Refunds
Issue a full or partial refund. Card refunds go through Stripe; manual-payment refunds are recorded directly.
When you need to return money to a client, Hoursmith handles refunds against a payment — full or partial, depending on what you've collected.
- Role
- OwnerAdmin
Only an Owner or Admin can issue a refund.
How refunds work
- Card payments are refunded through Stripe on your connected account.
- Manual payments (bank transfer, cash) are recorded directly in Hoursmith — you return the money your own way, then log the refund so the invoice stays accurate.
A refund can be the full payment or a partial amount.
Issue a refund
Open the invoice
Open the invoice with the payment you want to refund.
Choose the payment and refund
Pick the payment and choose to refund it. Enter a full or partial amount.
Confirm
Confirm the refund. For a card payment, Hoursmith refunds it through Stripe; for a manual payment, the refund is recorded directly.
After a refund, the invoice's amounts and payment history update to reflect what's been returned. In the client portal, a refunded invoice shows a Refunded status.
Multiple and partial refunds
You can issue more than one partial refund against the same payment — each one reduces the balance by exactly its own amount, and the invoice flips to Refunded only when everything is returned. If a refund ever doesn't reconcile the way you expect, contact support and we'll help you sort it out.
Troubleshooting
- The refund option isn't available. Refunds are Owner/Admin only. Check your role with Roles explained.
- A card refund didn't reach the client. Card refunds settle on Stripe's timeline; check the payment in your Stripe dashboard, then see Payments troubleshooting.
Payment methods
Configure named card and bank-transfer methods, choose which appear on each invoice, and add an optional processing fee (percentage or flat) to any method.
Payments troubleshooting
Fix common payment problems — missing Pay button, Stripe setup, card fees, refunds, and broken invoice links.