Ask a client for bank data and answers

A request is the quickest way to get a client's bank data and the answers you need. Your client gets one email link. They prove it's them with a one-time code sent to that address, confirm they're happy to share with your firm, connect their bank and answer your questions, on a phone or a computer, in a few minutes. There is no password and no account to set up.

Send a request#

1. Open Clients and choose Send a request.
2. Under Client, pick one of your client portals, or choose New client and type the client's name. BankSync creates their portal with the request.
3. Enter the Client's email. Only this address can open the request.
4. Give it a Title and, if you like, a Message your client sees with it.
5. Leave Ask them to connect a bank on to ask for a bank connection.
6. Add up to 20 Questions. Each can be a short answer, long answer, number, date or a choice from your options, and can be required or optional.
7. Set a Deadline if you need one, then choose Send request.

BankSync emails your client straight away. If they haven't finished, it reminds them 3 and 7 days after you send it, and the day before your deadline.

What your client does#

1. They open the link and see who sent it, what you're asking for and the confirmation that they're happy to share with your firm.
2. They choose Email me a code and enter the 6-digit code from the email. Entering the code confirms sharing.
3. They choose Connect your bank and approve access on their bank's usual consent screen. They can connect more than one.
4. They answer your questions. Answers save as they go, so they can come back to the same link later.
5. They choose Send to your firm. You get an email when they do.

After sending, your client can open the same link for 30 days to see what they shared, or to stop sharing. If they want a full BankSync login later, they can set one up on the same email address.

Track and follow up#

Open the client's portal from Clients and go to its Requests tab. Each request shows its status: Sent, Opened (your client has entered the code), Completed, Withdrawn or Expired. A completed request shows the answers, and the banks your client connected appear in the portal.

• Resend emails a fresh link and stops the old one working. You can resend a request up to 5 times.
• Withdraw stops the link working straight away. Anything your client already shared, including their answers, stays in the portal.

A request that isn't completed expires 30 days after its deadline, or 60 days after you sent it if it has no deadline.

Security#

• The code goes only to the email address you entered, so a forwarded link is no use without that inbox. A link locks for 30 minutes after 5 wrong codes and closes for good after 20.
• Your client sees only their own portal, never your firm's workspace or your other clients.
• An account that already uses two-step verification signs in the usual way instead of with a code.

Limits#

• A portal has one client who answers requests. To ask someone else at the same business, invite them to the portal instead.
• A firm can have 100 requests open at once.
• If your plan's bank connections are all in use, or your portals already hold 5 during your trial, your client is told the limit is reached. Add bank connections from billing (or start your subscription), then ask them to try again.

Related guides#

• Set up a client portal: create portals and invite clients who sign in.
• Sharing with your firm: the confirmation your client gives, and how they stop sharing.
• Share your workspace with your accountant: for clients who already have their own BankSync workspace.