Refunds
Sometimes you need to return a payment to a customer — whether a family overpaid, a class was cancelled, or a student withdrew. Conductly makes it straightforward to process refunds directly from an invoice.
Processing a Refund
To issue a refund:
- Navigate to Invoices and find the paid invoice you want to refund
- Click on the invoice to open it
- Click Refund Invoice to open the refund drawer
- Enter the Refund Amount, or use the Quick Select buttons — Full Amount or Half
- Optionally check "Refund the $X processing fee" to return the credit card processing fee as well
- Click Process Refund
Refunds can only be processed on invoices that have received at least one payment. You can't refund an unpaid invoice — if the invoice hasn't been paid yet, void it instead.
Full Refunds
A full refund returns the entire payment amount to the customer. After a full refund:
- The invoice status changes to Refunded
- The full payment amount is returned to the customer's original payment method
- The refund is recorded in the payment history
When to use a full refund:
- A class or program was cancelled entirely
- The student withdrew before any lessons took place
- The invoice was charged in error
Partial Refunds
A partial refund returns only a portion of the payment. This is useful when the customer is owed some money back but not the full amount.
After a partial refund:
- The invoice status does not change — a paid invoice stays Paid
- The refunded portion is returned to the customer's payment method
- The partial refund is recorded in the payment history
When to use a partial refund:
- A student attended some lessons before withdrawing
- You're crediting a customer for a missed lesson
- A fee needs to be reversed but tuition should remain
Example: A family paid $200 for a month of lessons but the student missed one lesson worth $50. You issue a partial refund of $50; the invoice stays Paid and the $50 refund appears in the payment history.
For small adjustments, consider assigning a credit instead of processing a refund. On the student's profile, use Assign Credit to add a Refund credit (a dollar amount) or a Make-up Lesson credit — often simpler for both you and the family than moving money back.
What Happens After a Refund
Invoice Status
| Scenario | Resulting Status |
|---|---|
| Full refund on a fully paid invoice | Refunded |
| Partial refund | Status unchanged |
Payment History
Every refund is recorded in the payment history with:
- The date the refund was processed
- The refund amount
- The payment method the refund was issued to
This creates a complete audit trail so you always know what happened with each invoice.
Customer Notification
When a refund is processed, the funds are returned to the customer's original payment method. The timeline for the funds to appear depends on the customer's bank or card issuer, but typically takes 5 to 10 business days.
Refunds for online card payments are returned to the same card that was charged. For manually recorded payments (cash, check), the refund is recorded in Conductly but you'll need to return the funds to the customer through your preferred method.
Refund Limitations
Keep these considerations in mind when processing refunds:
- Cannot exceed payment — The total refunded amount cannot exceed the total amount paid on the invoice
- Refunds start from the invoice — Use Refund Invoice on the invoice detail page; there is no refund action on individual payment records
- Void vs. refund — If an invoice hasn't been paid, use Void Invoice instead of trying to refund it
- Refunds are final — Once a refund is processed, it cannot be reversed. If a refund was issued in error, you'll need to create a new invoice for the amount
Double-check the refund amount before confirming. Refunds cannot be undone once processed. If you accidentally refund more than intended, you'll need to create a new invoice to collect the difference.