Bank Connection Troubleshooting

What is this page about: How to diagnose and fix bank connection problems in Light, including authentication failures, sync and disconnection issues, wrong or duplicate transactions, date-range and multi-currency limits, orphaned accounts, renewal timing, Stripe-specific errors, and how to get further help from Light support.

# On this page

• Overview
• General Bank Connection Status
• Issue 1: Authentication Failed
• Issue 2: Connection Keeps Disconnecting
• Issue 3: Transactions Not Syncing
• Issue 4: Wrong Transactions Appearing
• Issue 5: Bank Credentials Keep Asking for Re-entry
• Issue 6: Bank Feed Doesn't Cover Entire Date Range
• Issue 7: Multi-Currency Issues
• Issue 8: Bank Maintenance or Outages
• Issue 9: Rate Limiting or API Throttling
• Issue 10: Too Much History Requested at Setup
• Issue 11: GoCardless Account Data Still Processing
• Issue 12: Duplicate Account for Same Institution
• Issue 13: Orphaned or Unavailable Account
• Issue 14: Renewal Not Available Yet
• Issue 15: Stripe Integration Not Configured or Report Failed
• Getting further help
• Related Articles

This article covers the most common bank connection problems and how to fix them.

# Overview

Light connects to your bank through secure APIs to automatically sync transactions. When connections fail, Light shows warning icons and explains the issue. This article helps you diagnose and resolve common bank connection problems.

# General Bank Connection Status

# Checking Connection Status

1. Go to Settings → Integrations → Banks
2. Click the bank to open the Edit bank connection panel
3. Read the connection status at the top: Connection is active, Expires on a date, or Connection expired
4. Check the accounts listed below it. A note such as "Inactive: …" or "Account no longer available…" means that account's feed has a problem
5. For the last sync time and result, go to Accounting → Bank reconciliation, select the account, and click the sync status next to Synced on the Unmatched tab to open the sync history

# Common Status Messages

• Linked: The bank connection is active and syncing normally
• Expired: The connection's authorisation has expired; renew the connection to resume syncing
• Active / Inactive (feed status): a feed shown as Inactive has stopped pulling transactions, typically after the provider reported an error on that account. Contact Light support if you can't see why

Note: Adding, renewing, or removing bank connections is restricted to Company Admins. If you don't see these options, ask a Company Admin on your account to make the change or grant you that role.

# Issue 1: Authentication Failed

# Symptoms

• Connection status shows "Expired"
• Transactions stopped syncing
• Red error icon on bank account

# Solutions

1. Renew the Connection:

   • Go to Settings → Integrations → Banks and click the bank with the error
   • Click Renew connection
   • This opens a secure connection to your bank

2. Re-enter Bank Credentials:

   • Log in with your current bank username and password
   • If you've changed your password, use the new one
   • Complete any multi-factor authentication your bank requires

3. Check Bank Login:

   • Verify you can log into your bank's website directly
   • If you can't log in at the bank, reset your password there first
   • Then reconnect in Light

4. Update Contact Information:

   • Your bank may need current contact info
   • Update phone number or email at your bank
   • Retry the reconnection in Light

Tip: Your bank password is never stored in Light. Only the authentication token is saved, and it expires regularly requiring re-authentication.

Note: For Stripe bank connections, a permission or invalid-key error during setup (for example, "You don't have the required permission type") shows up right away and is resolved by re-entering a valid Stripe API key. It applies to the setup attempt only, leaving any existing connection untouched. If a Stripe connection's authorisation fails later during a regular sync, that's when Light marks the connection as "expired" and stops retrying. Follow the reconnection flow above to resolve it, which may include regenerating your Stripe API credentials or verifying API permissions in your Stripe account settings.

# Issue 2: Connection Keeps Disconnecting

# Symptoms

• Bank account works for a few days then disconnects
• Regularly getting "reconnect required" messages
• Connection status keeps changing

# Solutions

1. Request Bank Account Upgrade:

   • Some banks require business accounts for API access
   • Contact your bank and request that your account be enabled for third-party access
   • Specific request: "Enable this account for third-party financial data aggregation"

2. Verify API Access Is Enabled:

   • Log into your bank's website
   • Go to Settings → Security or Connected Apps
   • Verify Light is listed and access is enabled
   • Some banks auto-disable access after inactivity

3. Check Your Sync Schedule:

   • Sync frequency is set when you connect the account: choose Daily or Every 12 hours
   • The schedule is fixed once the connection is set up, so reconnect if you want to change it
   • Alongside your chosen schedule, Light polls periodically in the background, at a rate banks treat as normal traffic

4. Contact Bank Support:

   • Explain you're using Light (a financial management platform)
   • Ask if your account has any restrictions on third-party access

5. Try Manual Import:

   • If API connection keeps failing, use CSV import
   • Go to Bank Reconciliation → Reconcile → the Unmatched tab
   • Click the upload icon and use Upload bank transactions to add the CSV

# Issue 3: Transactions Not Syncing

# Symptoms

• Bank account is connected but no new transactions appear
• Transactions appear 1 to 2 weeks late
• Last sync time is old (more than 24 hours ago)

# Solutions

1. Wait for Next Sync:

   • Light syncs bank feeds once or twice a day
   • Allow up to 24 hours for new transactions to appear
   • Give the sync that window before adding anything by hand, so you avoid creating duplicates

2. Trigger a Manual Sync:

   • Go to Bank Reconciliation and find the account in the account list
   • Click the refresh icon next to the account to trigger an immediate sync
   • The control appears on accounts with a Linked connection, in the account list rather than on the Reconcile → Unmatched screen
   • Check back in a few minutes

3. Verify Bank Feed Is Enabled:

   • Log into your bank's website
   • Go to account settings
   • Verify third-party data sharing is enabled
   • Some banks require checking a consent box

4. Check Posting Dates:

   • Bank transactions post at different times
   • Light imports booked (posted) transactions, so a pending transaction appears once your bank books it
   • Each sync re-checks the last 7 days, so transactions that were pending and later booked are picked up automatically

5. Check Your Account:

   • Verify you're connecting the right account
   • Check account number matches your bank statement
   • Ensure it's a transaction account (not savings-only)

# Issue 4: Wrong Transactions Appearing

# Symptoms

• Seeing transactions from a different account
• Seeing transactions from different time period
• Duplicate transactions appearing

# Solutions

1. Verify Account Connection:

   • Click the account showing wrong transactions
   • Note the account number and type shown
   • Compare to your actual bank account
   • Reconnect if you're connected to the wrong account

2. Duplicate Handling Varies by Provider:

   • For GoCardless-connected banks, Light detects duplicate transactions during import and marks them as Excluded automatically
   • For other providers, duplicate prevention happens at the database level and isn't flagged the same way in your transaction list
   • If you spot a duplicate that doesn't look right, contact Light support

3. Check Filters:

   • You may be filtering to wrong account
   • Go to Bank Accounts and click the right account
   • Verify you're looking at the account you want

4. Sync with Recent Statement:

   • Review your actual bank statement
   • Reconcile against what appears in Light
   • Identify missing or extra transactions
   • Contact Light support with discrepancies

# Issue 5: Bank Credentials Keep Asking for Re-entry

# Symptoms

• Constantly prompted to "reconnect" or re-enter credentials
• Connection works briefly then requires re-authentication
• Error about expired credentials appears frequently

# Solutions

1. Check Password Expiration:

   • Your bank may auto-expire passwords
   • Log into your bank directly
   • If prompted for password change, do it
   • Then reconnect in Light

2. Understand How the Connection Works:

   • Light holds an authorisation token from your bank or provider, valid for a set period, rather than your password or a login session
   • That validity window is set by the bank or provider, so it's unaffected by session or auto-logout settings on the bank side
   • When the window ends, re-authenticate via Renew connection (see Issue 1). That is the fix

3. Use App-Specific Password (if available):

   • Some banks support app-specific passwords for third-party access
   • Create an app password for Light instead of using main password
   • Use this app password when reconnecting Light
   • This prevents your main password from being a friction point

Note: For UK banks connected through open banking, bank authorisations are capped at 90 days by regulation. After 90 days the connection shows as "Expired" and needs renewing. This is the regulation working as intended, so expect it every 90 days.

# Issue 6: Bank Feed Doesn't Cover Entire Date Range

# Symptoms

• Transactions only showing for last 90 days
• History before 3 months ago isn't syncing
• "Transaction history limited" message appears

# Solutions

1. Understand Bank Limitations:

   • Most banks limit how far back they provide transaction data
   • Typically 90 days to 2 years back
   • This is a bank limitation, not Light's

2. Request Extended History:

   • Contact your bank
   • Ask if they can provide longer transaction history
   • Some business accounts provide longer history

3. Import Historical Data Manually:

   • Download historical transactions from bank as CSV
   • Go to Bank Reconciliation → Reconcile → the Unmatched tab
   • Click the upload icon and use Upload bank transactions to add the older CSV
   • Light imports and reconciles them

4. Check Account Age:

   • If account is recently opened, less history may be available
   • New accounts typically don't have historical data available
   • As account ages, banks may provide more history

# Issue 7: Multi-Currency Issues

# Symptoms

• Wrong currency showing for transactions
• Currency conversion rate seems off
• Amounts don't match after currency conversion

# Solutions

1. Verify Account Currency:

   • Click the bank account
   • Check what currency is set for the account
   • If wrong, edit and set correct currency
   • Reconnect the account

2. Check Bank Configuration:

   • Your bank may provide transactions in one currency but your account is another
   • Review your bank account settings
   • Verify the currency matches what Light shows

3. Review Conversion Rates:

   • Bank-linked transactions are booked using the exchange rate at the transaction date
   • The balance can also be revalued to a period-end rate. That revaluation is a task someone runs as part of period close, so it lands when the close is done rather than on a fixed monthly timer
   • If a conversion amount looks off day to day, check it against the rate on the transaction's actual date. If it looks off after a period close, ask whoever ran the close whether an FX revaluation was included
   • If rates still seem off, check against a currency rate provider

4. Manual Adjustment:

   • If conversion is systematically wrong, create adjusting entry
   • Post a journal entry for the currency adjustment
   • Reconcile against the adjusted amount

# Issue 8: Bank Maintenance or Outages

# Symptoms

• Sync fails with message about bank maintenance
• Error message indicates bank is unavailable
• Multiple reconnection attempts fail

# Solutions

1. Verify Bank Status:

   • Visit your bank's website
   • Look for service status or maintenance notifications
   • Check the bank's status page or service status updates

2. Wait for Maintenance Window:

   • Bank maintenance typically lasts a few hours
   • Light will automatically retry sync
   • No action needed on your part

3. Temporary Workaround:

   • If you need transactions urgently
   • Download CSV from bank and import manually
   • This gets transactions into Light immediately

4. Contact Bank If Prolonged:

   • If maintenance lasts more than 24 hours, contact bank
   • Ask for estimated time to restoration
   • Request expedited service if possible

# Issue 9: Rate Limiting or API Throttling

# Symptoms

• Sync fails with an error mentioning "too many requests"
• Syncs keep failing with throttling message

# Solutions

1. Avoid Repeated Manual Syncs:

   • Syncs run on the schedule set when the account was connected (Daily or Every 12 hours), which stays within provider limits
   • A manual sync is available from the account list in Bank Reconciliation (refresh icon), but triggering it repeatedly can contribute to rate limits
   • Wait for the automatic sync instead of repeatedly forcing a manual one

2. Wait for Automatic Retry:

   • Light automatically retries at the next scheduled sync
   • Don't manually retry repeatedly (makes it worse)

3. Contact Bank:

   • Some banks have tiered rate limits based on account type
   • Ask your bank if business account has higher limits
   • Upgrade account type if needed

4. Switch to Manual Import:

   • If API rate limits are blocking sync
   • Use CSV import instead
   • Download a CSV from your bank and import it manually as needed

# Issue 10: Too Much History Requested at Setup

# Symptoms

• Error appears while setting up a new bank connection and picking a start date
• Message reads something like "This institution only allows a maximum of X days of historical transactions" (or "This connection only allows...")
• Can't complete setup with an older start date

# Solutions

1. Choose a More Recent Start Date:

   • When setting up the connection, pick a start date within the institution's allowed window
   • Retry the connection setup

2. Check the Institution's Limit:

   • The exact number of days allowed varies by institution
   • If you need history further back than the limit allows, use CSV import for the older transactions (see Issue 6)

3. Contact Light Support:

   • If the error persists after choosing a valid date, contact Light support with the exact error message

# Issue 11: GoCardless Account Data Still Processing

# Symptoms

• A message indicates your account data is still being processed, right after linking a new bank
• Accounts or transactions don't appear immediately after connecting
• This applies specifically to banks connected through GoCardless

# Solutions

1. Wait and Retry:

   • This is expected right after linking a GoCardless-connected bank
   • Give it a few minutes, then refresh the page

2. Trigger a Manual Sync Once Cleared:

   • Once the processing message clears, go to Bank Reconciliation and click the refresh icon next to the account to pull transactions right away
   • Otherwise it'll pick up on the account's regular sync schedule

3. Contact Light Support:

   • If the message persists for an extended period, contact Light support

# Issue 12: Duplicate Account for Same Institution

# Symptoms

• An error appears when connecting or saving a bank feed, indicating the same bank account has been mapped more than once for this institution
• The same bank account appears to be mapped twice during setup

# Solutions

1. Deselect the Duplicate Mapping:

   • During setup, accounts already mapped to this institution are shown as "(already selected)" and disabled
   • Deselect the conflicting duplicate in the dropdown before saving

2. Verify Existing Connections First:

   • Go to Settings → Integrations → Banks, click the bank, and check if the account is already connected
   • Only add a new mapping if it isn't already present

# Issue 13: Orphaned or Unavailable Account

# Symptoms

• Account shows as "Unavailable account" in the bank accounts list
• A previously working connection now shows this status with no other error explanation
• No new transactions come in for this account

# Solutions

1. Understand What Happened:

   • This appears when the account no longer exists on the bank/provider side, even though Light still has it linked
   • Removing the account means removing the whole connection it belongs to, since the link is held at connection level

2. Remove and Reconnect the Whole Connection:

   • Delete the entire bank connection that contains the unavailable account
   • Set up the connection again and map the accounts that are still active at your bank

3. Contact Light Support:

   • To clear the single unavailable account without redoing the whole connection, contact Light support, who can do it for you
   • Confirm with your bank first if you're unsure whether the account was actually closed

# Issue 14: Renewal Not Available Yet

# Symptoms

• Clicking Renew connection returns an error
• The connection's status shows something like "Available for renewal" or "Expires on [date]," and renewal is attempted before that point

# Solutions

1. Check the Renewal Window:

   • Look at the connection's status message for an "Expires on" or "Available for renewal" date
   • Renewal typically can't be completed until the connection is close to or past expiration

2. Wait Until Eligible:

   • Try again once the connection shows "Available for renewal" or has actually expired

3. Contact Light Support:

   • If renewal still fails once the connection is eligible, contact Light support with the exact status message

# Issue 15: Stripe Integration Not Configured or Report Failed

# Symptoms

• Error: "Stripe integration is not configured. Please set up Stripe in the company settings"
• Error: "Stripe report failed"
• A bank feed tied to Stripe won't sync

# Solutions

1. Set Up Stripe in Integrations Settings:

   • If you see the "not configured" message, go to Settings → Integrations → Stripe and complete the setup
   • Retry the bank connection afterward

2. Check Stripe for Restrictions:

   • For a "Stripe report failed" error, Light's internal polling picks the report up again on its own schedule. Recovery is automatic rather than something you trigger
   • In the meantime, check your Stripe account for any account-level restrictions or errors that could be causing the failure

3. Contact Light Support:

   • Provide the exact Stripe error message if the issue persists after checking your Stripe account

Note: This is separate from the Stripe permission-error case in Issue 1, which covers authentication specifically. These errors relate to Stripe configuration and reporting instead.

# Getting further help

If these solutions leave the connection still broken:

1. Gather Information:

   • Note the exact error message
   • Write down when the problem started
   • Screenshot the connection status page

2. Contact Your Bank:

   • Confirm they support third-party integration
   • Ask if there are any blocks or restrictions
   • Verify API access is enabled for your account

3. Contact Light Support:

   • See "Contacting Light Support" article
   • Provide bank name and error message
   • Include screenshots of the error

# Related Articles

• Common issues and solutions
• Integration sync issues
• Data import errors
• Contacting Light support