When to use Bank Rules
Bank rules save you manually creating a new transaction each time you get a recurring or similar type of bank transaction. You simply tell TaxTank how these transactions should be allocated so that TaxTank can automatically highlight those transactions that meet the conditions of your bank rules. Bank Rules are linked to specific bank accounts in TaxTank, meaning that changes to your bank connections, such as reconnections or expirations, can impact these rules. This setup ensures that Bank Rules operate securely and remain relevant to the active account.
How do I create Bank Rules from bank transactions?
When it comes to creating bank rules you have two options, you can create bank rules from the bank rules tab or alternately save time and create them directly from the bank transaction itself. To create a rule from the bank transaction go to bank feeds, select the bank account you want to reconcile, and search or scroll to find your recurring transaction. Alternatively, you can access the Bank Rules tab through the Reconcile section of the specific bank account to view and manage existing rules directly.
On the bank feed line you will see a grey '+ Create rule' button, and simply select this button to open the create rule popup.
TaxTank will automatically pull the amount and description from the bank transaction into the create rule popup as a starting place. You can then edit the conditions that the bank transaction must meet in order to trigger the rule, and complete the remaining fields to tell TaxTank what to do with these transactions.
Step 1 - Choose your rule type
The first step is to choose the type of rule you want to create from the top menu. In TaxTank you can create:
Expense rules for any tank or personal transactions
Income rules for property tank, work tank or personal transactions
Transfer rules for any transfer between accounts added to TaxTank
Step 2 - Create the rule and select what conditions must be met
Enter a short rule name to identify your rule, which can be anything that makes sense to you. Then select if you want all conditions to match or just any will do.
Any conditions match - If you choose this option ONLY ONE of the condition below will need to match for the rule to be triggered.
All conditions match - If you choose this option ALL of the conditions below will need to match for the rule to be triggered.
Step 3 - Edit the conditions needed for the rule to trigger
As mentioned about, when you create a rule from the bank transaction we will automatically fill the transaction amount and value. However you can edit the default settings, remove or create more conditions as needed.
You have the following options when making a rule condition:
Field - From the field dropdown choose 'Amount' to set conditions around the transaction amount, or 'Description' to set conditions around all or part of the bank transaction description.
Condition - What you see depends upon the field selected.
If you choose 'Amount' in the field you can select from the dropdown the following options:
Equals - The bank transaction amount must match the value in the rule exactly
Less or Equal - The bank transaction amount must be less or equal to the value in the rule
Greater or Equal - The bank transaction amount must be more or equal to the value in the rule
If you choose 'Description' in the field you can select from the dropdown the following options:
Equals - The bank transaction description must match the description in the rule exactly.
Contains - The bank transaction description must contain in it the description in the rule.
Starts With - The bank transaction description must start with the description in the rule.
Value - What you enter depends upon the field selected.
If you choose 'Amount' in the field you will enter the recurring bank transaction amount.
If you choose 'Description' in the field enter the description in full or part that will match your recurring bank transaction.
Step 4 - Select the Tank and Category (for Expense & Income rules)
The last step is to select the Tank the rule relates to.
Property Tank - If you select the property tank icon you will then just select the property the rule relates to and then the category for the income or expense. The claim percent will be prefilled as per your ownership.
Work Tank - If you select work tank you will then select the category and claim percentage if not 100%. If you have completed a logbook all vehicle expense claims will be as per the logbook claim percentage.
Sole Tank - If you select sole tank you will then select the business the rule relates to and, the category and the claim percentage. Once again, if you have completed a logbook all vehicle expense claims will be as per the logbook claim percentage.
Personal - If you select personal you just need to select the category as the claim percentage will be 0% (personal transactions do not impact tax).
You can also create and manage rules from the bank rules tab
From the Reconcile section of the desired bank account, locate the Bank Rules tab. Once there, click Create rule to add a new rule by selecting its type and filling in the required criteria. If you already have existing rules, you can edit or delete them as needed.
Troubleshooting: Why Bank Rules Might Disappear After Reconnecting a Bank
When Open Banking consent expires or a bank connection is removed, the synchronisation between TaxTank and your bank account is temporarily broken. As a result, any Bank Rules that were previously set up for that connection are removed and are not retained after the bank is reconnected. To continue leveraging Bank Rules after reconnecting your bank, you will need to recreate them. While this might require additional effort initially, it helps to maintain the system's stability and ensures that only the most relevant rules are applied.
