Product Categories CSV Format

Custom product exceptions can be imported into ONESOURCE Indirect Tax Determination using the Product Categories import file type. Once you import products, you can import product mappings (to map your source codes to those products) and product zone data (to specify where the product exceptions apply). You can only set product zones for custom products.

When you import a product categories file, all records in the file are imported into a single Product Group (such as US or INTL) and placed beneath the parent product category you specify. Therefore, do not mix products belonging to different product groups and with different parents in the same file. Instead, create multiple import files. For example:

• You want to add the same set of products to the US, Canada, and Independent product groups. In each case, the parent product category is the same. Create a single import file and import it three times, once for each Product Group.
• You want to add a set of products to the US and Canada product groups, and a similar set to the Independent product group. The parent product category is the same. Create two import files, one for the US and Canada and one for Independent. Import the files as appropriate for each Product Group.
• You want to add the same set of products to all Product Groups, but in each Product Group the parent product category differs. Create a single import file, then specify a different parent product category when you import it for each Product Group.
• You want to add different products to each Product Group, and within each group the parent product category is different. Create multiple import files, one for each unique Product Group/Parent Product Category combination.

For information about using CSV format files, see Best Practices for Importing Data with CSV Files.

Product Categories File Format

SDITYPE=ProductCategories
Column Name	Format	Req?	Description
ProductPath	varchar2(100) (See Description)	Y	The full path of the product category in dot notation (parent.child.grandchild.etc). You must specify the highest level first, then each level in succession. See the example below for details. Note that the length of 100 refers to an individual level of the path, not the entire path length.
Description	varchar2(250)	Y	A description of the product category.
CommodityCode	varchar2(50)	N	A commodity code associated with the product category. Commodity codes must be unique within each product group and company; if they are not, the import of any duplicate record will fail.

The ProductPath delimiter is a dot (.) by default. This delimiter can be changed to another supported character by setting the SDI_HIERARCHY_DELIMETER Configuration parameter using Determination.

Example Product Categories File

This file creates multiple product categories under a primary category: Office Supplies. Note that all parents are created before their children. Also note that some records contain commodity codes, while others do not (have blank values for that column):

1. sdiType=ProductCategories

2. ProductPath,Description,CommodityCode

3. Office Supplies,Office Supplies,OS1111

4. Office Supplies.Paper,Paper,OS2222

5. Office Supplies.Paper.Recycled,Recycled Paper,

6. Office Supplies.Paper.Photo,Photo Paper,

7. Office Supplies.Paper.Glossy,Glossy Paper,

8. Office Supplies.Furniture,Office Furniture,OF1234

9. Office Supplies.Furniture.Desks,Desks,

10. Office Supplies.Furniture.Chairs,Chairs,

Products do not need to be stored in a hierarchy; you can create a single container for all of your products, or go as many levels deep as necessary based on your business requirements.

For more information about formatting a CSV file, see Creating CSV Import Files.

Updating a Product Category Record

You can update a product category record by including ProductPath data to match an existing record and then updating the Description and/or CommodityCode columns as desired.

Product Categories Import Options

You need to create any desired parent product categories (the root categories into which you will import the product data) on the target system before importing data with the Import/Export Wizard.

Product Categories Import Prerequisites