Introduction

Business Center supports two ways to return funds to a cardholder:

• Linked Refund (follow-on credit) — tied to the original transaction ID and permitted up to 365 days after authorization.
• Stand-Alone Credit (SAC) — a new credit that is not linked to a prior sale; required for transactions older than 365 days.

Some merchant profiles are still set to a legacy 180-day limit; when that limit is reached the Refund button disappears even though a linked refund is still possible within 365 days. Use the steps below to determine which method to use and how to proceed.

Procedure

Determine the Age of the Original Transaction

1. Sign in to Business Center and open the transaction detail.
2. Note the Authorization Date.
3. Calculate the number of days from the authorization date to today.

Select the Appropriate Refund Method

Transaction age ≤ 365 days

• Refund button visible → Click Refund and submit the linked refund.
• Refund button NOT visible → Your profile is likely still set to the 180-day limit. Contact Support and request “Enable 365-day linked refunds for merchant <your ID>.” After confirmation, refresh the transaction page and complete the refund.

Token note: The original payment token (if any) is automatically reused in a linked refund. No PAN entry is required.

Partial Refunds & Amount Limits

For Linked Refunds (follow-on credits), you can issue partial refunds for any amount up to the original authorized total. Multiple partial refunds can be processed as long as the total does not exceed that original amount.

⚠️ Note: This rule does not apply to Stand-Alone Credits (SACs). Because SACs are unlinked to any prior sale, they do not follow the same refund amount restrictions as linked refunds. SACs require full card details (PAN & expiry) and are treated as new credit transactions.

Transaction age > 365 days

A linked refund is no longer possible. Choose one of the following:

• Stand-Alone Credit via Virtual Terminal (requires PAN & expiry).
• Stand-Alone Credit via API (requires PAN & expiry).
• Alternate method — issue check, cash, or store credit.

Token note: SACs cannot be sent with network or TMS tokens. You must provide the actual PAN and expiration date.

Submit a Stand-Alone Credit (only if > 365 days)

1. Confirm that SAC / Purchase Return Authorization is enabled on your merchant account.
2. Gather card number, expiration month/year, cardholder name, billing address, email, amount, and currency.
3. Choose your submission method:
   • Virtual Terminal — see Knowledge Article 000002947.
   • API — POST /pts/v2/credits (REST) or set ccCreditService_run="true" (SOAP).
4. Confirm that the processor response code indicates an approval before notifying the cardholder.

Refund Method Comparison

Need Help?

For additional assistance, see the support article: Support – How to Contact Client Services