Import customer or vendor opening balances

Summary

How to import customer or vendor opening balances into Sage Accounting.

Resolution

Opening balances are totals of outstanding invoices and credit notes before you start using Accounting. Save time by importing an opening balances file.

To import an opening balances file:

  1. Enter customers or vendors. See How to add and manage contacts.
  2. Enter an Accounts Start Date. See How do I set my Financial Dates.
  3. Ensure the file contains only customers or vendors. To import both, use two separate files.
  4. Save the file in comma-separated value (CSV) format.
  5. Ensure the file uses the same column headings and formatting as in the customers or vendors CSV template file.

If you have bank or ledger account opening balances, you can enter them manually. For more information, see About opening balances.

Follow these three stages to perform the import:

1. Download the CSV template file

  1. Go to Settings, Business Settings.
  2. In the Opening Balances section, select Customers or Vendors.
  3. Click New Opening Balance and then select Import Opening Balances.
  4. Click the hyperlink to download the template CSV file.
  5. Go to the downloads folder on your computer to find the file.

2. Prepare the opening balances file

If you already have a file, compare it to the template file before importing your opening balances. The column headings and data format in your file must match the template.

If you don't have a file, add your data to the template file. Leave the column headings as-is and replace the sample data with your data, using the same format.

NOTE:

The maximum file size you can import is 0.5MB. If your file is larger, split it into another file. 

When preparing your file, use the table below to ensure that your file format is correct. The header row in your CSV file must use the same headings as shown in the Field Name column below.

Customer opening balances file format
Column Field Name Type Required Notes
A Type Text Yes To enter an invoice, enter Bill. For a credit note, enter Cr Note. If you have an outstanding payment on account, enter this in Cr Note. This imports as a credit note to allocate later.
B Date Numeric Yes Must be in the format dd/mm/yyyy.
C Business Name Alphanumeric Yes Enter the customer's business name as it appears on their record.
D Customer Reference Alphanumeric Yes Enter the customer's unique reference as it appears in their record.
E Reference Alphanumeric Yes Enter a reference of your choice, for example, you can enter an invoice number.
F Details Alphanumeric No If required, enter any additional details up to a maximum of 25 characters.
G Subtotal Numeric plus two decimal places Yes Enter the gross value of the transaction excluding tax.
H Tax Rate Alphanumeric Yes The sales tax rate displays the name as it appears in Settings.
I Tax Numeric Yes The tax amount applied to the transaction.
J Total Numeric plus two decimal places Yes Enter the gross value of the transaction, including tax.

 

Vendor opening balances file format
Column Field Name Type Required Notes
A Type Text Yes To enter an invoice, enter Bill. For a credit note, enter Cr Note. If you have an outstanding payment on account, enter this in Cr Note. This imports as a credit note to allocate later.
B Date Numeric Yes Must be in the format dd/mm/yyyy.
C Business Name Alphanumeric Yes Enter the vendor's business name as it appears on their record.
D Vendor Reference Alphanumeric Yes Enter the vendor's unique reference as it appears in their record.
E Reference Alphanumeric Yes Enter a reference of your choice, for example, you can enter an invoice number.
F Details Alphanumeric No If required, enter any additional details up to a maximum of 25 characters.
G Total Numeric plus two decimal places No Enter the gross value of the transaction.

3. Import the customer or vendor opening balances file

  1. Go to Settings, Business Settings.
  2. In the Opening Balances section, select Customers or Vendors.
  3. Select New Opening Balance and then select Import Opening Balances.
  4. Select Choose File. Browse to your opening balances CSV file and then click Open.
  5. Click Upload.

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Solution ID
240304191548990
Last Modified Date
Tue Apr 28 21:53:31 UTC 2026
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