terraform import successful but not added to state file – HashiCorp Help Center

Problem

The terraform import command is successful, but the imported resource is not visible in the state file.

Prerequisites

Using terraform version "< 1.7".

Cause

You are using a terraform version < 1.7.
The resource you want to import uses a for_each.
The imported resource is not defined in your code.

For example:

You are using the following code:

variable "my_map" {
  type = map(any)
  default = {
    key1 = "value1"
  }
}

resource "random_uuid" "test" {
  for_each = var.my_map
}

The state list is showing the following:

 terraform state list
random_uuid.test["key1"]

You want to import key2 which you haven't added to the code yet. This should give an error, but instead you get a successful import.

terraform import 'random_uuid.test["key2"]' aabbccdd-eeff-0011-2233-445566778899

Import successful!

The resources that were imported are shown above. These resources are now in
your Terraform state and will henceforth be managed by Terraform.

The state file doesn't reflect this:

terraform state list 
random_uuid.test["key1"]

Solution:

The main issue is you get an Import successful! message which is incorrect. It should give an error stating the imported target is not defined in your code.

Update your terraform binary to version 1.7 or higher
Execute the import command again

terraform import 'random_uuid.test["key2"]' aabbccdd-eeff-0011-2233-445566778899

╷
│ Error: Configuration for import target does not exist
│ 
│ The configuration for the given import random_uuid.test["key2"] does not exist. All target instances must have an associated configuration
│ to be imported.

Now you get a proper error message.
Alter your code to reflect the imported target:

variable "my_map" {
  type = map(any)
  default = {
    key1 = "value1"
    key2 = "value2"
  }
}

resource "random_uuid" "test" {
  for_each = var.my_map
}

The import command will now succeed and add the resource to the state:

terraform import 'random_uuid.test["key2"]' aabbccdd-eeff-0011-2233-445566778899

random_uuid.test["key2"]: Importing from ID "aabbccdd-eeff-0011-2233-445566778899"...
random_uuid.test["key2"]: Import prepared!
Prepared random_uuid for import
random_uuid.test["key2"]: Refreshing state... [id=aabbccdd-eeff-0011-2233-445566778899]

Import successful!

The resources that were imported are shown above. These resources are now in
your Terraform state and will henceforth be managed by Terraform.

Outcome

The use of a terraform binary lower then 1.7 can give an incorrect import result. Please use the latest terraform version to get the proper error message and alter the code.

Additional Information

The import command has been fixed in version 1.7. Please see the details for the fix here