Returns
Handling a customer return in ianaiERP is really two separate questions: does the item come back to your shelf, and does the customer get their money back. These are handled by different documents that don't automatically trigger each other — crediting a customer doesn't put anything back in stock, and putting stock back doesn't reduce what you owe the customer. Understanding that split is the key to using this feature correctly.
The documents involved
There's no single "Return" form. Five real documents cover this area, plus one action that creates a Sales Order instead of its own record:
Inventory side — getting the item back, or dealing with it:
- RMA – Authorizes and tracks what a customer is sending back. Nothing moves yet.
- Restock – Records that the returned goods physically arrived and puts them back into stock.
- Repair – Sends received goods to a repair process instead of straight back to stock, with its own components, cost tracking, and completion flow.
- Replace – Not a form, an action on a received RMA line. It creates a new, zero-priced Sales Order for a replacement item. See the Replace section on the RMA page.
Money side — independent of the inventory side:
- Credit Memo – Issues an account credit to the customer, which they can apply to future invoices.
- Refund – Pays cash back to the customer immediately from a bank/cash account, with nothing left to apply later.
You can raise a Credit Memo or Refund straight from an Invoice or a Shipment with no RMA at all — an RMA is not a required first step, just the recommended one when you want the return itself tracked and authorized.
Where to Access
These live under the Service area of the left sidebar (RMA, Restock, Repair, Credit Memo, and Refund are separate items there — there's no single "Return" menu).
You can also start a Credit Memo or Refund directly from:
- An Invoice, row action menu
- A Shipment, from its tracking/return action
- A Customer's transaction history
And you can start an RMA directly from a Shipment's tracking screen, which pre-fills the customer and items.
How the Documents Connect
- A Restock or Repair linked to an RMA line automatically increases that line's Returned (or Repaired) quantity — this is what moves the RMA's status forward. There's no manual "mark as returned" step separate from actually restocking or repairing the item.
- Credit Memo and Refund can be linked to an RMA, but don't have to be — they're equally reachable from an Invoice or Shipment with no RMA involved.
- Nothing here happens automatically end-to-end: authorizing a return (RMA), returning it to stock (Restock), and refunding the money (Credit Memo/Refund) are three separate, deliberate steps.
Settings That Affect This Workflow
- RMA due date default – how many days out a new RMA's due date is set, unless you override it.
- Auto-close on Credit / Auto-close on Refund – if turned on, an RMA's related lines close automatically once a Credit Memo or Refund is issued against them, instead of requiring a manual Close.
- Location, lot, serial, and class tracking – whichever of these your company has enabled determines which of those fields actually appear on RMA/Restock lines.
- Default tax code – used when tax isn't specified elsewhere on a line.
- Repair auto-complete – if turned on, a Repair can move to Complete automatically rather than requiring a manual step; ask your admin whether this is on for your company.
Common Problems
- "I issued a Credit Memo but the item is still counted as out of stock." Expected — a Credit Memo never touches inventory. You need a Restock (or Repair) for the item to come back into stock.
- "I restocked the item but the customer still shows a balance owed." Expected — Restock never touches money. You need a Credit Memo or Refund to actually credit or pay the customer.
- "I don't see a restocking fee field." There isn't a dedicated one — add it as a regular line item (e.g., an item or account called "Restocking Fee") on the Credit Memo.
Best Practices
- Start with an RMA when you want the return itself tracked and authorized — but remember it's not required for Credit Memo/Refund.
- Use the RMA's Due Date to set expectations on how long customers have to send items back.
- Record restocking or return-freight charges as ordinary line items on the Credit Memo so they show up cleanly in your accounting.
- If your company relies on Auto-close settings, don't also manually close RMAs — let the setting do it to avoid confusion about why a line closed.
- Use Repair (not Restock) whenever a returned item needs work before it's sellable again — its component and cost tracking is built for that; Restock assumes the item goes straight back onto the shelf.