Refund {#payments-intro-processing-credit}
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Refunds are payment refunds from a merchant to the cardholder after a cardholder pays for a product or service and that payment is captured by the merchant. When a refund request is successful, the issuer transfers funds from the merchant bank (acquirer) account to the customer's account. It typically takes 2 to 4 days for the acquirer to transfer funds from your merchant account.  
There are two types of refunds: a *follow-on refund* that is linked to an original capture or sale, and a *stand-alone credit* that is not linked to an original capture or sale.

> WARNING
> You should carefully control access to your refund and credit services. Do not request this service directly from your customer interface. Instead, incorporate this service as part of your customer service process. This process reduces the potential for fraudulent transactions.

Follow-on Refund
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Refunds, also known as *follow-on refunds*, use the capture request ID to link the refund to the original transaction. This request ID is returned during the capture request (also known as a *settlement*) and is used in all subsequent refunds associated with the original capture. The request ID links the transaction to the customer's billing and account information, so you are not required to include those fields in the refund request.
When you combine a request for a refund with a request for another service, such as the tax calculation service, you must provide the customer's billing and account information.  
Unless otherwise specified, refunds must be requested within 180 days of a settlement. You can request multiple follow-on refunds against a single capture or sale transaction as long as the total amount does not exceed the original purchase amount. To perform multiple follow-on refunds, use the same request ID in each request.

Stand-Alone Credits
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Stand-alone credits are not connected to an original transaction. Stand-alone credits do not have a time restriction, and they can be used to issue refunds more than 180 days after a transaction settlement.

Refund and Credit Workflow {#payments-intro-processing-credit-workflow}
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This workflow applies to follow-on credits, also known as refunds, and stand-alone credits. It begins when you send a request for a refund or credit.  
Refunds and credits do not happen in real time. All of the credit requests for a day are typically placed in a file and sent to the processor as a single *batch* transaction. In most cases, the batch transaction is settled overnight.  
![](/content/dam/documentation/cybs/en-us/topics/payments-processing/card-processing/payments/images/payments-credit-660x225.svg/jcr:content/renditions/original)

1. The merchant sends the refund or credit request to `Visa Acceptance Solutions`.
2. For online refunds and credits, `Visa Acceptance Solutions` validates the order information then sends the request to the payment processor. For offline refunds and credits, `Visa Acceptance Solutions` stores the request in a batch file and sends the batch file to the payment processor after midnight.
3. The processor validates the request and forwards it to the acquiring bank.
4. The acquiring bank transfers funds to the issuing bank.

IMPORTANT Not all processors support stand-alone credits.