Understanding Credit Notes

View and download credit notes generated from cancellations, refunds, and credit withdrawals.

Updated at August 17th, 2026

Table of Contents

Accessing Credit Notes Understanding the Credit Notes Table Credit Note Action Types Viewing a Credit Note

A credit note is a financial document issued when an enrolment or original invoice needs to be adjusted. In Academy, credit notes are generated automatically when an enrolment is cancelled, transferred, refunded, or when a credit withdrawal is processed. Each credit note is linked to the original invoice it relates to, providing a clear audit trail for your finance records. Credit notes cancel the revenue out of the program for which it was originally collected.

 

Credit notes can be viewed, filtered, and exported from the Transactions section, and individual credit notes can be downloaded as PDF documents.

 

Note: to access credit notes, you must have either the Finance or Finance Admin role.

This is managed via the user profile, under the Finance & Sales tab. For more information, visit our help article on Managing Sales and Finance Permissions. 

 

 

Accessing Credit Notes

Navigate to Sales & Finance in the left-hand panel, then select Transactions. The Transactions section is organised into several views:

View

Description

All Transactions

A combined list of all transaction types, including invoices and credit notes.

Credit Notes

A filtered view showing only credit note transactions. This is the primary view for reviewing and managing credit notes.

Voided

Transactions that have been voided.

Write Offs

Transactions that have been written off.

Select Credit Notes from the left-hand sub-menu to see all credit notes. The number of credit notes is displayed as a badge next to the menu item.

 

Understanding the Credit Notes Table

The credit notes table displays a summary of each credit note. You may need to scroll horizontally to see all columns.

Column

Description

Document Number

The unique credit note identifier (e.g. CRD00000073).

Transaction Date

The date the credit note was created.

Related Invoice

The original invoice number that this credit note relates to (e.g. LLL00002884).

Purchaser

The name and email address of the original purchaser.

Sub Total

The credit note amount before tax.

Discount

The discount percentage applied, if any.

Discount Amount

The dollar value of any discount applied.

Tax %

The tax rate applied (e.g. 10.00%).

Tax

The tax amount on the credit note.

Total Amount

The full credit note amount including tax.

Currency

The currency of the credit note (e.g. AUD).

Billing Entity

The billing entity associated with the transaction.

Action

The type of action that generated the credit note (Refund, Transfer, or Withdrawal).

Status

The current status of the credit note.

 

Credit Note Action Types

Each credit note shows under ‘Action Type’ the way in which credited amount was handled.

Action

Description
Void

Unpaid invoices can be “voided”. This means that the invoice is no longer valid. If there is a Stripe link on the invoice, this link can no longer be used to pay the invoice. If an invoice is voided, a credit note is issued for the full amount of the original invoice.

Transfer

The participant has transferred to another program. A credit note is issued for the original enrolment. If the new program price is more expensive than the original amount paid, the purchaser must pay the balance, but if the new program is less expensive, then the balance can either be applied to their account as a credit on hold, or refunded, depending on the purchase terms.

 

If transfer fees have been applied (as per the purchase terms), this will be reflected in a separate invoice.

Withdrawal

The participant has withdrawn. A credit note is issued for the full amount of the original enrolment. The purchase price (less any fees applied as part of the purchase terms) can either be applied to the purchaser's account as a credit on hold, or refunded, depending on the purchase terms.

 

If withdrawal fees have been applied, this will be reflected in a separate invoice.
Substitution A participant has been withdrawn and another person is attending in their place. In this case, a credit note is issued for the full amount paid for the original participant, and a new invoice is issued with the name of the new participant. While no money is refunded or credited, this ensures the financial documents accurately reflect the name of the participant who attended.

 

Viewing a Credit Note

To view the full details of a credit note, click the View button next to any credit note in the table. This opens the credit note detail page.

A Download Credit Note button is also available at the top of the page, allowing you to download the credit note as a PDF document.

 

Searching and Filtering

The credit notes view includes several tools to help you find specific credit notes.

  • Search bar – search by document number, purchaser name, or other details.
  • Billing Entities dropdown – filter credit notes by a specific billing entity.
  • Filter icon – click to access advanced filtering options, organised into two categories:
    • Transaction Attributes – filter by document number, transaction type, transaction status, payment status, total amount, payment method, purchase order number, transaction date, issue date, due date, or payment date.
    • Purchaser Attributes – filter by the purchaser’s first name, last name, email address, or customer name.

 

Exporting Credit Note Data

To export credit note data, click the Export button in the top-right corner of the credit notes table. This exports all credit notes currently displayed, taking into account any active filters.

To customise which fields are included in the export, click the Report Fields button. This opens a panel where you can select or deselect fields across five categories:

  • Transaction Information – document number, transaction UUID, order type, transaction type and sub type, transaction action, related invoice, total programs and enrolments purchased, purchase order number, currency, and billing entity.
  • Dates – transaction date, issue date, due date, and payment date.
  • Financial Details – subtotal, discount, discount percentage, subtotal after discount, tax percentage, tax, total credit applied, total amount, and Stripe fee details.
  • Payment Details – payment method, payment status, and transaction status.
  • Purchaser Information – purchaser name, preferred name, email address, customer code, and customer name.

Click Done to save your field selections, then click Export to generate the export file.

 

 

Downloading Individual Credit Notes

To download a single credit note as a PDF, open the credit note by clicking View, then click the Download Credit Note button at the top of the page. This generates a PDF version of the credit note that can be saved, printed, or shared with the customer.

 

Related Features

Credit notes are closely linked to several other features in Academy:

  • Refund Requests – when a credit note has a Withdrawal action, part of the amount may be transferred to a refund request. Refund requests are managed under Sales & Finance > Refund Requests.
  • Credits On Hold – when a credit note has a Transfer or Withdrawal action, the credited amount (or part of it) is transferred to a credit on hold. Credits on hold are managed under Sales & Finance > Credits On Hold.
  • Original Invoices – each credit note links back to its original invoice via the Original Invoice Number field. Click the invoice number on any credit note to view the original invoice.

Note: to learn more about credit notes and these related features, watch the Guroo Academy | Finance Tools video on Youtube.

 

Required Permissions

To view and export credit notes, a user must have the Finance Admin role assigned.

To check or update a user’s role, go to User Admin, select the user, then navigate to the Finance & Sales tab.