Dext automation · runs daily

Fix Dext items stuck in To review

Every morning the Dext Costs inbox has items that cannot be published because a Category, Supplier or Total amount is empty.

Cotlet does it in your own Dext account with list_items, get_item and update_item, called by your AI agent, an n8n workflow or a script.

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Hosted · nothing to install or maintain

Can Dext do this on its own?

Dext extracts the fields, but corrections are made by hand in the web app (checked 14 Oct 2026). No public API reads or edits item fields, and the Zapier app has no action that edits an item.

How you do it in Dext today

  1. Open Costs and look at the items marked To review in the Inbox tab.
  2. Open each item to see its Item details page next to the document image.
  3. Fill in Supplier, Category, Date, Total amount or Tax; changes save when you click outside a field.
  4. Once Category, Supplier and Total amount are filled, the item shows Ready and can be published.

How to fix Dext items stuck in To review

Prompt

List my Dext Costs items in To review, fill in the missing category from the supplier's earlier items where it is obvious, and leave the rest for me with the reason.
  1. 01

    Collect To review

    list_items with status to_review returns every item that is missing a required field, with the extracted values it has, so the agent knows what each one lacks.

  2. 02

    Read the document

    get_item returns the extracted fields, the document reference and the note text. The agent uses them to tell a missing field from a wrong one.

  3. 03

    Fill only what is clear

    A category is set only when earlier items from the same supplier use one category. A missing total is set only when the document text states it; guesses go to your list.

  4. 04

    Edit and recheck

    update_item changes the fields and returns the new status. If the item is now Ready, the agent counts it as fixed; if not, it lists what is still missing.

What you get back

Example data

Items in To review: 9
Fixed and now Ready: 6
- Staples Inc: category Office supplies (3 earlier items)
Still to review: 3
- Unknown vendor, no total readable
- Two receipts with no supplier name

Other ways to ask

  • Only fix items from suppliers I have published at least twice before.
  • List To review items older than 3 days with what is missing, change nothing.
  • Set the Paid toggle and payment method to Card for items from my card statement import.

What Dext allows, and what to know first

  • Dext needs Category, Supplier and Total amount before it publishes an item; without them it stays in To review.
  • Dext saves field changes automatically when you click outside a field.
  • The History tab on an item records submissions, field changes, publishing and archiving.
  • Due date appears only on invoices, and Publish as appears only for Xero connections.

update_item changes only your own Dext data and reach no one else, so it runs without asking first.

Sources: Dext Help: Editing, publishing and exporting items · Dext Help: The item details page

Call update_item from a script

curl

curl -X PATCH https://cotlet.dev/api/v1/dext/items/it_7f3a10 \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $COTLET_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"category":"Office supplies","supplier":"Staples Inc"}'

Example response

{
  "item_id": "it_7f3a10",
  "status": "ready",
  "category": "Office supplies",
  "supplier": "Staples Inc",
  "total_amount": 84.5
}

MCP: add https://cotlet.dev/mcp/v1 with the same key; the call is dext_write → update_item. Example data.

Schedule it in n8n, Make, Zapier or cron

Dext tools this automation uses

Cotlet Dext tools used to fix Dext items stuck in To review
Tool Parameters
list_items inbox, status, supplier, date_from, date_to, limit, cursor
get_item item_id
update_item item_id, supplier, category, date, document_reference, description, total_amount, tax_amount, paid, payment_method, publish_to
All 10 Dext tools with descriptions

Frequently asked questions

Is it safe to connect Dext to Cotlet?

Yes. You sign in to Dext yourself, in your own Cloud Browser in the EU, and we never save your password. Your agents only get Dext once you enable it, every background request is listed, and the browser profile is stored encrypted with AES-256-GCM, the cipher 1Password uses for its vaults. The AI model never sees a login, posts and messages wait for your OK, and Disable for agents cuts access in one click. Independent scanners grade cotlet.dev A+ on Qualys SSL Labs, securityheaders.com and Mozilla Observatory; live results are on https://cotlet.dev/security.

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