Update the PayPal connection

This article explains how to update to the latest version of our PayPal connection if you previously connected FreeAgent to PayPal before 25th November 2024.

Navigate to the 'Banking' tab at the top of the screen and select 'Bank Accounts' from the drop-down menu.

You’ll see a notice at the top of the Bank Accounts Summary page asking you to update to the latest version of the PayPal connection. Select ‘Update now’. You’ll also see this notice at the top of each PayPal bank account that you’ve added to FreeAgent.

If you’ve added more than one PayPal account to FreeAgent, you’ll need to update the connection for each one individually.

Next, enter your PayPal credentials.

Once you’ve signed in to PayPal, select ‘Complete setup’ next to the PayPal account you’d like to update. If you have multiple PayPal accounts added to FreeAgent, you’ll need to complete the setup for each one individually.

The steps to take to complete the set up depend on whether you enter an email address registered to a PayPal bank account in FreeAgent or not registered.

Email address registered to a PayPal bank account

If the email address you connect to PayPal with is an email address registered to a PayPal bank account in FreeAgent, review the account details and select which currencies you’d like to import into FreeAgent by ticking the box to the left of each currency. These are the currencies that you’ll already have enabled in your PayPal account and added to FreeAgent previously.

If you have additional PayPal currency accounts that weren’t added to FreeAgent previously, you can add these to FreeAgent by ticking the box to the left of each currency. A bank account will be created in FreeAgent for each additional currency selected and transactions in those currencies will be imported into the relevant bank account(s).

Use the date picker in the ‘Bank feed’ section to select the date that you’d like transactions for this additional currency to import into FreeAgent from. You can backdate transactions from a maximum of 12 months. Please note that you won’t be able to choose a date that is in a locked accounting period or before your FreeAgent start date.

Existing PayPal accounts will continue to import bank transactions as normal after the migration.

Enter the balance of the additional PayPal currency account(s) as at the start of the day on your FreeAgent start date. This will be the same as the balance at the end of the previous day. So if your FreeAgent start date is 6th April 2023, you'd put in the balance from your PayPal statement as at the end of 5th April 2023.

If you opened this account after the FreeAgent start date, this will be zero.

Select ‘Complete setup’ at the bottom of the screen to complete the process of updating your PayPal connection.

Email address not registered to a PayPal bank account

If the email address you connect to PayPal with is not an email address registered to a PayPal bank account in FreeAgent, you can add it to FreeAgent.

Use the date picker in the ‘Bank feed’ section to select the date that you’d like transactions to import into FreeAgent from. You can backdate transactions from a maximum of 12 months. Please note that you won’t be able to choose a date that is in a locked accounting period or before your FreeAgent start date.

Select which currencies you’d like to import into FreeAgent by ticking the box to the left of each currency. These are the currencies that you’ll already have enabled in your PayPal account.

A bank account will be created in FreeAgent for each currency selected and transactions in those currencies will be imported into the relevant bank account(s).

Enter the balance of the PayPal account(s) as at the start of the day on your FreeAgent start date. This will be the same as the balance at the end of the previous day. So if your FreeAgent start date is 6th April 2023, you'd put in the balance from your PayPal statement as at the end of 5th April 2023.

If you opened this account after the FreeAgent start date, this will be zero.

Select ‘Complete setup’ at the bottom of the screen to complete the process of updating your PayPal connection.

What happens next?

Once your PayPal bank accounts in FreeAgent have been updated to the new connection and you’ve added any new PayPal accounts if applicable, you can manage the PayPal integration from the Connections & Add-ons area.

You can also edit the individual PayPal bank accounts in FreeAgent as normal.

The PayPal integration can make it easier for your customers to pay for your invoices and helps you get paid faster. Find out more about taking invoice payments with PayPal.

If you use the PayPal integration to take invoice payments and your invoice relates to the sale and delivery of a shipped product, FreeAgent will not provide a shipping address to PayPal when creating a payment link on your invoice. Therefore, PayPal will not be able to provide buyer/seller protections in these circumstances.

If you use the PayPal integration to take invoice payments and you need to refund an invoice payment obtained via PayPal, this cannot be processed via FreeAgent. Therefore, if you wish to process a refund, the refund payment will need to be processed via PayPal directly.