Supplier Returns

Send goods back to a supplier, take them out of stock, and record the credit the supplier gives you.

You do this in the Web admin, under Inventory > Supplier Returns. The screen is called Supplier Returns (RMA), and each return gets an RMA number when you create it.

How a return moves

A return goes through these steps: Draft, Submitted, Approved, Shipped, Completed. Stock goes down when you mark the return as shipped. The supplier's credit is recorded when you complete it. Every return goes through Submit and Approve, whatever Supplier returns require approval is set to in Settings > Inventory.

Create a return

1. Open the form
   Go to Inventory > Supplier Returns and click New Return.
2. Fill in Return Details

   Choose the Supplier and the Warehouse the goods are leaving. Both are required. Return Date starts as today. Notes are optional.

   Related Purchase Order cannot be set: the list only offers -- None --, and a choice made later while editing is not saved.

   Click Create Return. The return opens as a Draft.

3. Add the items

   Under Return Items, click Add Item (or Add First Item). For each item:

   • Product: pick it from the list.
   • Quantity: how much goes back, in the product's base unit (the unit stock is kept in). There is no unit selector.
   • Unit Price: the price per unit. Quantity times Unit Price gives the line total, and the sum of the lines is the return's Total Value, which is offered as the credit amount later.
   • Return Reason (required): Defective, Wrong Item, Damaged, Excess/Overstocked, Expired, Quality Issue, Not As Described or Other.
   • Reason Notes: optional details.

   Click Add Item. Repeat for each product. While the return is a Draft you can edit or remove a line with the icons at the end of its row.

4. Submit
   Click Submit and confirm. The button appears only once the return has at least one item. The status becomes Submitted.
5. Approve
   Open the return and click Approve, or click Reject and type a Rejection Reason. A rejected return shows the reason and cannot be submitted again; create a new one.
6. Ship
   When the goods leave, click Ship. Tracking Number and Carrier Name are optional. Click Mark as Shipped. The stock is taken out now, and the tracking details appear under Shipping Information.
7. Complete
   When the supplier has credited you, click Complete. Type the supplier's Credit Note Number and check the Credit Amount, which starts as the return's total value. Click Complete Return. The details appear under Credit Information.

What happens to stock

Nothing changes until you click Mark as Shipped. At that point the on-hand quantity of each item in the return's warehouse goes down by the quantity on the line. Because Cancel is no longer offered once a return is Shipped, check the items before you ship. If goods come back to you after that, receive them again with a direct receipt, or see Stock Movements for how to change stock.

The supplier's credit note

When you complete a return with a Credit Amount above zero, a credit note for that amount is created for the supplier. It appears under Inventory > Credit Notes with the reason "Goods returned on" followed by the RMA number. The credit reduces what you owe only after you apply it to a bill. How to apply it is explained in Supplier Bills. If you complete the return with a Credit Amount of 0, no credit note is created.

Statuses and buttons

The buttons depend only on the status. Everyone who can open the Supplier Returns screen sees them.

Troubleshooting

There is no Submit button

The return has no items yet. Click Add Item and add at least one product.

"Only draft supplier returns can be edited."

The return has already been submitted. Cancel it and create a new one, or let it be approved and shipped as it is.

"Rejection reason is required"

Type a reason before you click Reject Return.

The supplier is not in the list

The Supplier list leaves out suppliers whose Supplier type is Services only - no stock. Open the supplier under Inventory > Suppliers and change the type if they also deliver goods.

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