The quick answer
A CSV import you save in the Import Assistant starts out Private, so only you (and administrators) can use it. To share it, go to Setup > Import/Export > Saved CSV Imports and click the import's value in the Access column. On the Share Import page, check Public and click Save. The Access column then reads Public. Public makes the import available to everyone with the permissions to import CSV files, and picking a few roles doesn't narrow that. If only certain roles may use it, clear Public, select those roles and save. Access should then read Shared. Test with a user inside the audience and one outside it. Check Allow Audience to Edit only if the audience should be able to change the mapping.
The screenshots show sample data. The company, people and saved imports are fictional. Your account will list its own imports, roles and users.
Before you start
You need a saved CSV import. You get one by clicking Save at the end of the Import Assistant, which stores the import type, record type, data handling, advanced options and the field mapping under a name. If you haven't built one yet, start with how to prepare a CSV import in NetSuite.
You also need to be the import's owner or an administrator, with a role that can manage saved imports. This walkthrough uses the Administrator role.
Sharing only passes on the mapping and options. It doesn't share any CSV data, since each user picks their own file when they run the import. It doesn't grant permissions either. The people you share with still need the CSV import permission (Import CSV File), permission for the record type they're importing (vendor bills here) and access to the subsidiaries, vendors, accounts and other records the file references.
In this example, Ingrid Solberg, the administrator at Mercer Lane Furnishings, saved an import called AP Vendor Bill Import for the monthly vendor bill spreadsheet. The A/P team should run the same mapping instead of rebuilding it every month.
01. Open Saved CSV Imports
Go to Setup > Import/Export > Saved CSV Imports.
The list shows each saved import with columns such as ID, Name, Type, Owner, Created, Last Modified, Script ID and Access. This sample account has six. AP Vendor Bill Import (ID 223, type Vendor Bill, owner Ingrid Solberg) reads Private, and so do four of her other imports. Customer Address Updates, owned by Wren Halloway, already reads Public.
Don't read too much into what an administrator sees here. Administrators see every saved import whatever its access, so the fact that an import shows up in your list doesn't mean anyone else can use it. The Access column is the thing to check.
02. Open Share Import from the Access column
The Access value is a link. Click Private on the AP Vendor Bill Import row. In NetSuite, Share Import opens in its own browser window. The screenshots and recording draw it over the list so the walkthrough stays in one view. The fields are the same.
Share Import opens with Public unchecked and Allow Audience to Edit greyed out. Owner is Ingrid Solberg. Below them are the audience lists, here Roles, Subsidiaries, Employees, Departments, Groups and Partners. Roles, Employees and Partners each have a Select All box. Which lists you see depends on your account's features. Subsidiaries, for example, only applies in OneWorld.
The other lists narrow the audience by subsidiary, employee, department, group or partner. This walkthrough only uses Roles. If you combine several lists, check the result with test users instead of assuming how they add up.
03. Check Public and pick the roles
Check Public. On the Share Import page in this walkthrough, Roles > Select All checks itself and the role list dims, because every role in it is now included. The Roles list offers the roles of users who can import CSV files.
The walkthrough then picks the roles that work with vendor bills. It clears Select All next to Roles, clicks A/P Clerk, then Ctrl-clicks (Cmd-click on a Mac) Accountant. The lists are multi-select, so a plain click replaces the selection and Ctrl-click adds to it.
With Public checked, those two roles don't restrict anything. The import is available to everyone who has the permissions to import CSV files, and the Access column reads Public. The role picks only record who it's meant for.
Public and role-limited sharing are two different paths:
- Anyone who imports CSV files may use it: check Public and save.
- Only A/P Clerk and Accountant may use it: clear Public, select the two roles and save. The Access column should then read Shared instead of Public.
Either way, test with a user in an included role and one in an excluded role before you rely on it.
04. Save and check the Access column
Click Save. Share Import closes and the Saved CSV Imports list shows AP Vendor Bill Import with Access Public. Its Last Modified changes from 09/21/2026 10:05 am to 10/01/2026 9:42 am, the time of the save.
05. Let the audience edit the mapping
Without Allow Audience to Edit, the people you shared with can run the import and adjust the mapping for their own run. To keep their version they use Save As, if their role can create saved imports. They can't save changes over yours. If the A/P team should maintain the mapping, turn it on.
Click Public in the Access column of AP Vendor Bill Import to open Share Import again. Public is still checked, A/P Clerk and Accountant are still selected, and Allow Audience to Edit, greyed out before the first save, can now be checked. That's how it behaves in this walkthrough. It isn't a documented rule for every account, so if the box is already available the first time, you can set it in one pass.
Check Allow Audience to Edit and click Save. AP Vendor Bill Import stays Public.
Check the result (example values)
- AP Vendor Bill Import reads Public in the Access column of Saved CSV Imports.
- Its Last Modified moved from 09/21/2026 10:05 am to 10/01/2026 9:42 am.
- Share Import keeps A/P Clerk and Accountant selected.
- Allow Audience to Edit is checked.
With Allow Audience to Edit on, a change someone in the audience saves under the existing name, given the right permissions, changes the mapping for everyone who runs it. Turn it on only when they're meant to maintain the import.
The walkthrough stops at the Access column. To prove the share works, have someone in one of the audience roles open Setup > Import/Export > Saved CSV Imports. The import should be in their list, and the link in its Name column opens the Import Assistant with the saved mapping. (The Access link is the one that opens Share Import.) If you limited it to certain roles, also check that someone outside those roles doesn't see it. For an example of a mapping worth sharing, adding Created From to a standard NetSuite report backfills old fulfillments with a CSV update import.
Common questions
Why can't other users see my saved CSV import?
It's probably still Private. A Private import is only available to its owner, plus administrators, who see every saved import. Click the value in its Access column, check Public or select an audience, and save. The other user also needs permission to import CSV files, so test with that person's role.
What does Allow Audience to Edit do?
It lets the people you shared with save changes to the mapping under the same name, which changes it for everyone who runs it. With it cleared, they can still adjust the mapping for their own run, but they have to use Save As to keep their version.
Can I share a saved CSV import with only certain roles?
Yes, but not with Public checked. Clear Public, select the roles on Share Import and save. The Access column should then read Shared. Picking roles while Public is checked doesn't limit the import to them, because Public reaches everyone with the permissions to import CSV files.
What permission does a user need to run a shared saved CSV import?
Sharing doesn't grant any permissions. The user needs Import CSV File plus permission for the record type being imported, such as vendor bills, and access to the records the file references. The level needed depends on whether the import adds or updates records, so test with the actual role.
Does sharing a saved CSV import share the CSV file too?
No. Sharing passes on the saved import's settings and field mapping. Each user picks their own CSV file when they run it, and nothing from your file or your earlier imports comes along.
Why can I see every saved CSV import as an administrator?
Administrators see all saved imports, including other users' Private ones, and can change their sharing. That's why an import showing up in your list doesn't prove anyone else can use it. Check the Access column, or have a user in the audience look at their own list.