📝 Overview

When processing a refund for a customer payment, the system may provide one or both of the following refund destinations, depending on the payment method and timing:

Credit on Account	The refunded amount is stored as a credit balance on the customer's profile
Original Payment Method	The refunded amount is returned to the original payment method (such as the card or digital payment method) the customer originally used

Which option is available depends on how the original payment was made and how much time has passed since the transaction.

🔑 Authorizations

To process a refund, you will need one of the following roles:

Business Owner
Admin with payment permissions
Any employee role that has been granted refund access in the system's permission settings

💡 If you do not see the refund option when viewing a payment, check with your account administrator to confirm your role has the necessary permissions.

💡 Understanding the Two Refund Options

When issuing a refund, the destination you choose determines where the money goes and how the customer can use it. A credit keeps the funds within your system for the customer to apply toward future purchases, while refunding to the original payment method sends the money back to the customer's original payment method (such as the card or digital payment used).

Click the arrow to learn more about the two refund options

Each option has different implications for processing time, fees, and reversibility. In many cases, payment processors require refunds to be issued back to the original payment method, which can limit available options.

Understanding the distinction helps you choose the right approach for each situation and set the correct expectation with your customer.

💰 Credit on Account

When you refund a payment as a credit, the refund amount is added directly to the customer's profile as a stored credit balance. No funds are returned to the customer’s external payment method; instead, the refund value is retained within your system as account credit.

How it works:

The credit balance appears on the customer's profile and can be viewed by both the business and the customer.
The customer can apply this credit toward future purchases, registrations, memberships, or any other billable item.
No additional processing fees are incurred for issuing a credit, since no new transaction is processed. However, original payment processing fees are typically not refunded.

🧠 Example: A customer paid $100 for a class registration but needs to cancel. You issue a $100 credit to their account. The next time they register for a class, the $100 credit is automatically available to apply toward the new balance.

💡 Depending on your payment setup, credits may not always be refundable back to the original payment method later.

💳 Original Payment Method

When you refund to the original payment method, the funds are sent back through your payment processor to the card or account the customer used when they made the purchase.

How it works:

The refund is routed through your integrated payment processor back to the customer's original payment method (such as the card or digital payment used).
Processing times vary – refunds typically take 5–10 business days to appear on the customer's statement.
Depending on your processor, you may not recover the original transaction fees from the initial payment.

⚠️ Once a refund has been sent to the original payment method, it generally cannot be reversed or converted to an account credit through the system.

Confirm the correct option before completing the refund.

⚖️ Quick Comparison

	Credit on Account	Original Payment Method
Where funds go	Customer's stored credit balance	Back to the customer's card or bank
Speed	Immediate	approximately 5–10 business days
Processing fees	No additional processing fees	May apply (processor-dependent)
Customer can use for	Future purchases within the system	Any use outside the system – funds are returned to their account
Reversible?	Yes – credit can be adjusted or removed (if not yet used)	No – cannot be reversed once processed

⚙️ When Each Option Is Available

The refund options that appear when processing a refund depend on the original payment type and timing.

Click the arrow to learn more about when each option is available

🔀 Both Options Available

When the original payment was made via an integrated payment processor (credit card, debit card, or digital payment), you may see both refund options. This gives you or the customer flexibility to choose the preferred destination.

💰 Credit on Account Only

In some situations, refunding to the original payment method is not available, and Credit on Account is the only option:

The original payment was made with cash or check (there is no digital payment method on file to refund to).
The original payment was made through an external or manual payment entry that is not tied to an integrated processor.
The payment processor's refund window has expired (some processors limit refunds to 60–180 days after the original transaction).
The original payment cannot be refunded due to processor limitations (for example, the transaction is too old or not eligible for refund through the processor).

⛔ If the option to refund to the original payment method is not appearing, it is likely due to one of the reasons listed above. The system only displays refund destinations that are currently valid for the selected transaction.

🛠️ How to Process a Refund

Follow these steps to issue a refund and select the desired refund destination:

Navigate to the customer's profile.
Open the payment or transaction history section.
Locate the specific payment you want to refund and select it.
Click the Refund option.
Choose your refund destination: Credit on Account or Original Payment Method.
Enter the refund amount (full or partial).
Confirm and process the refund.

💡 You can issue a partial refund using either method. The refund amount does not have to equal the full original payment.

❓ Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Find answers to common questions or additional details that may not be covered in the main instructions.