"Why does my bank keep disconnecting?" Understanding Open Banking consent and the 90-day rule

If you've noticed your bank connection dropping every few months, requiring you to reconnect and re-enter your credentials and you don’t know why. This is for you. It's one of the most common questions we see on the QuickBooks Community, and the good news is: it's not a bug. It's actually a consumer protection feature built into how Open Banking works in the UK.

Open Banking is a UK regulatory framework that allows you to securely share your bank account data with third-party apps like QuickBooks. Rather than handing over your online banking login details, Open Banking uses a secure connection meaning QuickBooks can read your transactions without ever storing your password.

So why does it disconnect?

Under Open Banking rules, your consent to share data with a third-party app — like QuickBooks is time-limited. Most UK banks set this at 90 days.

After 90 days, your authorisation expires automatically. This is intentional: it means you regularly have the opportunity to review which apps have access to your financial data, and to revoke that access if you choose to.

When your consent expires, QuickBooks can no longer pull in new transactions until you reconnect and re-authorise the connection through your bank.

Tips to make reconnecting less disruptive

• Set a reminder — If your bank notifies you by email when consent is expiring, keep an eye out for those messages. You can also note the date you reconnect and set a calendar reminder for around 85 days later.
• Check QuickBooks notifications — QuickBooks will alert you when a bank feed has disconnected so you don't miss it.
• Reconnect promptly — The sooner you reconnect after expiry, the less manual reconciliation you're likely to need.

Still having trouble connecting?

If you're experiencing connection issues outside of the 90-day cycle or if reconnecting isn't working as expected, drop a comment below and let us know which bank you're using.