To set up payment method rules in Dext, go to Business settings, open Payment methods, and configure the publishing and bank settings for each method. Payment method rules automatically apply your chosen settings to all Costs items paid using that method.
You can use payment method rules to standardise coding and automate publishing for company cards, petty cash, or other recurring payment types.
Before you start
Only Admin users can create or edit payment method rules. If you don’t have access, contact an Admin in your account or your accountant/bookkeeper.
Auto-publish, Publish to, and Bank account options only appear if your Dext account is connected to accounting software.
If your account is not connected, you can still:
What can payment method rules control?
Payment method rules control how items paid with a specific payment method are published.
Note: Publishing settings are only available if your Dext account is connected to accounting software.
For each payment method, you can:
Set Auto-publish to Always, Never, or None
Set a default Publish to destination
Link a Bank account
Auto-publish
The Auto-publish setting determines whether items paid with this payment method are published automatically:
Always – items are published automatically
Never – items are never published automatically
None – no auto-publish rule is set, so other rules (such as user defaults or supplier rules) determine what happens
If None is selected, rule priority determines the final publishing behaviour.
Publish to
The Publish to field controls where the item is published in your connected accounting software. The available options vary depending on your integration.
Bank account
The Bank account dropdown lets you choose from bank accounts synced from your accounting software. Bank accounts created using the Bank feeds feature do not appear as options.
These settings apply automatically when the payment method is extracted from a document, assigned by a supplier rule, or applied through a user default.
How to set up a payment method rule
To set up a payment method rule, configure an existing payment method or create a new one.
Go to Business settings.
Select Lists.
Select Payment methods.
Find the payment method you want to configure.
If you need to create a new payment method:
Select Add payment method
Enter the name and reference (for example, the last 4 digits of a card)
Select Add
In the payment method row, use the dropdown menus to:
Set Auto-publish to Always, Never, or None
Select a Publish to destination
Link a Bank account
The example below shows a configured payment method with publishing options selected.
For more details on creating or editing payment methods, see Manage payment methods in Dext.
How supplier rules apply payment methods
Supplier rules can automatically assign a payment method when Dext extracts a specific supplier from a document.
Tip: For step-by-step instructions on creating supplier rules, see How to use supplier and customer rules in Dext.
If a supplier rule includes a payment method, Dext can:
Apply that payment method to the item
Apply any publishing settings configured for that payment method
This means the supplier rule selects the payment method, and the payment method rule then applies its publishing behaviour (if set).
How to set user default payment methods
You can set a default payment method for specific users so it applies automatically when they upload documents.
Go to Business settings.
Select Lists.
Select Payment methods.
Select Set user defaults.
Choose how the default should behave:
No default set – no automatic payment method is applied
Use default if blank – applies the default only if no payment method is extracted
Always use default – overrides any extracted payment method
User defaults help you standardise payment behaviour for specific team members.
Which rule takes priority?
When multiple rules apply to the same item, Dext follows a fixed priority order.
If a supplier rule and payment method rule both set publishing fields
If a supplier rule sets fields such as Publish to or Auto-publish, and the selected payment method also has rules for those same fields:
The payment method rule takes priority
The publishing settings configured on the payment method override the supplier rule for the same fields.
If the submitting user has a different user default payment method
If the user who submitted the item has a user default set for a different payment method:
The user default payment method is applied instead
Any rules configured for that payment method are followed
User defaults have the highest priority and override:
Payment method rules
Supplier rules
Account-level defaults
Priority order summary
When rules conflict, Dext applies them in this order:
User defaults (highest priority)
Payment method rules
Supplier rules
Account-level defaults (lowest priority)
Understanding this order helps you troubleshoot why a document was published or coded in a certain way.
What happens next?
Once configured, payment method rules apply automatically to new Costs items that use that payment method. You can update or remove rules at any time from the Payment methods page.