Daily operations
Returns and refunds: give money back for part or all of a sale
For shop owners and cashiers who need to take goods back or refund a customer — how to refund some items or a whole order, put returns back on the shelf, and how refunds show in the cash drawer and reports.
5 min read · Updated October 6, 2026
A customer brings back two of the five hinges they bought on Saturday. Voiding the sale would pretend it never happened. A refund records what really did: the sale on Saturday, and the money going back today.
How do I refund a customer in Kasenso?
Go to POS → menu → Return / Refund, find the sale by its order number, and choose how many of each item are coming back. Kasenso works out the amount, including the item's share of any discount and tax, and an admin approves it. The refund prints like a receipt.
Refund some or all of a sale
- Open Return / Refund. Recent sales from the last 14 days are listed; for an older one, type the order number from the customer's receipt and tap Find.
- For each item coming back, type how many — or tap All to return the lot. Goods sold by the metre or kilo take amounts like 1.5.
- Leave Put back on the shelf ticked if the item can be sold again. Untick it for anything damaged or opened.
- Pick a reason if you like — Faulty, Changed mind, Wrong item — and how the money goes back. It starts on the way the customer paid.
- Tap Refund. An admin enters their email and password to approve it, the same as a void.
The refund receipt says REFUND, names the original order, and can be printed or sent like any other receipt.
You can refund the same sale more than once — two hinges today, the rest next week — but never more than was bought. Each item shows how many are left to return.
How much does the customer get back?
What they paid for those items, not the shelf price. Kasenso takes each item's share of the order discount off, and adds its share of any tax charged on top.
| The sale | Returned | Refund |
|---|---|---|
| 3 boxes of screws at $5.50 + a hinge at $4.00 = $20.50 | 1 box of screws | $5.50 |
| The same, with a 10% order discount ($18.45 paid) | 1 box of screws | $4.95 ($5.50 less 10%) |
| The same, with 12% tax added on top ($22.96 paid) | The hinge | $4.48 ($4.00 + $0.48 tax) |
Refunding everything that's left always returns exactly the rest of what was paid, so several small refunds on one sale add up to its total to the cent.
What does a refund do to stock, the drawer and reports?
Stock. Items put back on the shelf go back on their stock count, with a "Returned on order #…" line in Inventory → History. Only goods you stock can go back: a returned meal is not ingredients again, so it never restocks.
Cash drawer. A cash refund comes off the drawer's expected cash, so the shift closes even. Don't also record it as a cash out.
Reports. A refund counts on the day it happens, not the day of the sale. It lowers that day's sales, the takings for the payment method it went back by, and profit. It isn't counted as an order. The Manager's Daily Report shows the day's refunds on their own line.
Profit. If the item goes back on the shelf, its cost comes back out of cost of goods, so profit falls only by the margin you'd made. If it doesn't (damaged goods), the cost stays — that loss is real.
Refund or void?
| Void | Refund | |
|---|---|---|
| Means | The sale never happened | The sale happened; money went back later |
| Amount | The whole order | Any items, any amount, more than once |
| Shows in reports | Removed from sales | A negative sale on the day of the refund |
| Stock | All of it goes back | Only what you put back on the shelf |
Void a sale rung up by mistake. Refund one the customer really made. Once a sale has a refund on it, it can no longer be voided — see void orders.
Frequently asked questions
Who can give a refund?
Anyone allowed into Void Orders & Refunds under Staff can start one, and an admin approves every refund with their own email and password. The refund records who rang it up and which admin approved it. Set access under staff permissions.
Can I refund only part of an order?
Yes. Choose how many of each item are coming back; the rest of the sale stays as it was. You can refund the same order again later, up to what was bought. Each item shows how many can still be returned.
Can I refund in cash when the customer paid by card?
Yes. Under "Give the money back by", pick any payment method your shop takes. A cash refund comes off the drawer's expected cash; a card refund comes off card takings for the day. It starts on the method the customer paid with.
Why is the refund less than the price on the shelf?
Because the order had a discount. A refund gives back what the customer actually paid for those items: the shelf price less the item's share of the order discount, plus its share of any tax added on top.
Does a refund change last week's sales?
No. A refund is recorded on the day the money goes back, so last week's report stays as it was and today's shows the refund. That keeps closed shifts and past reports matching the cash that was really in the drawer.
Can I undo a refund?
No. A refund can't be voided. If one was made by mistake, ring the items up again as a new sale. That keeps the record of what happened, in order, with who approved each step.