> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.bizaxl.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Returns and Refunds

> Refund a past sale at the Point of Sale counter within your refund window, restoring stock to the correct batch.

Returns let you refund a customer for a past sale. A **POS Cashier** or **Pharmacist** handles returns from the **Returns** screen (`/pos/returns`). Returns are available only when they are turned on in settings, within the refund window you set.

## Prerequisites

Returns must be enabled in POS Settings, and the sale you are refunding must be within the **refund window** (for example, 48 hours). An open shift is required, the same as for a sale.

## Taking a return

<Steps>
  <Step title="Find the original sale">
    On `/pos/returns`, look up the sale by its number or the customer.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Choose what to return">
    Select the items and quantities being returned. You can refund the whole sale or part of it.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Choose the refund mode">
    Pick how the customer is refunded (for example, cash or card).
  </Step>

  <Step title="Confirm">
    On confirm, a reversing sale is recorded against the original and the stock is restored to the correct batch.
  </Step>
</Steps>

<Warning>
  A sale can only be refunded within the window set in POS Settings. After the window closes, the Returns screen will not accept it. This protects you from stale or fraudulent refunds.
</Warning>

## What a return does to stock

Because the refund restores stock to the exact batch it was sold from, your inventory and expiry tracking stay accurate. This matters most for medicines, where a returned pack must go back to its own batch, not a generic pool.

## Field guide: the return

| On the return  | What it holds                                             |
| -------------- | --------------------------------------------------------- |
| Original sale  | The sale being refunded.                                  |
| Returned items | The lines and quantities coming back, with their batches. |
| Refund mode    | How the customer is paid back.                            |

## Upstream and downstream

**Before:** a submitted sale must exist and be within the refund window. **After:** the reversing sale posts a stock and accounting reversal and appears in the shift totals and analytics.

## Best practices

* Set a refund window that matches your store policy, not longer than you can verify a sale.
* Refund to the original payment mode where you can.
* For medicines, confirm the returned pack is intact and unexpired before restocking.