--- title: Set your return policy summary: Set the return window, approval limits, restocking fees, return reasons and the rules for returns without a receipt. id: set-your-return-policy type: how-to audience: - owner - manager areas: - refunds - settings since: "2.0" updatedAt: 2026-11-07T15:47:58.638Z release: 2.5.0 url: https://help.omviq.com/refunds/set-your-return-policy/ markdown: https://help.omviq.com/refunds/set-your-return-policy.md related: - refund-or-return-items - void-a-sale - check-voids-refunds-and-cashier-activity keywords: - return policy - return window - restocking fee - approval limits - no receipt - return reasons - refund limit - non-refundable lang: en --- # Set your return policy The return policy tells every terminal how to handle returns: how long customers have, who has to approve a return, what fees apply and whether you take returns without a receipt. You set it once and it applies to every terminal in your business. ## Before you start - Go to **Settings → Returns**. The page has three tabs: **Return Policy**, **Approval Rules** and **Restocking Fees**. - The settings apply to the whole business and affect every terminal. - Omviq checks the approval rules when it takes and completes a return. A terminal cannot skip them. - What your staff do at the till is described in [Refund or return items](https://help.omviq.com/refunds/refund-or-return-items/). ## Return Policy tab | Setting | What it does | Default | |---|---|---| | **Return Window** | The number of days after purchase that returns are accepted. | 30 days | | **Require Reason** | Whether staff must record a return reason. | Yes | | **Require Condition** | Whether staff must record the item's condition. | Yes | Inside the window, a return follows the normal flow. If you set no window, returns are accepted at any time. A return with a receipt that falls outside the window needs a manager. The till cannot collect that approval, so the return is refused and left open (see the limits below). ### Returns without a receipt The **Non-Receipted Returns** card decides whether you take a return when the customer has no receipt, and on what terms. It has its own **Save no-receipt settings** button. | Setting | What it does | Default | |---|---|---| | **Allow Non-Receipted Returns** | Lets you take returns without a receipt at all. When it is off, every return must name the sale it came from. | Off | | **Require government-issued ID** | The customer's ID type and number must be recorded on the return. | On | | **How to refund non-receipted returns** | Where the refund goes: store credit, gift card or cash. Never the original payment, because there is none. | Store credit | The refund for an item returned without a receipt is always its current catalog price times the quantity, with no tax. There is no sale to prove any tax was paid. The cashier picks the product from the catalog, and the price is never typed in. Only an item the catalog sells by count can be returned without a receipt. An item sold by weight, or one whose catalog entry does not say how it is sold, is refused with a message saying so. ## Approval Rules tab Every rule that decides whether a return needs a manager is on the **Approval limits** card. It has its own **Save approval limits** button. | Rule | A manager must approve a return when... | Default | |---|---|---| | **Maximum refund without approval** | the refund is above this amount. | 100.00 | | **No-Receipt Requires Approval** | it has no receipt. | On | | **No-Receipt Hard Cap** | A return without a receipt above this amount is refused outright, approval or not. 0 means no cap. | 0 | | **Alternate tender requires approval** | a return with a receipt is refunded to a different payment type than the sale was paid with. | On | | **Per-operator daily refund cap** | the cashier's refunds today would pass this amount. 0 means no cap. | 0 | | **Item conditions that need a manager** | any item comes back in one of the ticked conditions. | None | | **Return reasons that need a manager** | any item is returned for one of the ticked reasons. | None | Below the rules, the **Manager override** switches say, rule by rule, whether a manager may approve past it. With a switch off, a return that meets that rule is refused rather than sent to a manager. **Know the limits.** A manager can approve a return at the till when it needs approval because of its amount, or because it has no receipt. A return with a receipt that needs a manager for any other reason cannot be approved at the till. That covers the item's condition, the return reason, a different payment type and the return window. Omviq refuses the return and leaves it open. Leave the **Item conditions that need a manager** and **Return reasons that need a manager** lists empty for this reason. ### Products that cannot be refunded A product the catalog marks as not refundable is refused at every return, with or without a receipt, and the refusal names the item. If the catalog cannot be reached, the return is refused as temporarily unavailable rather than taken unchecked. ## Restocking Fees tab Restocking fees come off the refund automatically, by item condition. You can change each percentage. | Condition | Description | Restockable | Default fee | |---|---|---|---| | **New** | Unopened, original packaging intact | Yes | 0% | | **Opened** | Opened but works, all parts present | Yes, after inspection | 15% | | **Damaged** | Physically damaged | No, needs manager review | 25% | | **Defective** | A manufacturing defect | No, a warranty claim | 0% | The fee is a percentage of the item's original price. It shows in the refund summary before the return is submitted, and the customer sees it on their return receipt. A manager can waive it on a single return. ## Return reasons Omviq starts with these reasons: Customer changed mind, Wrong item received, Defective product, Damaged in shipping and Not as described. You can delete any of them and add your own. Manage them under **Settings → Returns → Return Policy tab → Return Reasons**. ## What happens to the item Staff record a disposition for each item. Omviq suggests one from the condition, and staff can change it before they submit. | Disposition | What happens | Stock | |---|---|---| | **Restock** | The item goes back on the shelf for resale. | Stock goes up. | | **Damage Out** | The item leaves sellable stock and is kept for records. | Sellable stock is unchanged. | | **Destroy** | The item is written off. | Sellable stock is unchanged. | Suggested: New and Opened go to Restock, Damaged to Damage Out and Defective to Destroy. ## What each return records | Recorded | Details | |---|---| | Who processed it | The staff member's name | | When | The time of each status change | | Original order | A link to the original sale | | Items returned | Which items, quantities and conditions | | Dispositions | What happened to each item | | Refund amount | The gross amount, restocking fees and the net refund | | Approval chain | Who approved or rejected it, with the time | ## If something goes wrong | What you see | What to do | |---|---| | A cashier cannot complete a return with a receipt and it is left open | It may need an approval the till cannot collect: the item's condition, the return reason, a different payment type or the return window. Check the lists above and your **Manager override** switches. | | Staff are not offered returns without a receipt | **Allow Non-Receipted Returns** is off. Turn it on and choose **Save no-receipt settings**. | | A refund is refused for a product | The catalog marks the product as not refundable. Change it in the catalog if that is wrong. | | Staff say the refund amount looks wrong | A refund is based on the price actually paid, after discounts, minus any restocking fee, plus the tax refund. | ## Related pages - [Refund or return items](https://help.omviq.com/refunds/refund-or-return-items/) - [Void a sale](https://help.omviq.com/refunds/void-a-sale/) - [Check voids, refunds and cashier activity](https://help.omviq.com/reports/check-voids-refunds-and-cashier-activity/)