Who this is for: Admins Only
Before you start, you'll need:
At least one patient payment on the invoice — refunds cannot be issued without an existing patient payment.
Steps
1. Open the invoice
Navigate to Billing and open the invoice you want to refund.
2. Locate the payment
Scroll to the Payment and Credit History section. This section shows all patient payments, insurance payments, and previously issued refunds in one table, sorted oldest to newest. Locate the patient payment you want to refund.
3. Open the refund modal
Click the three-dot menu (⋮) on the payment row and select Refund.
4. Complete the refund details
Field | Notes |
Refund Date | Defaults to today's date. Locked when issuing a Stripe (credit card) refund. |
Refund Reason | Optional. Options: Requested by Customer, Prescription Issue, Lab Error, Quality Issue, Duplicate, Fraudulent, Other. |
Notes | Optional free-text field for internal notes. |
5. Enter refund amounts by line item
The line item table shows each charge on the invoice:
Column | Description |
CPT/HCPCS | Billing code |
Description | Service or item name |
Amount Paid | Amount paid toward this line item via the selected payment |
Previously Refunded | Any amount already refunded for this line item |
Total Refund | The amount you want to refund for this line item |
Enter amounts manually in the Total Refund column, or click Refund Original Payment to automatically fill all line items with the remaining refundable balance. The Total Amount to Refund calculates automatically at the bottom.
6. Issue the refund
Click Issue Refund. The button remains disabled until the total is greater than $0.00.
If the original payment was made via Stripe (credit card), this message appears above the button before you confirm: "This action will automatically refund the original payment method for this invoice. Credit card refunds may take 5–10 business days."
What you'll see when it works
The Payment and Credit History section updates immediately to reflect the refund. For Stripe refunds, funds typically appear on the patient's card statement within 5–10 business days depending on their bank.
Troubleshooting
I don't see a Refund option on the payment row.
At least one patient payment must exist on the invoice to issue a refund. Insurance payments are not eligible for refunds through Barti — contact the payer directly to coordinate any financial adjustments.
The Stripe refund failed.
Barti displays a plain-language error message. Common errors include:
"Your Stripe account has an insufficient balance to cover this refund."
"This payment cannot be refunded because too much time has elapsed since the payment was captured."
"Stripe could not route this refund to the original card because this original payment is no longer valid."
"This payment has already been refunded in full. Please check your Stripe dashboard."
Note the error message and contact Barti Support if you need assistance.
Can I issue a partial refund on a line item?
Yes — enter an amount less than the full Amount Paid value in the Total Refund column for that line item.
The patient made more than one payment. Can I refund both?
Yes. Each payment appears as a separate row in Payment and Credit History. Open the three-dot menu on each payment row individually and issue a refund for each one as needed.
What is the unapplied funds row in the line item table?
If the invoice has unapplied funds — credits with no charge assigned — they appear as a separate line item in the refund table so they can be included in a refund if needed.