How to set up the Xero integration – Timely

This article is for:

Build

Elevate

Innovate

Xero is an online accounting system, that integrates with Timely to help you manage your financial transactions. When you connect Xero to your Timely account, we'll automatically make sure that your Timely invoices, and any associated payments, are synced across to your Xero account. So you only have to enter your sales information in one place!

It’s important to make sure your Xero account is all set up and ready to go before integrating it with your Timely account. In this article, you will learn how to set up the Xero x Timely integration.

How to activate multi-factor authentication (MFA/2FA)

Xero requires multi-factor authentication (MFA/2FA) for all Timely customers who integrate their account with Xero, and the integration will not work without this protection enabled. Because of this requirement, the Xero integration with Timely is unavailable in Singapore and the UAE.

MFA is a security setting that uses your mobile phone or biometrics to secure your account. Every 30 days or whenever you log into Timely from a new device, you will be asked to enter a 6 digit code that we will send to your mobile phone via SMS. MFA is considered to be among the most secure ways to protect your account and is considered industry best practice for guarding against scams and digital attacks.

Timely tip: learn more in our help guide How to set up multi-factor authentication (MFA).

How to connect Xero to your Timely account

You will need to authorise the connection between the two accounts. To do this:

1 Head to setup > integrations (formerly add-ons) in your Timely account.

2 Under the Xero section, click the activate button.

3 Next click setup Xero. You will be redirected to a screen that will ask you to allow access to your Xero account. If your business has multiple organisations set up under Xero, you need to select which organisation you want to connect to Timely.

4 You'll then be redirected back to Timely to enter your additional settings. If your business does not appear in the dropdown menu, it's likely you don't have the required permissions within Xero. A standard user role is the minimum requirement.

How to adjust your Xero settings in Timely

Now that the accounts are connected, you can adjust your Xero invoice settings. You will automatically be returned to this page, when you first connect the account, but you can return to this page to update the settings at any time under setup > integrations (formerly add ons) > Xero > configure.

Step-by-step instructions

1 Head to setup from the main menu in your Timely account dashboard, and then to integrations (formerly add-ons).

2 Click configure next to the Xero integration, then the edit settings button.

3 You will see the Xero settings tab. Here you can set the default sales account for invoices. You will be able to set individual sales accounts for services and products, so a generic, or widely used account is your best bet here.

4 You can also set the status of on-account invoices. This determines if unpaid invoices will be synced to Xero as draft or approved. If they are synced as draft, they must be manually approved in Xero before payments can be applied.

5 Next choose the invoice number to use for your Xero invoices. If you want numbers to match between systems, use the Timely generated number option.

6 You can also the time of day to sync invoices to Xero. Invoices and payments will be automatically synced in bulk at this time, but you can manually sync any invoices as required.

7 Lastly, set the liability account for gift vouchers/customer credit/new packages. When you are ready, click save to update your settings.

Timely note: refunds created in Timely do not currently sync to Xero. If you wish to have refunds issued in Timely reflected in your Xero account, you can issue a credit note manually in Xero.

How to map your payment types

You can map each of your payment types in Timely, to a different asset account. Our How to reconcile your payments in Xero guide steps you through that whole process in more detail.

There are two main approaches for mapping and reconciling your payments:

Map your payments to a clearing account.
Map your payments to a bank account.

To select an account, it must have the following properties in Xero:

Account type: Current Asset
Tax (any tax type is acceptable)
Show on dashboard watch-list (so you can track the balance of the account)
Enable payments to this account

When you're ready, you can adjust the accounts that your payment types are mapped to:

1 Head to setup from the main menu in your Timely account dashboard, and then to integrations (formerly add-ons).

2 Click configure next to the Xero integration, then the edit settings button.

3 Next, go to the account mappings tab, and choose a Xero account for each payment type.

4 When you are ready, click save to complete the process.

How to import your customers from Xero

If you've already been using Xero and don't have your customers in Timely yet, you can import them in bulk into Timely. See our help guide How to import your customers from Xero for guidance on how to do this.

How to assign Xero accounts to your products and services

You also have the option to assign different Xero accounts to individual products and services. You can update each product or service individually, but you cannot apply one code to all services and another to all products. Our help guide How to set individual Xero accounts for products and services walks you through this process in more detail.