AI-Process Bank Cheque in Make

What this module does

PDF4me AI-Process Bank Cheque extracts structured data from PDF or image bank cheques inside your Make scenario using AI. Supply a cheque scan or photograph and the module returns account holder, payee, amount (in digits and words), MICR routing number, account number, cheque number, bank name, date, memo, and signature presence — ready for cheque deposit automation, accounts receivable, bank reconciliation, and fraud-detection workflows. No template setup. No specialized MICR hardware. Works across major regional cheque formats.

Authenticating Your API Request

Every PDF4me module in Make requires a valid Connection. Create or select one that holds your PDF4me API key so the scenario can authenticate AI cheque extraction requests securely.

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Important Facts You Should Not Miss

Extracts MICR data without specialized hardware

The AI reads the MICR line at the bottom of the cheque — routing number, account number, and cheque number — directly from a standard PDF or image. No physical MICR reader required. Perfect for remote deposit workflows, accounts receivable automation, and bank reconciliation pipelines.

Returns amount in both digits and words for anti-fraud cross-checks

The output includes both amountNumber (numeric) and amountWords (written amount). Cross-validate the two with a Make Set Variable step — any mismatch routes the cheque to manual review, catching data entry errors and tampered cheques before payment is processed.

Works on scanned, photographed, and digital cheques

Accepts PDF, PNG, JPG, and JPEG. The AI handles desktop scanner output, mobile deposit photos (even with imperfect lighting and angles), and digitally generated cheques. Supports US, UK, Indian, Canadian, and other major regional cheque formats out of the box.

Set File to Map, wire Cheque Name and Document from the prior module. Output exposes payee, amount, MICR data, and bank details for downstream deposit or reconciliation workflows.

Parameters

Required: Connection, Cheque Name, and Document must always be provided. The matching input field (Binary Property, Base64 Content, or File URL) is required based on the chosen Input Data Type.

Parameter	Required	What it does	Example
Connection	Yes	PDF4me API connection. Click Add and paste your API key the first time. Reused automatically across all PDF4me modules.	My PDF4me connection
Input Data Type	Yes	How the cheque file is supplied. Binary Data reads from a previous module (most common for scanned cheques). Base64 String accepts encoded payloads. URL downloads from a public link.	Binary Data
Input Binary Field	Conditional	Binary content of the cheque file. Required when Input Data Type is Binary Data. Wire from Dropbox, Google Drive, OneDrive Data field, or any scanner/email module that returns file bytes.	1. Data
Base64 Cheque Content	Conditional	Base64-encoded cheque content. Required when Input Data Type is Base64 String. Useful for cheques arriving via webhook or mobile-deposit API payloads.	JVBERi0xLjQK...
Cheque URL	Conditional	Public URL to the cheque file. Required when Input Data Type is URL. The URL must not require authentication.	https://example.com/cheque.pdf
Cheque Name	Yes	Filename of the cheque with proper extension (.pdf, .png, .jpg, .jpeg). Used for format detection and AI processing optimization.	cheque.pdf

Output Fields

Field	Type	What it contains
accountHolder	String	Name of the cheque drawer (the person or company writing the cheque) as printed in the top-left section.
address	String	Complete address of the account holder printed on the cheque.
checkNumber	String	Cheque number (top-right or from the MICR line) used for reconciliation.
chequeDate	String	Date written on the cheque in ISO 8601 format (YYYY-MM-DD). Critical for post-dated cheque handling.
payee	String	Name of the person or company the cheque is made out to ("Pay to the order of").
amountNumber	Number	Numeric amount written in the small amount box on the cheque.
amountWords	String	Amount written in words on the long amount line. Compare against amountNumber for anti-fraud cross-checks.
memo	String	Memo or note field at the bottom-left of the cheque, when present.
signature	String	Signature presence indicator or extracted signature information.
routingNumber	String	Bank routing number or transit number from the MICR line (the first MICR segment).
accountNumber	String	Bank account number from the MICR line. Use this for deposit destination or AR matching.
bankName	String	Name of the issuing bank as printed on the cheque.
success	Boolean	True if the AI extraction completed successfully; false if it failed.
message	String	Human-readable status message confirming success or describing the error encountered.

Quick Setup

1. Add PDF4me → AI-Process Bank Cheque to your Make scenario.
2. Select Connection (or click Add to create one with your PDF4me API key).
3. Choose Input Data Type — Binary Data for files from a previous module, Base64 String, or URL.
4. Under File, choose Map to reveal Cheque Name and Document fields.
5. Map Cheque Name to the filename with extension (.pdf, .png, .jpg, or .jpeg).
6. Map Document to the binary content from the source module — typically the Data field of Dropbox, Google Drive, OneDrive, scanner, or email attachment modules.
7. Click Save and run the scenario. The output bundle exposes all 12+ cheque fields — wire them into deposit APIs, accounts receivable systems, reconciliation modules, or audit logs.

Workflow Examples

Workflow ExamplesCommon Make scenario patterns using AI-Process Bank Cheque.

Mobile cheque deposit → AI parse → bank deposit API

1. A customer uploads a cheque photo via a mobile app webhook into Make.
2. AI-Process Bank Cheque extracts accountHolder, payee, amountNumber, amountWords, routingNumber, accountNumber, and chequeDate.
3. A Tools Set Variable step compares amountNumber against amountWords. If they do not match exactly, the workflow routes the cheque to a Slack channel for manual review.
4. Matched cheques are sent to the bank's remote-deposit-capture API as a structured deposit request with MICR data and amount.
5. The customer receives a confirmation email; the cheque image is archived to S3 with accountNumber + chequeDate as the filename for audit traceability.

Mail-room cheque scan → AR match → QuickBooks payment

1. A Dropbox Watch Files trigger fires when the mail-room scans incoming cheques into a shared folder.
2. AI-Process Bank Cheque extracts payee, amountNumber, accountHolder, and bankName.
3. A QuickBooks search step looks up open invoices for accountHolder. The first invoice matching amountNumber is selected as the target.
4. A QuickBooks Receive Payment module records the payment against the matched invoice, marks it Paid, and stores the cheque number and bank name in the payment note.
5. An Airtable log row captures the cheque-to-invoice match for monthly reconciliation reports.

Post-dated cheque tracker → schedule deposit → email reminder

1. A scanning station drops new cheques into a SharePoint folder. AI-Process Bank Cheque extracts the chequeDate field.
2. A Tools Set Variable step compares chequeDate against today's date. Post-dated cheques are logged to a Google Sheet with a scheduled deposit date.
3. A separate scheduled scenario runs daily, queries the Google Sheet for cheques whose deposit date is today or earlier, and sends each one to the bank's deposit API.
4. An email reminder goes to the accounts team three days before each scheduled deposit date with the cheque details so they can confirm or hold the deposit.
5. Once deposited, the cheque row is moved to a Deposited tab with the deposit timestamp and bank confirmation reference.

Frequently Asked Questions

What fields does AI-Process Bank Cheque extract?+

The module extracts a complete set of cheque fields: accountHolder (the drawer), address, checkNumber, chequeDate in ISO 8601 format, payee, amountNumber (numeric), amountWords (amount in words), memo, signature presence, routingNumber (MICR transit number), accountNumber, and bankName. Returning both amountNumber and amountWords lets you cross-validate the two values — a critical anti-fraud check in any cheque processing workflow.

Does the parser read the MICR line at the bottom of the cheque?+

Yes. The AI extracts the MICR (Magnetic Ink Character Recognition) line — routing number, account number, and cheque number — directly into the structured output. This makes the module suitable for cheque deposit automation, bank reconciliation, accounts receivable matching, and remote deposit workflows without requiring any specialized MICR-reading hardware. Standard scanned PDFs or mobile photos are sufficient.

What cheque formats and countries does the module support?+

PDF, PNG, JPG, and JPEG cheque images are all supported. The AI handles US personal and business cheques, UK cheques, Indian cheques (with IFSC where present in the printed text), Canadian cheques, Australian cheques, and other major regional formats. Both digitally generated cheques and photographed paper cheques — including remote deposit images captured with mobile phones — are processed by the same module.

How do I use amountNumber and amountWords for fraud detection?+

Add a Make Tools → Set Variable step after the parser to compare amountNumber against amountWords (converted to a number using a built-in function). If the two values do not match exactly, route the cheque to a manual review queue in Airtable, Slack, or Microsoft Teams. This mirrors the legally required cross-check that banks apply to paper cheques and catches both data entry errors and tampered cheques before any payment is processed downstream.

Can I process cheques in bulk from a watch folder?+

Yes. Add a Dropbox, Google Drive, or SharePoint Watch Files trigger, then pass each new file to AI-Process Bank Cheque. The module handles cheques individually — add an Iterator or Repeater after the parser for multi-cheque batches. For deposit workflows, route the parsed data to your bank API or internal ledger and archive the original cheque image with accountNumber and chequeDate in the filename for audit traceability.

Related Modules

AI-Process Bank Statement

Extract transactions, balances, and checksPaid arrays from bank statements — match deposited cheques against statement entries for end-to-end reconciliation.

AI-Invoice Parser

Extract vendor and amount details from invoices — match incoming cheque payments to open invoices for fully automated accounts receivable workflows.

AI-Process Receipt

Parse retail and expense receipts — useful when expense reimbursements include cheque payments needing matched documentation.

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