The quick answer
Open the credit memo while it's still Open with an Unapplied balance and click Refund. NetSuite opens a Customer Refund for that customer with the credit memo marked under Apply > Credits, and Refund Amount adds up the Payment on the lines you mark. Pick the Account the money comes out of, set Refund Method to Check, and either enter the Check # you already wrote or tick To Be Printed. Save, then reopen the credit memo. If you refunded the whole unapplied amount, it reads Fully Applied.
The screenshots show sample data. Person and operating-company names are fictional. Use your own records and values when following the steps.
Before you start
This is for a customer who has credit left on a credit memo and wants the money back instead of having it applied to a future invoice. In this example, credit memo CM-10482 for Harbor Lane Outfitters was for 600.00. 360.00 of it was already applied to an invoice, so 240.00 is still sitting there. The customer isn't ordering again, so the 240.00 goes back to them by check.
The credit memo has to exist already, with money still unapplied. You need a role with permission to view credit memos and create customer refunds. The example uses an A/R Clerk role, but what a role can do depends on how your account set it up. Know the account the refund should be paid from and whether the check was already written or still needs to be printed.
Your refund form may also require a department, class, or location, and in a multi-currency account the refund's currency has to match the credit. If the money came in as a customer deposit, it shows up under Deposits on the refund, not Credits.
01. Open the credit memo
Open the credit memo. Here that's CM-10482 for Harbor Lane Outfitters, dated 09/08/2026, with the memo "Returned display units". The status is Open and the Total is 600.00. On the Items subtab, Unapplied is 240.00 and Applied is 360.00.
The unapplied amount is what you can refund. While there's an unapplied balance, the credit memo shows a Refund button next to Edit and Back. If you don't see it, check your role's permissions and whether the credit is still Open.
02. Start the refund and check Apply
Click Refund. NetSuite opens a new Customer Refund with Customer set to Harbor Lane Outfitters. The customer's Balance shows 365.00 at this point. Date is 09/21/2026 and Posting Period is Sep 2026. Change them only if the refund belongs on another date or in another period, and that period has to be open for you to post to it.
Go to the Apply subtab. Under Credits 240.00, CM-10482 is ticked with Orig. Amt. 600.00, Amount Remaining 240.00, and Payment 240.00. Deposits is 0.00. Refund Amount in the header reads 240.00. You don't type it; it adds up the Payment amounts on the lines you mark.
Stop here if another credit is ticked or the Payment isn't the amount you mean to pay back. Lower the Payment on the line if you're refunding only part of the balance.
03. Choose the account
Account is where the money comes out. It's usually a bank account, but it can be Undeposited Funds. In this account it was already filled in with 1000 Operating Checking. Opening the list shows 1000 Operating Checking and 1010 Payroll Checking, and the refund stays on 1000 Operating Checking. What's in your list depends on your chart of accounts, subsidiary, and form.
04. Record the check
Open the Refund Method subtab. Refund Method already shows Check. The methods you can pick depend on your account's setup. This check was already written, so enter 5031 in Check # and leave To Be Printed clear.
Pick one. Enter a check number for a check you've already issued. If the check hasn't been printed yet, tick To Be Printed instead, which queues the refund for Print Checks and Forms. How the number gets assigned then depends on your check-printing setup.
05. Save and verify the refund
Click Save. The saved Customer Refund's header reads 5031 and Harbor Lane Outfitters, with the status Refunded. Check that Refund Amount is 240.00, Account is 1000 Operating Checking, Refund Method is Check, and Check # is 5031. On Apply, CM-10482 shows a Payment of 240.00.
In this example the customer's Balance goes from 365.00 to 605.00. The unapplied 240.00 credit had been reducing the customer's receivable balance. Once it's paid out as cash, it no longer does, so the balance goes up by the refunded amount. In a standard setup the refund debits Accounts Receivable and credits the account the check came from.
06. Confirm the credit is used up
Open CM-10482 again. It now reads Fully Applied, Unapplied is 0.00, Applied is 600.00, and the Refund button is gone. If you had refunded less than 240.00, the credit memo would still be Open with the rest unapplied.
Check the result
- Customer Refund 5031 is saved as Refunded for 240.00 from 1000 Operating Checking.
- Its Apply subtab shows CM-10482 with a Payment of 240.00.
- The customer's Balance went from 365.00 to 605.00.
- CM-10482 is Fully Applied, with Unapplied 0.00 and Applied 600.00.
Common questions
Where is the Refund button on a credit memo, and why is it missing?
It's in the row of buttons at the top of the saved credit memo, next to Edit and Back. It only shows while the credit memo has an unapplied balance. If the credit is Fully Applied, there's nothing left to refund and the button goes away. If the credit is still Open and you don't see it, check your role's permissions.
Why can't I type the Refund Amount on a customer refund?
NetSuite calculates it from the credits you mark on Apply > Credits. Here, marking CM-10482 with a Payment of 240.00 set Refund Amount to 240.00. To refund a different amount, change the Payment on the line.
Should I tick To Be Printed or enter a check number?
Enter the check number when the check has already been written, like 5031 here, and leave To Be Printed clear. Tick To Be Printed when the check still needs to be printed, and NetSuite queues the refund for check printing. Don't do both.
Why is my credit memo still Open after a refund?
Some of the credit is still unapplied. That happens when you refund less than the unapplied balance. In this example the full 240.00 was refunded, so CM-10482 went to Fully Applied with Applied 600.00 and Unapplied 0.00.
What is the GL impact of a customer refund?
In a standard setup the refund debits Accounts Receivable and credits the account it's paid from, here 1000 Operating Checking. The credit memo's item lines already posted the reduction to income when it was saved, so the refund doesn't touch income again.
Why did the customer's balance go up after the refund?
The unapplied credit was reducing the customer's balance. Once it's paid out, it doesn't reduce anything, so the balance goes up by the refunded amount. Here it went from 365.00 to 605.00 when the 240.00 check went out.