Resolving supplier sync issues between Payhawk and external systems

Synchronization issues between Payhawk and external systems such as Oracle NetSuite, Xero, Exact Online, QuickBooks Online, Sage Intacct, or MS Business Central are often caused by duplicate or inactive supplier records.

Diagnosing a supplier sync issue from Payhawk

When a supplier sync does not fully complete, the Suppliers row on your integration's Overview tab shows Partially synced or Failed.

To see what went wrong:

In the Payhawk Web Portal, go to Settings > Integrations and open your ERP integration.
On the Overview tab, click the Status of the Suppliers row.
Hover a status for a short summary, or click it to open the Sync details panel, which lists the affected suppliers (supplier name, tax number, external ID), the reason, and a per-case action, with a Go to [ERP] link to fix the data at source.
After fixing the issues, run the sync again.

Payhawk reports two kinds of issues:

Warnings show as Partially synced and the sync still completes - The affected record is skipped (a duplicate name, or a duplicate tax/VAT number).
Errors show as Failed - The supplier is not synced (an invalid email, or a sync that is already in progress).

Fix each issue at source in your ERP (or wait for the running sync to finish), then resync.

Common issues for sync failure

The common causes for failures of the supplier sync include:

Duplicate suppliers in the external system with the same VAT number or name.
Conflicting supplier data, such as inconsistent or outdated information.
Inactive supplier records in the external (ERP) system.

Best practices to prevent sync issues

Avoid duplicate records. Ensure each supplier has a unique VAT number and name.
Keep supplier data up to date. Regularly review and clean supplier records to prevent conflicts.
Verify supplier status. Make sure all suppliers are marked as active in your external system before syncing.

Troubleshooting guide

To troubleshoot the most common causes for failing supplier sync between Payhawk and your ERP system, follow the respective steps.

Duplicate supplier records exist

If a supplier fails to sync, it may be due to duplicate entries in your external (ERP) system:

Check for suppliers with the same VAT number or name.
Remove or consolidate duplicates by using any of the following approaches:
- Delete the duplicate entries
- Mark them as inactive
- Update their details to differentiate them
Retry the sync in Payhawk. The supplier should now appear correctly.

Duplicate supplier created after disconnecting and reconnecting an ERP

When an ERP integration is connected, Payhawk matches suppliers by name. If you disconnect the ERP, import supplier details in bulk, and then reconnect, a supplier whose name in the import file does not match its name in the ERP exactly is treated as a new record. This creates a duplicate supplier and can move the imported payment details onto the wrong record.

To resolve this:

Go to Suppliers and find the duplicate records for the same supplier.
Identify which record is linked to your ERP and which record holds the correct payment details.
Copy the correct payment details onto the record that is linked to your ERP.
Archive the duplicate record from the Suppliers app.

To prevent this issue, make sure each supplier name in the import file matches the supplier name in your ERP exactly before you import. To add payment details for suppliers on an ERP-connected account, contact Payhawk Support, as reconnecting an ERP after a manual import can overwrite manually imported payment details.

Missing or incorrect data prevents supplier creation in ERP

If a supplier was created in Payhawk but hasn’t appeared in your external (ERP) system, the issue may be due to formatting or validation errors required by the integration.