Import a payment file for payroll payments

ABA stands for Australian Banking Association.

• Most accounting and payroll software packages enable you to create .aba files, which consist of payment details.
• Ask your accountant for more information about how to create .aba files.

• Click the "Browse" button and locate your .aba file from your computer.
• When the file is uploaded correctly it will appear in the "File location" field.
• Click "Continue"

Please note that it is your responsibility to ensure you have uploaded the correct file.

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• Your file name will display at the top of the page to show you that it has been uploaded correctly.

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• From: choose the ANZ account you wish to transfer funds from, using the drop down list, which displays all of your ANZ accounts that you have linked to ANZ Internet Banking.

Please note the payroll payments will all be processed as a single debit to the business account you have selected. You cannot select multiple accounts to be debited.

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• Transfer date: choose the date on which you want the payments to be debited from your chosen account. To enter the date you can either:
  • select the calendar icon and click on the date required, or
  • enter the date in the format DD/MM/YYYY (e.g. 22/02/2010).
• Remember all the payments will be processed as one debit from your chosen account on this specified date so you only need to enter the date once.

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• Your/Business name: enter either your own name or the name of your business if appropriate. The name you enter:
  • will appear on the employee's statement so ensure it makes your identity clear to the employee.
  • must only contain letters (no special characters eg. _/@#%^*).

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The payment details from your .aba file will populate the payments list.

• If you want to add more payments please follow steps 4-6 from the make payroll payments page.
• If you need to remove a payment click the "Remove" button on the right of the list.
• You can also change the payment amount if necessary by clicking in the amount box and editing it as needed.

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• When you are happy with the list of payments, the "From" account selected and the transfer date click "Continue".

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Review all your information to ensure it is correct. If information is incorrect it may result in an unsuccessful transfer or the wrong employee receiving funds.

• If you notice mistakes select "Back" and re-enter the correct details following steps 1-9.

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• When you are happy with the information entered click "Confirm". This will complete the transfer and a confirmation message will display.

ANZ Internet Banking for Business Operators can click "Request authorisation" to submit the transfer to the relevant Authoriser or Administrator for approval.

• Find out more about authorising transactions

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• Your lodgement receipt is displayed to confirm that your transaction has been submitted successfully.
• This does not mean the transaction will be processed successfully as that is dependent on the details you have entered being accurate and sufficient available funds being in the account from which the payment is to be made.
• Please make a note of the receipt number and lodgement number for your own records.

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When you are making payroll payments it is your responsibility to ensure the details you provide are correct.

• We do not check payment details.
• If payment details are incorrect it may result in an unsuccessful transfer or the wrong employee receiving the funds.
• If you have a query about a transfer you can send us a SecureMail or call ANZ Internet Banking team on 13 33 50 (International callers: +61 3 9683 8833) 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

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The following indicates the amount of payments that can be made using payroll payments for business customers:

• Multiple payments completed manually: 18 employees.
• Multiple payments via template: 99 employees.
• Multiple payments via file uploads: 999 employees.

The "Import a payroll file" function in ANZ Internet Banking allows you to import an aba file, which consists of payroll payment details created using your accounting software.

• Once the aba file is imported the payments will be populated so that you can easily process them as part of a payroll payment with one debit from your selected business account.

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This can be a result of many different factors such as your Security Device not being activated or number of authorisations required, etc.

• As such, we would recommend you contact the ANZ Internet Banking for Business team on 1800 269 242 between 8.00am to 8.00pm (AEST), Monday to Friday for further assistance.

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To upload a payment file from an accounting software package, follow the steps below:

• Firstly ensure that the file is in the .aba file format as used in MYOB, QuickBooks and other packages.
• Go to the "Pay and Transfer" menu.
• Select the type of payment you want to make
• Select the "Import a payment file" link.
• Click on the "Continue" button.
• Click "Browse" to point to the file's location.
• Once selected, click "Continue" and the file will be uploaded to ANZ.
• Then follow with the prompts.

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You can choose from file types to suit most commonly used accounting packages such as:

• MYOB
• Quickbooks
• Phoenix Gateway
• AgriMaster
• A CSV (comma separated values), a simple text file format that can be opened in Excel and other programs.

Choose the file type that suits your transfer.

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Yes. Users who are Operators are permitted to perform file uploads from accounting software packages.

• The authorisation of the payment is then done by the Administrators or Authorisers.

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You will need the following information before you upload a payment file from any accounting software:

• Bank ID: ANZ
• APCA/Direct User ID: any six digit number (000000)
• Balancing Items Required: No

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The ABA file consist of the payment details with employee's/payee's account details, reference number, amount to be debited/credited, your account details, etc. The ABA files must consist of the following three sections:

• Header record
• Detail records
• File Total record

Note: The ABA file is a fixed width format therefore any unused character positions must be filled with spaces.

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Yes. You can make changes to the uploaded payment file before authorising the transaction.

• Payees can be added, removed or have their payment amount altered.
• For example, after importing a payroll template from MYOB, you can remove payments for casuals not working this pay period.
• A file holding 90 items could be edited to reach the 999 items limit.

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No. Payroll payments cannot be set up as recurring payments. 

• They can only be future dated.
• If you want to make payments to the same employee for the same amount on a regular basis, you can save the payments as a template for re-use.

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You cannot stop immediate payroll payments or payments to be processed today.

• You can only stop future dated payments if necessary.

If you wish to delete future dated payments, the request must be lodged with ANZ Internet Banking prior to 12.00am (midnight AEST) on the day prior to the payment date.

• Find out more about deleting a future payment

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Employee lists and payment templates are available to all Administrators and Authorisers in ANZ Internet Banking for Business as this information is held at the business level.

• Administrators can, however, restrict Operators from having access to payee lists for Pay Anyone, payroll, payment templates or direct debit functions.

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Transfers are processed overnight on bank business days.

• The time that it takes for the employees' accounts to be credited will vary depending on the policy and systems of the bank that the accounts are held with.
• Immediate payments/transfers submitted before 6.00pm (AEST) on a bank business day are processed on that day.
• Immediate payments/transfers submitted after 6.00pm (AEST) or on weekends or public holidays are processed on the next bank business day.

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Yes. The cut-off times are same as those for ANZ Internet Banking.

• Payments need to be authorised prior to 6.00pm (AEST) on a bank business day. Any payments authorised after this time, will be processed the next bank business day.
• The cut-off time for transfers between accounts is 10.00pm (AEST) on a bank business day.
• The standard cut-off time for direct debit is 6.00pm (AEST).

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• It is your responsibility to ensure that the details provided by you are correct or your transfer may be unsuccessful or may be paid to an unintended account. 
• We do not check that the details provided by you are correct.
• Payroll payments requested before 6.00pm (AEST) on a bank business day will be processed to your account on the same day.
• Transfers requested after this time may be processed on the following bank business day.
• The time that it takes for the employee's account to be credited will depend on the policy and systems of the employee's bank.
• You cannot delete or cancel an immediate transfer or a transfer to be processed today.
• Future-dated transfers require cleared funds in your account at 12.00am (midnight AEST) on the day before the scheduled transfer date or your transfer will be unsuccessful.

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