Vetera supports importing payment files to automatically mark finalized invoices as paid. This reduces manual payment processing by matching incoming bank transactions to the correct invoices using reference numbers. Payment file imports can also be used to process insurance compensation payments.
You can import a bank payment file, such as a bank statement export, or an Excel file that you fill in yourself.
The ability to view and upload payment files, and to change the organization settings, depends on your user permissions.
The Bulk Payment Importer was previously called Bank payment processing. It was renamed because it can now import more than bank payment files, for example Excel files with your own payment methods.
Note: The Bulk Payment Importer is being made available to clinics in stages. If you cannot see it in Vetera yet, contact your Vetera account manager or Vetera Support.
Supported file formats
The Bulk Payment Importer accepts the following payment file formats:
CAMT.053 and CAMT.054 (ISO 20022 XML format, widely used in Europe)
BGMax (used primarily in Sweden)
SEK and SEK2 (used primarily in Denmark)
Excel (.xlsx)
To import a bank file, contact your bank to confirm which format they use for bank statement exports.
To import an Excel file, you can use the example file on the upload page as a template.
How automatic invoice matching works
When you upload a payment file, Vetera tries to match each payment to a finalized invoice using the reference number included in the payment.
If a match is found, the row is marked as Targeted.
If no match is found, the row is marked as Untargeted. You can assign the invoice manually — see step 5 below.
Automatic matching only considers invoices from the last 12 months. Target older invoices manually.
Note: Rows that are automatically matched to invoices with a due sum of 0 are ignored by default and will not be processed.
Reference numbers
Reference numbers are unique identifiers generated when an invoice is finalized. They are printed on the invoice alongside the bank account details. When a client includes the reference number in a payment, Vetera can match the bank transaction to the correct invoice automatically.
Vetera supports the following reference number formats:
Finnish reference number (viitenumero)
Norwegian reference number (KID)
Swedish reference number (OCR)
International Structured Creditor Reference (ISO 11649 / SEPA)
The reference number format used by your clinic is configured in Settings. To view or update the settings, select the clinic location name in the top left, then go to Settings > General > Organization > Organization settings and select Create reference numbers for invoices.
Note: These settings are usually configured during implementation. Changes may affect workflows and compliance. Contact your system administrator before making any changes.
Make a payment method available in the Bulk Payment Importer
Imported payments can be targeted against your clinic's own payment methods, for example a debt collector or a write-off. Each payment method must be enabled in the organization settings before it can be used in the Bulk Payment Importer. Changing these settings depends on your user permissions.
Select the clinic location name in the top left, then go to Settings > General > Organization and select Payment methods.
Select the edit button on the payment method row. The Payment method edit dialog opens.
Select In Bulk Payment Importer.
Select Save.
Only enabled payment methods can be targeted on import. The In bulk import column in the payment methods table shows which methods are enabled. The same setting is available when you create a payment method with Add, and it is not selected by default.
Payment methods in an Excel file
An Excel file that you import in the Bulk Payment Importer can contain a payment method column (payment_method). Vetera matches each row to an enabled payment method by name.
If the column is empty, the row is set to bank payment, or to insurance claim when the row matches a claim. Bank files are always handled this way, because they have no payment method column.
If the column contains a name that matches no enabled payment method, the row is left without a payment method. Select it manually during the targeting step.
Import a payment file
To import a payment file and approve payments in Vetera:
Go to Reporting > Reports, select the Finances filter, and open Bulk Payment Importer.
Previously uploaded files are listed in the Recently uploaded files table at the bottom of the page. The table shows the file name, date, status, and the number of transactions processed. You can filter files by status, or manually change the status of a file by selecting the edit icon next to the status.
Unprocessed: the file has been uploaded but not yet reviewed.
Uncompleted: the file has been partially processed. This status also appears if the file contains payments that do not relate to any invoice in Vetera. If you have finished processing the file, you can manually change the status to Completed using the edit icon.
Completed: all applicable payments have been processed.
Select Click or drop files here to upload and select your payment file, or drag the file into the upload area.
Make sure the file is in a supported format before uploading. See Supported file formats above. Some banks export payment files in a different format by default. If needed, open the file and save it in a supported format before uploading.
Select Next. Vetera uploads the file and displays the transaction list.
Column headers are matched regardless of uppercase, lowercase, spaces and underscores.
If the file has two columns for the same field, Vetera rejects the file. Remove the extra column and upload the file again.
Columns that the importer does not use are listed after the upload, so that you can check that nothing is missing.
Review the transaction list. Untargeted rows are highlighted in red. Each row shows one of the following statuses:
Targeted: a matching invoice was found.
Untargeted: no matching invoice was found. You must assign the invoice manually. The row shows the invoice number from the file, so that you can see what was searched for.
You can also manually ignore or unignore individual rows. Only rows with the status Targeted are processed.
For each Untargeted row, select the action button at the end of the row to open the Target invoice to payment dialog. The dialog shows the payment details and raw bank data. Search for the correct invoice using one of the following fields:
Invoice search: search by payer name or invoice number. You can enter the invoice number as it is shown on the invoice, including the prefix.
Customer number: search by customer number.
Insurance search: search by claim ID, case number, or claim reference.
Due sum: search by the outstanding amount on the invoice.
To be paid by customer: filter by the amount to be paid by the client.
To be paid by insurance company: filter by the amount to be paid by an insurance company.
The search results show only finalized invoices.
Select the correct invoice from the results to highlight it, then select Target selected. The row status changes to Targeted.
Note: If a payment row does not relate to any invoice, leave it as Untargeted. You can close the dialog without targeting by selecting Close.
Check that the correct payment method is selected for each row.
Select Accept to confirm the import. Vetera marks the matched invoices as paid and displays a summary of the processed payments. The file status changes to Completed. If any payments could not be applied, check the Errors column for details.
If the file contains payments that do not relate to any invoice, the file status may remain Uncompleted. Once you have finished processing, you can manually change the file status to Completed using the edit icon.
Troubleshooting
Where did the function to import payments go?
The Bank payment processing tool, used to import reference payments from a bank file or an Excel file directly to invoices, has been renamed Bulk Payment Importer. Go to Reporting > Reports, select the Finances filter, and open Bulk Payment Importer.
Why is my file not being recognized?
If your bank provides a BGMax file as a .txt file, rename the file extension to .bgi before uploading. This allows Vetera to recognize the file correctly.
Why is my file uploading slowly?
Remove any spaces from the filename and try uploading again.
Why are insurance payments showing as bank payments?
Payments from insurance companies may sometimes be categorized as Bank payments instead of Insurance claims. If this happens, select the correct payment type manually during the targeting step.
Why am I getting matching errors when uploading my file?
Combining different file formats, such as FI and CAMT, in a single file can cause matching errors. Use separate files or separate bank accounts for different payment formats.
Why is an insurance payment matched to the wrong invoice?
Vetera may not always be able to determine automatically whether a payment should be applied as a client payment or an insurance payment. If this happens, select the correct invoice manually during the targeting step.
Why did an insurance payment fail to match automatically?
Some insurance integrations do not use a structured reference number. Vetera searches for identifiers in the payment message text instead. If the message contains a typo or does not follow the expected format, the automatic match may fail. Select the correct invoice manually during the targeting step.
Why was my invoice not matched automatically even though the reference number is correct?
Automatic matching only considers invoices from the last 12 months. Target older invoices manually during the targeting step.
Should I use the Bulk Payment Importer or the Register payments report?
The Register payments report has no file import, but it does let you copy the type of payment from the first row to all rows. Use the Bulk Payment Importer when you import a file.