A Refund receipt records cash going back to a customer — the actual money-out movement that pairs with a Credit note. Use it when:
- a customer returns goods and you refund the money,
- a customer overpaid and you return the excess,
- a deposit is being returned because a sale fell through.
The difference between this and a Credit note: a credit note only reduces the customer's AR balance (bookkeeping). A refund receipt also pays cash out of your bank — it's an actual disbursement.
You'll find Refund Receipts under AR (Sales) → Payments & Credits → "Refund Receipts".
Step by step
Browse refund receipts
Open Refund Receipts. Each row shows the number, date, customer, amount, source account (Cash/Bank), and status.
Create a refund receipt
- Click New Refund Receipt.
- Pick the Customer.
- Set the Date. The Refund Number comes from the active numbering sequence — you can override it.
- Pick the Source account — the Cash / Bank account the refund is paid from.
- Enter the Refund Amount and a Reference / method ("Cash", "Cheque", "Bank Transfer").
- (Optional) Link the originating Credit note or Invoice for the audit trail. When linked, the Refund Due shows how much credit is available to refund.
- Save as a draft, or Save & Post.
Edit / delete a draft, print a PDF
Drafts can be edited or deleted freely; posted refunds cannot. The PDF uses your active template.
Post a refund receipt
Posting writes the journal:
- Debit the customer's AR credit (reducing the credit owed to them), or a refunds expense account when there is no existing credit balance.
- Credit the Cash / Bank account.
If the refund applies to a Credit note's unapplied balance, the credit note's open amount is reduced by the refund amount.
Void a posted refund receipt
Reverses the journal, restores the Credit note's unapplied balance (if linked), and marks the refund Void. Use when the refund was issued in error. Only users allowed to void will see this action.
How the journal looks
A JOD 117 refund that consumes an existing credit note's unapplied balance:
| Account | Debit | Credit |
|---|---|---|
| AR — Customer credit (note) | 117.00 | |
| Bank | 117.00 |
The credit note's unapplied balance drops to zero; the cash leaves the bank.
A JOD 117 refund without a linked credit note (e.g. customer never had a credit on the books — the refund creates one and immediately settles it):
| Account | Debit | Credit |
|---|---|---|
| Refunds & allowances (expense) | 117.00 | |
| Bank | 117.00 |
A partial refund of a JOD 117 credit note — refunding only JOD 50, leaving JOD 67 on account:
| Account | Debit | Credit |
|---|---|---|
| AR — Customer credit (note) | 50.00 | |
| Bank | 50.00 |
The credit note's unapplied balance becomes JOD 67 and stays available for future invoices.
Common mistakes
- "Source account must be Cash / Bank." Refund receipts cannot be paid from payment-receivable accounts, Undeposited Funds, or AR accounts. Pick the real bank or cash account the money is leaving.
- "I issued a refund but the credit note still shows the same unapplied balance." The refund only reduces the credit note's unapplied balance if you linked the credit note on the refund. Re-open the refund, link it, and re-post.
- "Period locked" → posting and voiding are both blocked. Date the refund in an open period if appropriate — see Fiscal years and lock dates.
- Currency mismatch. The customer's currency determines the refund currency. To refund in a different currency, settle the credit note in the customer's currency first, then use your bank's FX facilities to pay them in another.
Behaviour and rules
- Journal label. On the Journal entries page, the refund's entry is labelled as a Refund Receipt and links back to the document.
- Payments page. Refund receipts also surface on the Payments page labelled as Refund Receipts, so all customer money movements are visible in one place.
- Period lock. Posting / voiding require the date's period to be open.
- Source account must be a real cash / bank account — payment receivables and Undeposited Funds do not qualify.
Related
- Credit notes — the bookkeeping side of customer credits.
- Retainers — refund the unallocated balance of a retainer.
- Sales receipts — refund a walk-in sale.
- Invoices — refund an overpaid invoice.
- Payments — every refund receipt appears here too.
- Customers — refund history shown on the customer profile.
- Banking — match refund outflows against bank statements.
- Reports — Customer Balance Summary, Cash Flow Statement.