How do I import a table to XBRL?

You cannot directly copy a table from Microsoft Word or other word processing applications and paste it into XBRL View. If you have a Word document as your source, the document that contains the table should be brought into GoFiler and converted to HTML first.  You can use a converted HTML document or import each individual table into a “working” document for the purposes of bringing the data into XBRL View.  When bringing data into XBRL View, it is important that the original table be reasonably formatted (all data appears in the correct column, etc.) but it is not necessary to have a polished table.

To bring data into XBRL View:

  1. Open or import the document or table into GoFiler as HTML.
  2. Right-click on the table and choose Select Table Item > Select Table, or place the cursor anywhere inside the table and use the quick key AltCtrl + T. (Selecting the table using the mouse is not appropriate in this case.)  The Table Select function is also available on the Edit Ribbon.
  3. Use the Copy function from the Edit Ribbon or press the quick key Ctrl + C.
  4. Go to the edit window that contains the XBRL document. Make certain the presentation that corresponds to the table is the active presentation.
  5. Place the selector on the empty table cell where the top left corner of the table is going to start.  This is usually cell A4.
  6. Paste the copied table from the HTML document using the Paste function on the Edit Ribbon or pressing the quick key Ctrl + V.  A Paste dialog will appear.
  7. Make a selection from the drop down menu under “Action” to place the table before or after the current cell, or to overwrite the current cell and everything below it.
  8. Choose which rows or columns, if any, to skip.  The first two or three rows are typically left out because they contain contextual data that should already be in the XBRL document.  If your table has a heading, skip all of the heading rows and begin with the first row of the body.
  9. Press the OK button to paste the data.

Blank columns will be removed but blank rows will not.  Having blank rows will not affect the XBRL report.