The import process checks your data in the import file to make sure it's correct before importing employee data into Personio. This article offers solutions for these issues:

• Personio doesn't recognize a column title in your Excel file
• You can't match a column title to a Personio field
• You've assigned the same attribute to multiple columns
• Your import file has invalid data values
• An attribute in the import file does not exist in Personio
• You don't have permission to edit attributes in the import
• You're trying to deactivate the last active administrator
• The Supervisor attribute doesn't appear for some employees after the import

Before you start

• These troubleshooting steps apply only to the manual import process, not the AI-powered import process, unless a section says otherwise. Learn about the different employee data import methods.
• Review how to import employee data to understand the necessary permissions.

Personio doesn't recognize a column title in your Excel file

Issue:

Personio doesn't recognize the column title from your Excel file during import. This happens because of a formatting issue in Excel.

Possible solution:

1. Set the column title format to "Default" in your Excel file.
2. Re-import your file.

You can't match a column title to a Personio field

Issue:

Your import file contains a column title that doesn't exist in Personio.

Possible solution:

1. Go to Settings.
2. In the People section, click Personal information.
3. Create the sections and attributes that match your import file.
4. Re-import your file.

You've assigned the same attribute to multiple columns

Issue:

You matched the same Personio attribute to multiple columns during import. You can only match each attribute to one column in your imported file. 

Possible solution:

1. Review your column matching.
2. Make sure you match each attribute to only one column.
3. Re-import your file.

Your import file contains invalid data values

Issue:

Your import contains data that doesn't match Personio's requirements. The import stops. Personio creates a revision that highlights errors in red and shows what values Personio needs. The errors appear in the language you're using.

Possible solution:

1. Download the revision file when prompted.
2. Fix the errors in the revision file.
3. Import the fixed revision file.

Examples of common data validation errors

• Data doesn't match the required options: some attributes use a "List of options" format that only accepts specific values. Make sure your import file values match the options in Personio.
• Supervisor relationship errors: an employee can't be their own supervisor. Two employees also can't supervise each other. In the Supervisor column, make sure no employee has their own email address. Also, look for and fix any circular relationships. If an employee has no supervisor, like the CEO, leave the field blank.

Note:
Some attributes are preset, and you can't edit them. For example, the Status attribute is a preset attribute with predefined values. You can see the correct values for preset attributes in the import template.

An attribute in the import file does not exist in Personio

Issue:

Your import file includes one or more attributes, like a Department or Team, that don't exist in Personio. Personio creates a revision and highlights these attributes in yellow to show what values don't match any existing attributes in Personio. A validation error message states that these attributes will be created. 

Possible solution:

1. If you do not want to create a new attribute: 
   • Check the highlighted values for typos or spelling differences. Make sure they match the existing department or team names in Personio. Use the Find and replace option to update the incorrect value. 
   • To remove the values from the import, click the Warning symbol > Use a different action > Delete all invalid values.
2. If you want to create a new attribute: Continue with the import. Personio will create the highlighted value as a new attribute.

You don't have permission to edit attributes in the import

Issue:

Your import file includes attributes that you don't have permission to edit in Personio. Personio creates a revision that highlights errors in red and shows what values you don't have permission to edit and import. You see a validation error explaining this. 

Possible solution:

1. Note the attributes that have a validation error.
2. Contact your Personio Administrator to ensure you have edit permissions to the profile sections containing those attributes for the employees included in the import.
3. Re-try the import.

You're trying to deactivate the last active administrator

Issue:

You're trying to set the last active administrator's status to Inactive.

Possible solution:

1. Make sure there's always an active administrator in the account.
2. Download the revision file, correct the error, and re-import it.

The Supervisor attribute doesn't appear after the import

Issue:

The Supervisor attribute doesn't appear for some employees after the employee data import, even though your file includes supervisor values. This happens because the supervisor needs to exist in Personio as an employee before you can import them as someone's supervisor. If you include supervisors and employees in the same import and the supervisors don't yet exist in Personio, Personio cannot link the supervisor to the employee. Although the Supervisor column may seem required, you can leave it blank if the supervisors don't yet exist in Personio.

Possible solution:

Run the import twice:

1. Import all employees without supervisor values. Leave the Supervisor column blank.
2. Once all employees exist in Personio, run a second import to add the Supervisor values.