This article explains how data from Sage Intacct is imported into Sage Expense Management You’ll understand what types of accounting dimensions are supported, how import behavior works, and key considerations for a smooth setup.

Prerequisites

You can import fields from Sage Intacct either:

During initial onboarding (while setting up the integration), or
Later, as and when required.

To import data, first connect your Sage Intacct account with Sage Expense Management. Refer to this guide to establish the integration connection.

Supported import fields and dimensions

Sage Expense Management supports importing a wide range of dimensions from Sage Intacct. These fields can be mapped to standard or custom fields in Sage Expense Management, and are used during expense creation and export.

Dimension	Imported as
Expense Types / GL Accounts	Imported as Categories (no custom mapping)
Projects	Mapped to Project, Cost Center, or Custom Field
Cost Codes / Cost Types	Mapped to Custom Fields
Departments / Locations	Mapped to Project, Cost Center, or Custom Field
Items	Mapped to Custom Fields
User Defined Dimensions (UDDs)	Mapped to Custom Fields
Allocations	Mapped to Custom Field, Project, or Cost Center

Specific Behaviours

Expense Types / General Ledger Accounts

Each export type in Sage Intacct—like Expense Report, Bill, or Journal Entry—determines whether Sage Expense Management imports Expense Types or GL Accounts.

Expense Type	Export Type	Imported as (Category)
Reimbursable / Corporate Credit Card expenses	Expense Report	Expense Types
Reimbursable / Corporate Credit Card expenses	Bill	GL Accounts
Reimbursable / Corporate Credit Card expenses	Journal Entry	GL Accounts
Corporate Credit Card expenses	Charge Card Transactions	GL Accounts

FAQ: What happens if I export reimbursable expenses as Expense Reports and corporate credit card expenses as Bills, Journal Entries, or Charge Card Transactions?

In this setup, Sage Expense Management will import Expense Types (from the Expense Report configuration) and use them as Categories for all expenses—including corporate card ones. You’ll then be able to map these Expense Types to the appropriate GL Accounts in the category mapping section of the integration settings.

This ensures consistency in the user experience while still allowing accurate accounting during export.

Project

Best practice recommended is to map the Project diemnsion in Sage to the Project field in Sage Expense Management as this allows restricting certain proejcts to specific employees, importing dependant cost codes + cost types, etc.

Allocations

If you use Allocations in Sage Intacct to split expenses across multiple dimensions (e.g., departments, locations), Sage Expense Management supports this setup end-to-end. Allocations are imported into Sage Expense Management, selectable during expense creation, and correctly exported back for dimension-based splitting.

Import the Code along with the name for specific fields

In many organizations, different values may share similar names—especially across Projects or Departments. To avoid confusion, Sage Expense Management supports importing certain fields in a Code: Name format instead of just the name.

Example:

Instead of seeing Advertisement, users will see 1234: Advertisement in Sage Expense Management

This helps users:

Clearly identify the correct values while creating expenses
Reduce errors during export and mapping

Supported fields:

General Ledger Accounts (not supported for Expense Types)
Projects
- Cost Codes
- Cost Types
Departments

⚠️ This setting is configured during onboarding and cannot be changed later without raising a support request.

Auto-sync behavior

Sage Expense Management regularly syncs data from Sage Intacct to keep your fields up to date. Most fields are refreshed automatically every 24 hours, but you can also perform a manual sync when needed.

Here’s how each type of field behaves when changes are made in Intacct (like disabling, renaming, or re-creating values).

Behavior	GL Accounts/ Expense Accounts (Category) / Project	Vendor (Merchant)	Other Dimensions (Dept, Location, Class, etc.)
Import rule	Only active values	Only active vendors	Only active values
Disable in Intacct	Disabled in Sage Expense Management	Removed from merchant options	Disabled in Sage Expense Management
Rename in Intacct	Old value disabled, new value added	Old value deleted, new value added	Old value disabled, new value added
Delete & recreate in Intacct	Record updated with correct internal ID	Record updated with internal ID	Record updated with internal ID
Manual additions in Sage Expense Management	Not applicable	Preserved	Preserved
Re-import after deletion in Sage Expense Management	Will be re-imported if still active	Will not be re-imported	Will not be re-imported

User Defined Dimensions (UDDs)

All UDD values are imported (active/inactive status does not apply).
Renames, deletions, or disables in Intacct do not affect values in Sage Expense Management
If you delete/disable a UDD value in Sage Expense Management, it will not be re-enabled automatically.

Dependent fields (Cost Code, Cost Type)

Cost Codes and Cost Types are imported into Sage Expense Management only if they are linked to active Projects in Sage Intacct.
If a Project is renamed, the linked Cost Code is disabled in Sage Expense Management and re-imported with the updated linkage.
Cost Types are independent of Project names and are not affected by Project renames.
Sage Expense Management does not support direct handling for disabling, renaming, or deleting these dependent fields—changes must be made in Sage and synced.

Edge cases and limitations

If you’ve made changes in Sage Intacct, trigger a manual sync in Sage Expense Management to ensure updates are reflected immediately.
If you have employee-level restrictions in Intacct (e.g., on Departments or Locations), make sure to replicate those in Sage Expense Management to prevent export errors.

Tips & best practices

Always make changes in Intacct and sync them to Sage Expense Management—avoid modifying imported fields directly in Sage Expense Management
Turn on import toggles for all essential fields to keep your data accurate and up to date.
For complex setups like Cost Code and Cost Type, contact your Sage Expense Management account manager or Sage Expense Management support for best practices.

Troubleshooting import issues

Issue	Resolution
Missing values	Trigger a manual sync. Automated sync runs every 24 hours.
Field not updating	Try deleting and re-importing the mapping if needed.