A per-client email inbox for bookkeeping is a unique, inbound-only email address assigned to a single client file in Reconlink. When a bank statement — PDF or CSV — is forwarded to that address, Reconlink parses the attachment and queues the transactions for coding automatically. No one in the practice needs to download a file, log into a bank portal, or drag anything into an upload screen. The statement arrives, and within a few minutes the transactions are ready to review.
This guide walks through how to find the address, share it with your client, and set up forwarding rules so the whole process runs without any ongoing effort from you or the client.
Step-by-step setup
1. Open the Email Import tab for the client
In Reconlink, navigate to the client file and go to Bank Feeds → Email Import. The client's unique import address is displayed here — it follows the format client-abc@import.reconlink.com.au.
2. Copy the import address
Click the copy icon next to the address. This address belongs to this client only. If the client has accounts at multiple banks, you can create additional import addresses for each account from the same tab — one address per bank account keeps your imports organised and makes it easier to trace which statement came from where.
3. Share the address with the client or their bank contact
Send the address to your client with a short note explaining that they should forward their bank statement emails to it each month (or each week, if they reconcile more frequently). Many Australian banks send statement-ready emails as PDF attachments — those work straight away.
4. Set up an email forwarding rule (recommended)
Rather than relying on the client to remember, ask them to set up an automatic forwarding rule in their email client. The rule logic is simple: any email from the bank's domain that contains the words "statement" or "account summary" in the subject line auto-forwards to the Reconlink import address. Most email clients — Gmail, Outlook, Apple Mail — support this in a few clicks. Once the rule is live, every future statement reaches Reconlink without anyone needing to act.
5. Wait for Reconlink to parse the statement
When a statement email arrives at the import address, Reconlink extracts the attachment and begins parsing. Supported formats are CSV (all major Australian banks), OFX, QIF, and PDF via OCR. Standard PDF layouts from ANZ, CBA, Westpac, NAB, and most credit unions parse cleanly. Occasionally, an unusual PDF layout will produce lower OCR confidence — in those cases Reconlink surfaces a warning in the dashboard with the file attached so you can review before the transactions are accepted.
6. Review the imported transactions
Once parsing is complete — typically within a few minutes — the transactions appear in the client's Transactions tab, ready for the coding engine to run. Reconlink's rules fire first, then the ML model fills gaps, and finally the LLM layer handles anything that needs contextual judgement. You only need to review and approve.
A note on seeding the ML model
If you are onboarding a new client, forwarding a full year of historical statements on day one is worth doing even if you are not reconciling that history right now. The more transaction data the ML model has seen for that client, the higher your auto-code rate will be from the first live reconciliation. You can send statements of any age to the import address — there is no limit on historical data.
For a full comparison of the import methods — email import and manual CSV, Excel or PDF upload — see How to import bank statements into Reconlink.
Frequently asked questions
Is the import email address the same as the client's portal login?
No. The import address is inbound-only — it is purely a delivery mechanism for statement files. It is not linked to a user account, cannot be used to log in anywhere, and does not expose any client data to outside parties. Your client's portal access is managed separately under their own login credentials.
What happens if an import fails or looks wrong?
Failed or ambiguous imports surface as warnings in the Reconlink dashboard. The affected file is attached to the warning so you can inspect it and decide whether to re-import, adjust column mapping, or discard. Reconlink will not silently drop transactions — if something cannot be parsed with confidence, it flags it for your review.
Can one client have more than one import email address?
Yes. If a client has accounts at two different banks, you can create a separate import address for each bank account from the Bank Feeds → Email Import tab. Keeping them separate makes it straightforward to trace which address received which statement and helps Reconlink apply the correct account mapping automatically.