This article covers how to configure your return policies — including the return window, item eligibility, restocking fees, return reasons, and the powerful conditional policies engine that lets you create different rules for different scenarios.
Navigate to Returns > Settings and find the Return Policies section.
Return Window
The return window defines how many days after delivery a customer has to initiate a return.
Enter the number of days in the Return window field (e.g., 30 days).
This is calculated from the delivery date of the shipment, not the order date.
Items outside the return window will be shown as ineligible on the customer portal.
Conditional return windows: You can create policies to set different return windows for specific products or scenarios. For example, give holiday orders a 60-day return window, or limit sale items to 14 days.
Return Eligibility
By default, all items are eligible for return as long as they're within the return window and haven't already been returned. You can create eligibility conditions to exclude specific items from being returned.
Common use cases:
Exclude items with certain product tags (e.g., "final-sale," "non-returnable")
Exclude items from specific collections or categories
Exclude items below a certain value
To set up eligibility conditions:
In the Return eligibility section, click Add a condition.
Select your rule conditions (e.g., Product Tags contains "final-sale").
Set whether items matching these conditions should be ineligible for return.
Save the policy.
You can create multiple eligibility conditions, and they're evaluated in priority order (lower number = higher priority).
Handling / Restocking Fee
Restocking fees help offset the cost of processing returns. You can charge a fee on every return, and it's shown to the customer before they submit.
Fee types:
Percentage — A percentage of the returned items' value (e.g., 15% restocking fee on a $100 return = $15 fee).
Fixed amount per item — A flat fee for each item returned (e.g., $5 per item).
Fixed amount per return — A flat fee applied once per return, regardless of item count (e.g., $10 per return).
To configure:
Select a fee type from the Handling / Restocking fee dropdown.
Enter the percentage or amount.
Save your settings.
Select "None" to disable restocking fees entirely.
How fees are collected depends on your Deduct Fees from Resolution setting — fees are either subtracted from the customer's refund/credit or charged via Stripe at submission time.
Conditional restocking fees: Create policies to apply different fees for different products. For example, charge a higher restocking fee for electronics and no fee for clothing.
Return Policy URL
Add a link to your store's full return policy page. When configured, this link is displayed on the customer return portal so customers can review your complete policy before submitting a return.
Enter the full URL (e.g., https://yourstore.com/pages/return-policy) in the Return Policy URL field.
Return Reasons
Return reasons are the options customers see when explaining why they're returning an item. You have full control over these reasons.
Default Reasons:
Onward comes with built-in return reasons:
No longer needed
Not what I expected
Received the wrong item
Product was damaged
Customizing Reasons:
You can add, edit, reorder, and delete return reasons:
In the Return reasons section, you'll see your current list of reasons.
Click Add a return reason to create a new one.
Drag and drop to reorder reasons.
Click on a reason to edit it.
Sub-Reasons:
Each top-level reason can have sub-reasons for more detail. For example, under "Not what I expected," you might add:
Item was too small
Item was too large
Color didn't match
Quality not as expected
Sub-reasons help you collect more specific data about why customers are returning items.
Comment Requirements:
For each reason (and sub-reason), you can configure whether the customer must leave a comment:
Don't ask — No comment field is shown.
Ask — A comment field is shown, but it's optional.
Required — The customer must enter a comment before proceeding.
Note: Sub-reasons inherit the strictest comment requirement from their parent. A sub-reason cannot be less strict than its parent.
Evidence (Photo Upload) Requirements:
For any reason, you can require the customer to upload a photo of the item. This is useful for damage or defect reasons where visual proof is helpful.
Randomize Return Reason Order:
Enable the Randomize return reason order toggle to display reasons in a random order each time a customer starts a return. This reduces bias in customer responses — preventing the first option from being selected disproportionately.
Conditional Policies (Rules Engine)
Conditional policies are the most powerful feature of Onward Returns' settings. They let you override your default settings for specific products, orders, customers, or scenarios.
How Conditional Policies Work
You create a policy with one or more rules (conditions).
When a return is submitted, Onward evaluates each policy in priority order (lowest number = highest priority).
The first policy whose rules match the return is applied.
If no policies match, your default settings are used.
Available Rule Conditions
You can create rules based on:
Condition | What It Matches |
Product Tags | Items with specific Shopify product tags |
Order Tags | Orders with specific Shopify order tags |
Customer Tags | Customers with specific Shopify customer tags |
Customer Region | Customer's shipping region/country |
Order Date | When the order was placed |
Order Ship Date | When the order was shipped |
International Shipment | Whether the return involves international shipping |
Customer Score | The customer's Onward customer score |
Order Insured | Whether the order had Onward package protection |
What You Can Override with Policies
Each conditional policy can override one of these settings:
Policy Type | What It Controls |
Return Window | Different return windows for specific items |
Item Eligibility | Make specific items non-returnable (or returnable) |
Restocking Fee | Different fee amounts for different items |
Auto-Approve | Auto-approve (or require manual review) for specific returns |
Auto-Process | Different auto-process triggers for specific returns |
Auto-Restock | Different auto-restock rules for specific items |
Label Sponsorship | Different label sponsor (customer vs. merchant) for specific returns |
Return Destination | Route returns to different addresses |
Pre-submission Instructions | Show different instructions for specific items |
Onward Fee Sponsor | Different processing fee sponsor for specific returns |
Creating a Conditional Policy
Find the setting you want to create an exception for (e.g., Restocking Fee).
Click Add a policy (or the "+" button) below the default setting.
Configure the rule conditions (e.g., Product Tags contains "electronics").
Set the override value (e.g., 20% restocking fee for electronics).
Save the policy.
Priority and Ordering
Policies are evaluated from lowest priority number to highest. You can drag and drop to reorder them. The first matching policy wins — subsequent policies are not evaluated.
Example: If you have:
Priority 1: Product tag "fragile" → 25% restocking fee
Priority 2: Product tag "sale" → no restocking fee
Default: 10% restocking fee
An item tagged both "fragile" and "sale" would get the 25% fee (Priority 1 wins).