# Refund or cancel a fee payment

> Give back all or part of a fee payment, or cancel a receipt taken by mistake, and see how Pathshala updates the bill and the day-book.

Source: https://pathshala.mjxtechnologies.com/docs/fees/refunds/

In Pathshala you can reverse a fee payment in two ways: **refund** it, when money that really came in is being given back, or **cancel** it, when the receipt should never have been made. Both need a reason, both update the bill straight away, and both are kept in the history for audit.

## Refund or cancel — which one?

| | Refund | Cancel |
|---|---|---|
| Use when | Money came in and you are giving some or all of it back | The receipt was a mistake: wrong student, wrong bill, entered twice |
| Amount | Full or part of the payment | Always the whole payment |
| Payment afterwards | Stays **Completed** after a part refund; becomes **Refunded** after a full refund | Becomes **Cancelled** |
| Gets its own number | Yes, a refund number such as `REF-26-00004` | No |
| In the day-book | The original payment still counts on its day; the refund counts as money out on the day it was given back | The payment no longer counts as collected |
| Who | Owner, or a role with **Manage Refunds** | Owner, Admin, or a role with **Cancel a Payment** |
| Plan | MJX Fees Management Basic and above | Every plan |

## How to refund a fee payment

> [!PATH] Apps › Fees › Payments

![Payments list with the Refund and Cancel buttons on a row marked](media/fees/refunds-1.jpg "Apps › Fees › Payments")

![Refund Payment window with Full refund and the Process Refund button marked](media/fees/refunds-2.jpg "Apps › Fees › Payments")

1. Open **Apps › Fees › Payments**. Find the payment using search (student, payment number, receipt number or reference) and the date filters.
2. On the row, press [[Refund]]. It only appears on **Completed** payments.
3. Check **Original Amount**.
4. Type the **Refund Amount**, or press [[Full refund]] to fill in the whole amount.
5. Choose **Refund Method**: **Original Method (same as payment)**, **Cash** or **Bank Transfer**.
6. Type the **Reason**. It is required and stays in the audit trail.
7. Press [[Process Refund]].

> [!SUCCESS]
> You see a message with the new refund number and amount. The **Refunded This Month** tile goes up, and the bill shows the money as owed again.

> [!WARNING]
> Pathshala does not send the money back for you, even when the parent paid online. Return it yourself — from your Razorpay or PhonePe dashboard, in cash, or by bank transfer — and choose the matching **Refund Method** so the day-book shows how it went out.

### Partial refunds

- You can refund less than the payment, and refund the same payment again later.
- The total refunded can never be more than the payment. If you try, Pathshala tells you how much is still available to refund and how much was already refunded.
- When the refunds add up to the whole payment, the payment's status changes to **Refunded**.

## How to cancel a payment

1. Open **Apps › Fees › Payments** and find the payment.
2. Press [[Cancel]] on the row.
3. Read the warning: the payment becomes cancelled, the bill's balance and status are worked out again, and this cannot be undone.
4. Type the **Reason** (required).
5. Press [[Cancel Payment]]. Press [[Back]] to leave without cancelling.

> [!SUCCESS]
> The payment shows **Cancelled**, and the bill's balance goes back up by that amount.

You cannot cancel a payment that was already refunded, or a cheque that bounced — a bounced cheque has already reopened the bill.

## What happens to the bill?

Pathshala works the bill out again from what is left: **payments received minus refunds**. So after a refund or cancel the bill becomes:

- **Paid** — if what is left still covers the total;
- **Partial** — if some money is still counted;
- **Pending** — if nothing is left and the due date is ahead;
- **Overdue** — if nothing (or only part) is left and the due date has passed.

The family will then show in your dues lists and fee reminders again for what they owe.

## Where to see refunds afterwards

| Place | What it shows |
|---|---|
| **Payments** | Status chips **Refunded** and **Cancelled**; the **Refunded This Month** tile; **Status** filter with **Cancelled** and **Refunded** |
| **Invoices** › open a bill | **Transaction History** with each **PAYMENT** and **REFUND** line, the refund number, "Via" the refund method, the original payment number and the reason; a fully refunded payment is marked **Fully Refunded** |
| **Fee Collection** dashboard | "Collected today" and "This month" are shown after refunds ("kept"), with "received − refunded" underneath |
| **Day-book** | Money in, **Refunded**, and the difference. A refund counts on the day it was paid back, and is credited to the person who processed it |

> [!NOTE]
> The day-book never changes a day you have already closed. A payment that was later refunded still counts on the day it arrived, marked "later refunded in full", and the refund counts on its own day.

## Who can refund or cancel?

| Action | Default | Permission to give it to another role |
|---|---|---|
| Refund | Owner only | **Manage Refunds** (included in the Accountant role) |
| Cancel a payment | Owner and Admin | **Cancel a Payment** |

The Cashier role can do neither — a cashier takes money but cannot give it back or change what a family owes. Set roles under **Sidebar › Settings › People & roles › Roles & permissions**.

Refunds need **MJX Fees Management Basic** or higher. Cancelling a payment works on every plan, including Forever Free.

## Course refunds are separate

If you sell online courses with MJX LMS, a course buyer's refund is handled under **Apps › MJX Learn › Refunds**, not here. This page is about fee bills.

## Tips

- Always write a reason someone else can understand in six months: "Duplicate entry — same cash counted twice on 3 Oct", not "mistake".
- Use **Cancel** the same day you spot a wrong receipt. Use **Refund** when the family actually gets money back.
- After a refund made through your gateway, keep the gateway's refund ID in the reason. It makes the bank match easy.

## Questions people ask

### What is the difference between cancelling and refunding a payment?

Cancel is for a receipt that should never have been made, such as a wrong student or a double entry. Refund is for money that really came in and is now being given back.

### Does a refund in Pathshala send money back through Razorpay or PhonePe?

No. Pathshala records the refund. You return the money yourself, from your gateway dashboard, in cash or by bank transfer.

### Can I refund only part of a payment?

Yes. Type a smaller amount. You can refund the same payment more than once until the full amount has been returned.

### Who can refund a payment?

The owner, and anyone whose role has Manage Refunds (the Accountant role does). Admins can cancel but cannot refund unless given that permission.

### Can I undo a cancel or a refund?

No. Both are final. If you made a mistake, record the payment again.