Refund statuses: draft, pending, completed, cancelled

What are refund statuses?

Every refund document in Usystems moves through a lifecycle of statuses that reflect where it is in the approval and processing workflow. Understanding these statuses helps you track which refunds are ready, which are waiting for approval, and which are finalized.

The four statuses

Draft
The refund exists but has not yet been submitted for approval. You can edit or delete a draft refund freely. The customer's account is not affected while the refund is in draft status.

Pending
The refund has been submitted and is awaiting approval (if your system requires approval). The refund is locked and cannot be edited until the approval is completed. The customer's balance may be on hold during this stage, depending on your configuration.

Completed
The refund has been approved and finalized. All accounting entries are recorded. The customer's account is updated: their invoice balance is reduced or cleared. A completed refund cannot be edited or deleted—only cancelled.

Cancelled
The refund was reversed. This status is used when a completed refund must be undone (for example, if goods are re-returned or an error is corrected). A cancelled refund removes the accounting impact of the original refund.

Why it matters

The status tells you:

• Whether you can still edit or delete the refund (draft only)
• Whether the refund has affected the customer's account (pending and completed do)
• How to undo a mistake (cancel a completed refund, rather than delete)

Where you see it

When you view a refund document, its current status appears at the top. In the Refunds list, you can filter by status to find drafts, pending approvals, completed refunds, or cancelled refunds.

Open Refunds in Usystems