How to create an Associated Bank positive pay file
Associated Bank protects business checking accounts with positive pay: you upload a check issue file listing every check you write, and the bank flags anything that doesn't match. QuickBooks and most accounting systems can't produce this file. Below is the format Associated Bank expects and how to generate it for free.
Open the generator with the Associated Bank format preselected
The Associated Bank file format
- Fixed-width text, 216 characters per record (payee positive pay layout)
- Record type
6at position 1; status code at position 2:2= add issue,4= void - Bank number constant
6098; account number 17 digits zero-filled at positions 23–39 - Amount positions 50–59 implied-decimal cents; issue date 60–65 as
YYMMDD - Payee positions 66–216, which must match the printed check space for space
- Required file name:
6098 Hxxxxxxxxx.txt(x = account number minus its last digit)
Associated Bank runs the Q2 Centrix positive pay platform. If your bank also uses Centrix (look for the menu item “Submit Issued Check File”), this layout family will look familiar.
This layout follows the bank's published specification. Source: www.associatedbank.com.
Step by step
- Export your check register. From QuickBooks Online: Settings → Chart of accounts → your bank account → View register → filter to checks → Export to Excel. (Full QuickBooks walkthrough, including Desktop.)
- Convert it. Drop the export into the generator, confirm the detected columns, and enter your account number once. The generator applies the Associated Bank layout above. Everything runs in your browser; your check data is never uploaded.
- Check the preview. The built-in validator flags missing dates, unreadable amounts, duplicate check numbers, and fields that exceed Associated Bank's length limits before the bank ever sees the file.
- Upload to Associated Bank. Log in to your business/treasury portal and upload under the positive pay or check protection menu. Verify the item count and total match the preview.
Voided checks
Mark voids in your register (a status column containing “void” works) and the generator emits Associated Bank's void code automatically.
Always test your first file. Bank specs change and some are negotiated per customer. Send your first generated file through the bank's test facility or your treasury contact. If Associated Bank has given you a different spec sheet, recreate it exactly with the custom format builder. It takes about five minutes.
Related reading: the positive pay file format guide explains fixed-width versus delimited layouts and void codes, the glossary defines the terms, and the QuickBooks guide covers exporting your check register.