---
title: How do I refund a duplicate payment?
url: https://docs.maxio.com/accounting/accounting-invoices/invoice-lifecycle/how-do-i-refund-a-duplicate-payment
applies_to: "Maxio Core, Maxio Payments"
updated: 2026-10-27
---

# How do I refund a duplicate payment?

Refund a duplicate payment from Maxio, not separately in QuickBooks. Refund it to the original payment method through Maxio Payments, or record a manual refund receipt if you're refunding an invoice payment by check.

## Scenario

“A customer paid the same invoice twice, once by check and once by ACH. The ACH payment was never applied. How do we refund it, and do we do that in Maxio or in QuickBooks?”

## Refund to the original payment method

Use Maxio Payments to return the money to the original payment method.

**To refund a Maxio Payments payment**

1. Open the payment you want to refund.
2. From the **Payment** dropdown, select **Create Maxio Payments Refund**.
3. Enter the refund amount, up to the full payment, and submit it.

Maxio sends the request to the payment processor and shows the refund as pending until it completes. The money goes back to the original source, such as the bank account an ACH payment came from. A payment that was never applied to an invoice can still be refunded this way.

## Refund by check instead

If you're returning money that was paid on an invoice by check, record the refund in Maxio: open the original invoice, open its actions menu, and select **Create Manual Refund Receipt**. Issue the check itself outside Maxio.

> **Important:** A Refund Receipt reverses revenue as well as cash, because it refunds the invoice's line items. Use it only when the invoice itself should be reversed. A duplicate payment that was never applied created no extra revenue, so don't return it with a Refund Receipt. Refund it through Maxio Payments as described above, or contact Maxio Support if it has to go back by check.

## Keep QuickBooks in step

Don't create a separate refund in QuickBooks. Your QuickBooks Online sync records the refund through its **Send Refund Receipt** step.

> Refund Receipts are available for QuickBooks Online, not QuickBooks Desktop.