Exact Online is one of the most widely used connections with eConnect. Via the Autopilot, purchase invoices are automatically processed and booked in your administration. The Digital Mailbox ensures purchase invoices are directly available in Exact Online.

Make sure you have the following ready:

• An active eConnect account with at least a Basic subscription
• Administrator access to your Exact Online environment
• Sufficient transaction credit on your eConnect account

The Autopilot connection with Exact Online is focused on receiving and booking purchase invoices. Sending sales invoices via the Autopilot is not currently available for Exact Online.

Want to send sales invoices via Peppol? You can do this via the eConnect platform or via the Email Receiver with the XML auto-send option.

Purchase invoices received via eConnect are automatically placed in your Exact Online administration:

1. The invoice arrives at eConnect (via Peppol, email or the Email Receiver).
2. The Autopilot forwards the invoice to the Digital Mailbox of Exact Online.
3. The invoice appears in your Exact Online administration, ready for processing.

When connecting via the eConnect app, a digital mailbox is automatically created in Exact Online. If that fails, you will see one of the following error messages.

If the mailbox was not created automatically, you can do this manually:

1. In Exact Online, go to My Exact Online > My contact details > My digital mailboxes.
2. Click Add.
3. Enter the email address in the format: <kvk-number>@facturen.econnect.eu (replace <kvk-number> with the KVK number of your organisation).
4. Make sure this email address is also included in your contact details.

Tip: It may take a few minutes before the mailbox is usable after creation. Wait a moment and try again if the connection does not work immediately.

• If you previously used another integration method, disconnect it first before activating the Autopilot.
• The Autopilot works per administration. If you have multiple administrations, set up the Autopilot per administration separately.
• After setup, there may be a short delay before the first invoices are visible.

Not every Exact Online account is suitable for connecting with eConnect. A MijnKantoor user is intended for collaboration between customers and their accounting firm via the Exact Online for Accountancy platform. These users have a limited access model: they do not have API access and therefore cannot create connections with external systems such as the Autopilot.

For a successful connection with eConnect, you always need a full Exact Online user with a paid licence and full rights. If authentication fails or you receive a "Forbidden" error message, first check whether your account is a MijnKantoor account. If so, your organisation must purchase a full licence.

The user who sets up the Autopilot connection needs specific rights in Exact Online. The minimum required rights per tab are listed below.

You can find these rights in Exact Online via Master data > Users > Overview. It is recommended to create a separate user profile or role with exactly these rights and assign it to the user managing the Autopilot connection.

Exact Online is available in different package types, each with three variants (Essentials, Plus and Professional). The connection with eConnect works with all package types, but the available functionality in Exact Online differs per type.

Exact Online enforces strict API limits that may affect the Autopilot connection, especially for larger administrations or higher invoice volumes. The Autopilot connection uses JSON format (not XML). Note that XML calls count as 50 API calls.

If you hit API limits, consider upgrading to a Premium package or contact Exact Online. Limits are periodically updated by Exact.

The advanced connection with Exact Online enables automatic bookings via the Autopilot. You need a full Exact Online user (not MijnKantoor) with the minimum rights described above.

1. Go to Autopilot in the menu and click New connection.
2. Select the organisation you want to connect.
3. Choose the Exact Online logo.
4. Click Open to connect with Exact Online in a separate window.
5. Log in to Exact Online with the user who has access to the administration (username, password and optionally a verification code).
6. After successful authentication, you can close the Exact window. Authentication is complete, but the connection is not yet configured.
7. Back in the platform: click the green button to configure the connection.
8. In the Autopilot flow, select the Automatic booking option.
9. Open the Administration section and select the desired administration from the dropdown.
10. Open the Document types section and check that the desired document types are selected.
11. Open the Booking scheme section and select the desired booking scheme.
12. Click the green button to save the connection, complete the configuration and start automatic processing.

If authentication fails, check that the user is a full Exact Online user and that the minimum rights are correctly configured.

Want to know more about automatic booking suggestions? Read how the Autopilot works.