, so this is a very exciting thing for us!

How do I use Transfer Rules?

You will want to set up the bank transfer rule when you want to create a rule for similar future transactions. The most common way to set up a transfer rule is to create it when a bank transfer or credit card payment comes through on your bank reconciliation screen.

For example, while doing your bank reconciliation you might see a payment made from your checking account to your credit card. You know that you make these payments every month, so you want to create a transfer rule. You can go right ahead and create a transfer rule from this screen. Click on the drop-down arrow to the right of Create rule and select Create transfer rule.

You can also create transfer rules by going to Bank Accounts> Bank Rules > Create Rule> Transfer Rule.

The following screen will pop-up. In this example, we would suggest making the following edits when creating your transfer rule:

One thing to note: Any transfers between foreign currency accounts require an exchange rate. So if you have these, you will still need to enter these manually.

Why Should I use Transfer Rules?

There are numerous benefits, but here are our top three:

  • Transfer rules will save you time when you reconcile
  • If you have multiple accounts, using transfer rules can help you to have your transfers to be entered to the correct account
  • Some Xero users get confused when entering transfers, so creating proper rules will help them feel more confident when using Xero

If you have not created a bank transfer rule yet, we encourage you to try this new feature out.  We love that Xero just gets better and better!