Dext Training: Receipts to Reviewed Entries 2026

Dext training is complete when a new staff member can review a document and confirm that it reaches the correct accounting organisation once. Use a fictional bill to teach collection, correction and publishing before the trainee works independently on client records.

Prepare a Safe Dext Training Exercise

Set the finish line before the trainee opens Dext: one reviewed fictional bill in the intended accounting file, with its source image attached and no second entry.

Prepare these items with the supervisor:

• A named trainee login, a named supervisor and access limited to the training client account.
• A fictional supplier bill marked for training, with a document reference and readable amounts.
• An isolated Dext account connected only to an accounting organisation reserved for training.
• An agreed account code, GST treatment, reporting period and publishing destination for the exercise.
• A check that automatic publishing is off for the exercise, including relevant supplier and payment rules.

Read Dext’s practice-role permissions before choosing access. A practice Standard User has Admin access inside a client account they can open. The practice’s internal-bookkeeping publishing restriction does not restrict that client-account access. Limit which accounts the trainee can enter and supervise the exercise.

Give the client one job: send complete receipts or bills through the agreed channel and answer requests for missing evidence. Staff decide the coding, review exceptions and publish the document. Completing a client upload lesson does not demonstrate those staff skills.

Use Training Videos at Each Checkpoint

Pair Dext training videos with a task the supervisor can observe. Dext’s official client training covers mobile setup, document submission and replies to the bookkeeper. Select its Asia-Pacific session for Australian client training. Use the documented staff walkthroughs below for review and publishing.

Before following a video’s menus, compare its product, web or mobile interface and region with the training account. Use Australian GST settings for this exercise. If the screen differs, follow the matching current Help Centre walkthrough instead of guessing where a button moved.

Pause after each checkpoint. Ask the trainee to repeat the action and show its result. A completed video records attendance. The document and destination entry demonstrate the skill.

Collect and Review the First Document

Upload one fictional supplier bill through the web app, then review its details beside the image. Keep this first exercise to one document per file so a split PDF cannot obscure what happened.

1. Open the designated training client account and select Add documents.
2. Choose Costs and select the appropriate Document owner, or None for an entity expense without an individual owner.
3. Choose One document per file and upload the fictional PDF or image. Confirm the upload completes before continuing.
4. Locate the item in Processing, then Costs Inbox after extraction finishes. Confirm the account name again before opening it.
5. Compare the Details fields with the document image. Check the supplier, document reference, issue date, currency, net amount, GST and total.
6. Correct the deliberate error and reopen the item to check it remains corrected. Dext saves Details edits automatically.

For a fictional practice example, use an unpaid stationery bill with reference TRAIN-001. The invented source shows $200 before GST, $20 GST and $220 including GST. The supervisor confirms that the exercise assumes a wholly taxable business purchase and an eligible GST-registered recipient.

After extraction, have the supervisor change the training record’s total to $2,200 before the trainee reviews it. The trainee must restore $220 and explain the difference against the image.

The Australian Taxation Office’s tax invoice ruling explains the information a tax invoice must contain. Review the supplier identity and ABN, issue date, description and GST information. Extracted figures alone establish neither deductibility nor entitlement to a GST credit. The GST credit conditions also concern registration, business use and the purchase itself.

When an image is cropped or the GST basis is unclear, leave the item unpublished. Record the missing evidence in an item note and assign a staff owner in the practice’s work list. Ask for the complete document instead of entering an assumed amount. Item notes stay in Dext, so retain any required explanation separately in the practice’s accounting records.

Publish Once to the Right Organisation

Use Xero as the destination for this exercise, with the supervisor approving the connection and the trainee’s publishing action. Dext requires an Admin to connect accounting software. A business Standard User needs publishing permission. A practice colleague entering a client account has Admin access.

The authorised administrator opens Business settings, then Connections, selects Xero and completes authorisation for the isolated training organisation. Compare its identity with the exercise instructions before finishing. Reconnection belongs to the administrator when a connection fails.

For the unpaid fictional bill, use this sequence:

1. Check the category against the supervisor’s chosen stationery expense account. Review the tax code and $20 GST against the source and exercise assumptions.
2. Select Purchases as the publishing destination and Draft as the status. Keep the bill unpaid. The training Xero plan must support Purchases. Cashbook and Ledger destinations differ.
3. Complete any required approval, then select Publish once.
4. Find the item in Dext Archive and use Open in Xero. Confirm the organisation and inspect the bill and its source-image attachment.

The expected exercise result is one draft bill for $220 including $20 GST, with reference TRAIN-001. Search the accounting file for the reference and supplier to exclude a second entry. Confirm the document date belongs to the intended reporting period and review the GST reporting basis with the supervisor.

A publishing success message alone is insufficient if the wrong organisation receives the entry. Leave full bank reconciliation and reporting to the next Xero bookkeeping lesson. If the team is still deciding how the two products fit together, use the Dext vs Xero comparison separately from this exercise.

Resolve a Missing or Rejected Item

Start with the item’s location and recorded status before repeating an upload or publishing action. Use the symptom to choose the next check.

Dext’s Cost duplicate handling distinguishes file rejection from duplicate detection after extraction. Automatic mode removes a suspected duplicate from the inbox. Review mode keeps it for an Admin’s decision. Neither replaces checking for a second accounting entry.

Give the reviewer the training account identity, Item ID, exact error, attempted action and the destination search result. Include a screenshot containing only fictional exercise data. Use a private support channel for account details and keep real client records out of training slides or shared examples. Resume only when the supervisor can explain which item remains and whether publishing is still required.

Teach the Client What to Send

Give the client one receipt channel and one staff contact for corrections. A short instruction can read naturally without teaching the client the practice’s coding decisions:

Send each receipt or bill once through the Dext channel we agree with you. Include every page, with the supplier details and amounts clearly visible. Tell your bookkeeper what the purchase was for and whether you paid it. Reply to requests for a clearer image or missing page through the agreed contact route.

Choose the actual channel during setup, such as the Dext mobile app or the account’s assigned email address. Have the client repeat the instruction with a fictional document before using live records. The bookkeeping client onboarding checklist helps assign those responsibilities before recurring collection starts.

Keep new-client details and engagement acceptance in the practice’s onboarding form. Send recurring bookkeeping receipts through the agreed Dext route so the client knows where each document belongs.

For supervisor sign-off, give the trainee the fictional bill with the deliberate amount error and a second image of the same purchase. Ask them to identify the error and explain why the second image needs duplicate review. They must show the corrected record, the source evidence and exactly one entry in the training accounting organisation.

Record the supervisor’s sign-off and any remaining training need. Authorise independent client work only when the trainee can explain both the corrected entry and the point at which they must stop for help.