Documentation
Purchase Returns
Purchase Return is a controlled return-to-supplier process. It protects inventory and AP by basing return quantity/value on posted receipt history instead of allowing a free-form negative Purchase Order.
What Purchase Return protects
Purchase Return starts from a Supplier + Purchase Order source and resolves the posted Goods Receipt/Purchase Invoice context where available. It calculates what is still returnable using posted received quantity minus quantity already returned.
Return value is reversed from the original purchase snapshot proportionally to the quantity being returned, so current-day price/tax rules do not silently replace the commercial basis of the original transaction.
Screen tabs
| Tab | Purpose |
|---|---|
| General | Return number, Supplier, source Purchase Order, Return Date, resolved Goods Receipt/Purchase Invoice, Location, Return Reason and Notes. |
| Return / Delivery | Carrier/Transporter, Tracking/LR Number and confirmation/approval notes for physical dispatch context. |
| Price & Tax | Read-only original purchase currency/exchange rate/Price List/Pricing Source/tax snapshot plus editable Return Freight/Charges. |
| Accounting | Business Unit and Cost Center dimensions. |
| Lines | Source PO/GRN/Invoice line, Item/Batch, Received, Prior Return, Returnable, Return Qty, UOM and proportional commercial/tax reversal. |
General tab – fields and source locking
| Field | Requirement | Meaning / behavior |
|---|---|---|
| Purchase Return Number | Optional before save | Leave blank to allocate from the Purchase Return sequence. It becomes locked after save. |
| Supplier | Mandatory | Supplier receiving the returned goods. It becomes source-locked after the return is saved. |
| Purchase Order | Mandatory | Source order/receipt basis. It becomes source-locked after save. |
| Location Type / Location | Mandatory | Inventory location from which returned stock will be issued. |
| Return Reason | Mandatory | Business reason for the return. |
| Return Date | Operationally required | Business date of the return. |
| Posted Goods Receipt | Resolved / read-only | Posted receipt selected by the source snapshot. |
| Purchase Invoice | Resolved / read-only | Related Purchase Invoice where available for supplier-debit application. |
| Notes | Recommended | Operational detail supporting the return reason. |
Return Reason dropdown
| Value | Meaning / when to use |
|---|---|
| RETURN_TO_SUPPLIER | General supplier return when no more specific reason applies. |
| DAMAGED | Goods are damaged/unusable. |
| QUALITY_REJECTION | Goods fail quality inspection or acceptance criteria. |
| WRONG_ITEM | Supplier delivered an item different from the ordered requirement. |
| EXCESS_SUPPLY | Supplier delivered/accepted quantity above the requirement. |
| EXPIRED_OR_SHORT_SHELF_LIFE | Goods are expired or have unacceptable remaining shelf life. |
| SPECIFICATION_MISMATCH | Goods do not meet the required technical specification. |
| SUPPLIER_RECALL | Supplier requested return under recall/corrective action. |
| OTHER | Another documented reason; explain the exact circumstance in Notes. |
Lines – source quantity controls
| Column | Meaning / significance |
|---|---|
| Item / SKU / Batch | Read-only/source-linked identity of what was received. Batch is preserved where applicable. |
| Received | Posted received quantity found for the source line/batch. |
| Prior Return | Quantity already returned previously. |
| Returnable | Remaining quantity eligible for return after prior returns. |
| Return Qty | Quantity you are returning now. Must not exceed Returnable and must be greater than zero for at least one saved/processed line. |
| UOM | Source UOM used for the received and returned quantity. |
| Unit Price | Original/source commercial Unit Price. |
| Gross / Discount / Taxable / Tax / Line Total | Read-only proportional reversal values calculated from the original source snapshot. |
| Line Reason | Line-specific return reason where available. |
Draft source refresh behavior
When an existing Purchase Return is still Draft, the screen refreshes the source snapshot so Received, Previously Returned and Returnable values reflect the latest posted activity.
If a previously saved Draft line is no longer returned by the fresh source snapshot—for example because another transaction consumed the returnable quantity—the line is deliberately kept visible. This lets the user see and correct/delete the conflict instead of the UI silently hiding it.
Price & Tax tab – original purchase reversal
| Field | Behavior |
|---|---|
| Currency / Exchange Rate | Read-only values inherited from the original purchase context. |
| Price List | Read-only source Price List reference. |
| Pricing Source | Defaults to ORIGINAL_PURCHASE for return valuation context. |
| Tax Regime / Jurisdiction / Snapshot | Read-only source tax/GST context. |
| Tax Inclusive | Read-only source tax-inclusive state. |
| Return Freight / Charges | Editable return-level charge added to Return Total. |
Return / Delivery tab
| Field | Meaning / when to use |
|---|---|
| Carrier / Transporter | Transport party used for the physical return shipment. |
| Tracking / LR Number | Logistics/lorry-receipt/tracking reference for the return movement. |
| Confirmation / Approval Notes | Business notes attached to confirmation/approval context. |
Status lifecycle
| Status | Meaning / downstream state |
|---|---|
| DRAFT | Return is being prepared and source/return quantities can be reviewed. |
| APPROVED | Return is confirmed/approved and commercially locked. CONFIRMED is retained as a legacy server alias, but Approved is the canonical user state. |
| ISSUED | Return stock has been shipped/issued toward the supplier. |
| POSTED | Supplier Debit Note/AP completion has been posted and return traceability is complete. |
| CANCELLED | Return was cancelled before downstream posting made simple cancellation unsafe. |
Manual actions
| Action | When / effect |
|---|---|
| Apply | Saves Draft work and keeps the return open. |
| Preview Tax | Refreshes/reviews the original-purchase tax reversal snapshot. |
| Confirm / Approve | Commercially locks the Draft; label follows approval configuration. |
| Unconfirm | Returns an Approved return to Draft only while downstream Stock Issue dependency still allows it. |
| Post Stock Return | Creates/posts the Inventory Stock Issue that physically reduces stock for the supplier return. |
| Create Supplier Debit Note | Ensures the stock return is posted, then creates/posts the supplier debit and applies it against the source Purchase Invoice balance where possible. |
| Copy Return | Creates a new Draft using only quantities that are still returnable. |
| Cancel Return | Cancels only while downstream stock/AP effects have not crossed the cancellation boundary. |
| Traceability | Shows source and downstream documents/events/relationships. |
| Process Order | Runs the shared controlled Purchase Return orchestration through selectable remaining steps. |
Process Order – six controlled stages
| Step | What happens | Document / effect |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Confirm Purchase Return | Confirms/approves the return if not already done. | Purchase Return becomes commercially approved. |
| 2. Create Stock Issue | Creates a Draft Return-to-Supplier Stock Issue from the return lines. | Inventory Stock Issue. |
| 3. Ship Stock Issue | Ships the return Stock Issue. | Stock Issue advances to Shipped and Purchase Return can become Issued. |
| 4. Post Stock Issue | Posts inventory accounting for the return issue. | Inventory reduction plus posted inventory Journal Entry. |
| 5. Create Supplier Debit Note | Creates an AP Supplier Debit Note after the Stock Issue is posted with its inventory journal. | Supplier Debit Note in Draft/controlled state. |
| 6. Post Supplier Debit Note | Posts supplier debit, adjusts source Purchase Invoice balance where possible and completes traceability. | Posted AP supplier debit / completed return chain. |
Cancellation boundary
Simple Cancel Return is intentionally constrained once Inventory or AP posting has begun. At that point, the system has real stock/accounting effects and the correct remedy is a controlled reversal workflow, not changing the return header status.
Copy Return is safer than cloning an old quantity blindly because it uses only the quantity that remains returnable at the time of the copy.
Traceability
- Use Traceability to follow the Purchase Return back to its Purchase Order / Goods Receipt / Purchase Invoice context.
- Follow downstream links into the Return Stock Issue and Supplier Debit Note.
- Use Milestones for process state, Graph for document relationships, Events for timestamped lifecycle history and Relationships for quantity/amount links.
- Open linked source documents directly when the trace node has a routable document page.
Related pages
Frequently asked questions
Why can’t I return the full Purchase Order quantity?
Returnable quantity is based on posted received quantity minus quantity already returned, not the original ordered quantity.
Why are Supplier and Purchase Order locked after save?
They define the source snapshot. Changing them after lines exist could invalidate returnable quantity and financial reversal controls.
Why is Unit Price read-only on Purchase Return?
The return reverses value from the original purchase snapshot rather than inventing a new current purchase price.
What exactly does Create Supplier Debit Note do?
It requires/ensures the inventory return is posted, creates/posts the Supplier Debit Note and applies it to the source Purchase Invoice balance where possible.
Can Process Order handle the entire Purchase Return chain?
Yes. The shared workflow can progress through Confirm, Stock Issue create/ship/post, Supplier Debit create and Supplier Debit post, subject to blockers and consent.