Bank Statement Converter for South Africa
FNB, Absa, Standard Bank, Nedbank, Capitec — PDF to Xero, Sage or Excel in seconds.
"Best PDF-to-Xero conversion I've used for South African banks."— Sipho M., Sandton
- · Xero
- · Sage Business Cloud
- · QuickBooks
- · Pastel
VAT-ready categories aligned with SARS Vendor codes.
Supported South Africa banks
VAT & compliance guidance
Standard VAT rate is 15%. We split each transaction into VAT-inclusive amount, VAT portion and VAT-exclusive amount so your VAT201 return matches on the first try.
Categories map to standard SARS vendor codes (VAT input, VAT output, exempt, zero-rated). Diesel refund transactions are auto-flagged for the DA66 schedule.
Salary payments are auto-split into net-to-employee, PAYE, UIF and SDL lines when your CoA has the relevant accounts, matching SARS EMP201 reporting.
South Africa conversion checklist (VAT, statement retrieval, common mistakes)
A downloadable Markdown checklist covering retrieval channels for South Africa banks, the VAT / statutory fields to preserve, the accounting formats your CA will ask for, and the top conversion mistakes to avoid. Print it before your next reconciliation run.
Popular conversions
How to convert a South Africa bank statement
Works with every South Africa bank we support — digital PDFs, scans and phone photos.
- Step 1
Upload the statement
Download the PDF from your South Africa bank's internet banking or app and drop it in. Password-protected files are accepted — the password is entered once and never stored.
- Step 2
Review the parsed rows
The bank template is detected automatically, VAT treatment is applied, and the running balance is reconciled line by line so nothing is silently mis-read.
- Step 3
Export to Xero
Download as Xero, Sage Business Cloud, QuickBooks-ready files, or plain Excel and CSV for anything else.
South Africa bank statement conversion — FAQs
Which South Africa banks are supported?
We support 10+ South Africa banks including all major private, public sector and neo-banks. Any statement in PDF, image or CSV form works.
Is my South Africa bank statement data private?
Files are processed in isolated per-session storage, encrypted in transit, and auto-deleted within 24 hours. They are never used to train external models.
What accounting tools can I export to?
Xero, Sage Business Cloud, QuickBooks, Pastel — plus CSV, Excel, QBO and OFX for anything else.
How do I download an FNB, Capitec or Absa statement?
FNB online banking → My Bank Accounts → Statements. Capitec app → Transaction history → Send statement. Absa → Statements & Documents. All issue PDFs we read without OCR.
Do the categories line up with the SARS VAT201 return?
Yes — VAT input, VAT output, zero-rated and exempt buckets map to SARS vendor codes so your VAT201 reconciles on the first attempt.
How long must South African businesses keep bank statements?
Five years from the date of the last entry under the Tax Administration Act, extended if an audit or objection is in progress.
Does it work with Sage Pastel and Xero?
Yes — export a Pastel-ready CSV or a Xero bank-statement CSV; both import without further column mapping.
What is a bank statement?
A bank statement is a periodic document issued by your bank listing every transaction on an account for a period — usually one month. It shows the opening balance, each debit and credit with a date and description, and the closing balance. Banks issue it as a PDF, a printed copy, or a downloadable CSV/OFX file.
How do I get a bank statement?
Sign in to your bank's internet banking or mobile app, open the account, choose Statements (sometimes 'e-statements' or 'Documents'), pick a date range, and download the PDF. Most banks keep 12–24 months online; older periods are requested from a branch or support. You can upload the downloaded PDF here directly — no need for the CSV version.
How long should I keep bank statements?
As a rule of thumb keep them seven years if they support a tax return, three years for general business records, and at least one year for personal budgeting. Digital copies count in most jurisdictions, so converting statements to Excel or CSV is a valid way to archive them in a searchable form.
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