Automated bookkeeping with online payments

For automated bookkeeping, you must connect your bank account for transaction imports or upload bank statements.

The automated bookkeeping process

The transfer transactions are missing, or you don’t import transactions

The automated bookkeeping process

For a video tutorial of how automated bookkeeping works, see Video: Automated bookkeeping with online payments.

When you receive an invoice payment through Wave, three transactions are created automatically:

1. The first transaction is an income transaction that represents the invoice payment made. On your Transactions page, this transaction will be in the Payments by Wave account, which is a Money in Transit account. A Money in Transit account is used to show that a payment is accepted, but the funds are still processing.
   
   If you withdraw an Instant Payout, an additional expense transaction is automatically created under the Wave Payments account to account for the Instant Payout fee. 
2. The next is an expense transaction created by Wave to represent the funds moving from the Payments by Wave account to your bank account. This transaction will import from your bank connection or you will upload it from a statement after the funds deposit in real time. It is categorized as a transfer to your bank account.
3. The last is an income transaction, which is the other half of the transfer. It shows the funds have been deposited into your bank account in Wave. This transaction is categorized as a transfer from your Payments by Wave account.

The transfer transactions are missing, or you don’t import transactions

If you don’t have the transfer transactions, after you receive an invoice payment through Wave, manually create one of the transactions. This acts as the second transaction created in the automated process. To add this transaction:

1. Open the Transactions page.
2. Find your invoice payment transaction, or create the expense transaction.
3. Select the category Transfer to a Bank, Credit Card or Loan, then Wave Payments. If you’re creating a new transaction, fill in the remaining details.
4. Select Save.

Wave will automatically create the second half of the transfer. Categorize this transaction to the bank account you received the invoice payment funds.

Learn more about creating transfers in Wave in How to create a transfer between two accounts.