Updating Items via Link

Over time, an Item may need to refresh its authentication information. This can happen if the end user changes a password, if multi-factor authentication (MFA) requirements change, or if the login becomes locked. An Item can also require its authentication to be refreshed if it was only authorized for a limited amount of time and the authorization has expired or is nearing expiration, which can happen to Items from institutions that use OAuth flows in Plaid Link.

Receiving an ITEM_LOGIN_REQUIRED error or a PENDING_EXPIRATION webhook indicates that the Item should be re-initialized via update mode.

If you receive the ITEM_LOGIN_REQUIRED error after calling a Plaid endpoint, implement Link in update mode during the user flow, and ask the user to re-authenticate before proceeding to the next step in your flow.

If you receive the ITEM_LOGIN_REQUIRED error via the ITEM: ERROR webhook, or if you receive the PENDING_EXPIRATION webhook, re-authenticate with Link in update mode when the user is next in your app. You will need to tell your user (using in-app messaging and/or notifications such as email or text message) to return to your app to fix their Item.

If using Account Select v2, you can also use update mode to request your users to share new accounts with you. Receiving a NEW_ACCOUNTS_AVAILABLE webhook indicates that Plaid has detected new accounts that you may want to ask your users to share.

To use update mode for an Item, initialize Link with a link_token configured with the access_token for the Item that you wish to update. Do not specify any products when creating a link_token for update mode. You can obtain a link_token using the /link/token/create endpoint:

// Create a one-time use link_token for the Item.
// This link_token can be used to initialize Link
// in update mode for the user
const configs = {
  user: {
    client_user_id: 'UNIQUE_USER_ID',
  },
  client_name: 'Your App Name Here',
  country_codes: [CountryCode.Us],
  language: 'en',
  webhook: 'https://webhook.sample.com',
  access_token: 'ENTER_YOUR_ACCESS_TOKEN_HERE',
};
app.post('/create_link_token', async (request, response, next) => {
  const linkTokenResponse = await client.linkTokenCreate(configs);
  // Use the link_token to initialize Link
  response.json({ link_token: linkTokenResponse.data.link_token });
});

Link auto-detects the appropriate institution and handles the credential and multi-factor authentication process, if needed.

An Item's access_token does not change when using Link in update mode, so there is no need to repeat the exchange token process.

// Initialize Link with the token parameter
// set to the generated link_token for the Item
const linkHandler = Plaid.create({
  token: 'GENERATED_LINK_TOKEN',
  onSuccess: (public_token, metadata) => {
    // You do not need to repeat the /item/public_token/exchange
    // process when a user uses Link in update mode.
    // The Item's access_token has not changed.
  },
  onExit: (err, metadata) => {
    // The user exited the Link flow.
    if (err != null) {
      // The user encountered a Plaid API error prior
      // to exiting.
    }
    // metadata contains the most recent API request ID and the
    // Link session ID. Storing this information is helpful
    // for support.
  },
});

Link will automatically detect the institution ID associated with the link_token and present the appropriate credential view to your user.

When an Item is restored from the ITEM_LOGIN_REQUIRED state via update mode, if it has been initialized with a product that sends Item webhooks (such as Transactions or Investments), the next webhook fired for the Item will include data for all missed information back to the last time Plaid made a successful connection to the Item.

You can initialize Link for update mode with Account Select enabled to request new accounts from your users. To do so, initialize Link for update mode by creating a link_token using the /link/token/create endpoint, specifying

1. The update.account_selection_enabled flag set to true.
2. A link_customization_name for a customization that enables Account Select v2. The settings on this customization will determine which View Behavior for the Account Select pane is shown in update flow.
3. (Optional) Any account_filters to specify account filtering. Note that this field cannot be set for update mode if account selection isn’t enabled. Once your user has updated their account selection, any newly selected accounts will be shared in the accounts field in the onSuccess() callback from Link. Likewise, any newly de-selected accounts will no longer be shared with you. You will only be able to receive data for these accounts the user selects in update mode going forward.

We recommend that you remove any data associated with accounts that your user has de-selected.

Update mode can be tested in the Sandbox using the /sandbox/item/reset_login endpoint, which will force a given Item into an ITEM_LOGIN_REQUIRED state.

For a real-life example that illustrates the handling of update mode, see linkTokens.js and linkButton.tsx. These files contain the Link update mode code for the Node-based Plaid Pattern sample app.

Below is a list of errors that you may encounter in update mode or that may cause you to launch the update mode flow:

• ITEM_LOGIN_REQUIRED – The financial institution indicated that the user's password or MFA information has changed. They will need to reauthenticate via Link's update mode.
• ITEM_NO_ERROR – Link was initialized in update mode for an Item that is in a good state. No further action is required.
• INVALID_UPDATED_USERNAME – The username associated with an item is no longer valid.