I am trying to download missing bank transactions but it keeps saying the file is too large. This happens even if I try to download just one transaction.

Thanks for reaching out, info2167. I understand you’re encountering a “file is too large” error when trying to upload missing bank transactions into QuickBooks Self-Employed (QBSE). I’d be glad to offer some tips to help you resolve this.

First off, just to clarify, when you say you downloaded missing bank transactions, do you mean you’re trying to upload those missing transactions into QBSE?

If so, it’s important to know that QuickBooks has a maximum file size limit of 350 KB for manual uploads, and the file must be in the correct CSV format.

Since you’re seeing the “file is too large” message, here are some effective steps to reduce your file size and ensure your upload goes smoothly:

• Remove any zeroes (0) from the file and leave those cells blank.
• Fix any transactions that show numbers in the Description column.
• Remove the word “amount” from the Credit or Debit column header. They should only say “Credit” and “Debit”.
• Ensure that all dates follow the same format. We recommend you use dd/mm/yyyy format.
• Some banks add the day of the week in the Date column (for example, 20/11/2018 TUE). You need to remove the day of the week. To do this, split the date and the day of the week into separate columns.

For more details, refer to this article: Manually upload transactions into QuickBooks. (Although it’s for QuickBooks Online and QuickBooks Sole Trader, the same principles regarding file format apply to QuickBooks Self-Employed.)

After successfully uploading your transactions into QBSE, you might find this article helpful for managing your banking feeds: Categorise transactions in QuickBooks Self-Employed.

If you have any other questions about uploading transactions, managing your bank feeds, or using QBSE, please feel free to comment below.