It is early November. A family of four booked your 3D2N Redang package for RM6,400 and paid a RM3,200 deposit. Now MetMalaysia has issued a monsoon warning, the ferry schedule is uncertain, and the customer sends a WhatsApp message: “Boleh refund tak?”
Your consultant replies “Can, boss will settle.” Two weeks later the money has gone out of the bank, but the invoice still shows RM6,400, the customer statement says they owe RM3,200, and your accountant cannot match the bank transfer to anything.
A refund is not finished when the money leaves the bank. You also need to adjust the invoice, record the payment out, and keep the evidence. This guide shows Malaysian travel agencies how to record and refund a customer’s booking properly, using the monsoon season as the example.
Why do refunds go wrong in travel agencies?
Most agencies handle refunds through chat and the bank app. The consultant agrees with the customer, the owner transfers the money, and nobody goes back to the invoice.
That creates three problems:
| What was skipped | What happens later |
|---|---|
| Invoice not adjusted | Customer statement still shows a balance owing. Someone chases them for money they do not owe. |
| Refund not recorded as a payment out | The bank does not match your books. Your accountant spends hours at year-end guessing what each transfer was. |
| No reason or evidence kept | Nobody remembers why RM2,400 was returned and RM800 was kept. Disputes are hard to answer. |
With e-Invoice in place, there is a fourth problem. Once an invoice has been validated on MyInvois, you can only cancel it within 72 hours. After that, you cannot delete it and issue a new one. You adjust it with a credit note, debit note, or Refund Note that refers to the original invoice.
Credit note, debit note, or Refund Note: which one?
LHDN’s e-Invoice guidelines use three adjustment documents. The difference is simple once you ask one question: is money going back to the customer?
| Document | Use it when | Money returned? | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| Credit note | You reduce what the customer owes | No | Customer cancels and has not paid the balance yet. You cancel the unpaid RM3,200. |
| Debit note | You increase what the customer owes | No | Customer adds an extra night or upgrades the room. |
| Refund Note | You return money the customer has already paid | Yes | You transfer RM2,400 of the deposit back to the customer. |
Many cancellations need both. A credit note removes the part the customer never paid, and a Refund Note covers the part you return in cash.
LHDN’s FAQ lists three cases where returning money does not need a Refund Note: a payment made wrongly by the buyer, an overpayment by the buyer, and the return of a security deposit. Scenario 4 below is one of these.
Check the current treatment with your accountant, especially if your packages carry SST. The LHDN e-Invoice page has the latest guidelines and FAQ.
How to record and refund a customer’s booking, step by step
Step 1: Confirm what is refundable
Before anyone replies “can refund”, check three things:
- Your terms and conditions. What cancellation fee did the customer agree to, based on how many days before departure they cancel?
- What your suppliers will return. Will the resort refund the room deposit, or only allow a date change? Will the ferry operator refund or give credit?
- Who cancelled. If the customer cancels, your normal terms apply. If the trip cannot run because the resort closed or the ferry stopped, most agencies refund in full or offer a new date, because the service cannot be delivered.
Write the agreed amount and the reason in the booking before money moves.
Step 2: Adjust the invoice
Do not edit the original invoice. Issue the adjustment documents against it, so the history stays clear and MyInvois shows the same story as your books.
Step 3: Record the money going out
Record the date the money was returned, the bank account it came from, and the bank or DuitNow reference. This is what lets your accountant match the bank statement line to the refund.
Step 4: Attach the evidence
Keep the cancellation request from the customer, the resort or ferry notice, and the transfer slip with the refund record. A screenshot buried in one consultant’s WhatsApp does not count.
Step 5: Settle the supplier side
If you already paid the resort, claim the refund or credit from them and record their credit note against your supplier bill. Then check the tour profit. A refund you gave the customer while the supplier kept your money is a loss you need to see.
Four refund scenarios with the numbers
All four use the same booking: 4 pax, Redang 3D2N, invoice RM6,400, deposit paid RM3,200.
1. Customer cancels, you keep a cancellation fee
The customer cancels 20 days before departure. Your terms charge RM200 per person for cancellations 15 to 30 days before travel, so you keep RM800.
| Document | Amount | Invoice value after | Cash held after |
|---|---|---|---|
| Original invoice | RM6,400 | RM6,400 | RM3,200 |
| Credit note (unpaid balance cancelled) | RM3,200 | RM3,200 | RM3,200 |
| Refund Note (deposit returned) | RM2,400 | RM800 | RM800 |
The invoice now shows RM800, which matches what you kept. The customer statement shows nothing owing.
2. Monsoon closes the resort, full refund
The resort closes early for the monsoon and the customer does not want another date. You return the full deposit.
| Document | Amount | Invoice value after | Cash held after |
|---|---|---|---|
| Original invoice | RM6,400 | RM6,400 | RM3,200 |
| Credit note (unpaid balance cancelled) | RM3,200 | RM3,200 | RM3,200 |
| Refund Note (full deposit returned) | RM3,200 | RM0 | RM0 |
Now follow up with the resort for your own room deposit. Until it comes back, that amount sits as a cost on a tour that earned nothing.
3. Customer moves to a later date
The customer prefers to go in April when the sea is calm. No money leaves the agency, so there is no Refund Note.
Keep the deposit on the same booking and change the departure. If the April price is higher, issue a debit note for the difference. If it is lower, issue a credit note. Agree with your accountant how long you hold deposits for moved trips, because at year-end they are still money owed to customers, not income.
4. Customer paid twice by mistake
The customer pays the RM3,200 deposit by FPX, then their spouse transfers another RM3,200 by bank transfer. The invoice is fine. The customer simply overpaid.
You return RM3,200 but the invoice value stays at RM6,400. This is returning customer credit, not refunding the trip. Keep it separate from cancellation refunds, or your reports will show a cancelled booking that never happened.
Because this is an overpayment, LHDN does not require a Refund Note e-Invoice for it. You still record the money going out, with the date, bank account, and payment reference, so the bank matches your books.
How refunds appear in MyInvois
Each adjustment is a separate e-Invoice that points back to the original invoice through its MyInvois unique identifier (UUID). For scenario 1, MyInvois would hold three documents:
| Document | e-Invoice type | Amount | Refers to |
|---|---|---|---|
| Invoice | 01 | RM6,400 | |
| Credit note | 02 | RM3,200 | Original invoice UUID |
| Refund Note | 04 | RM2,400 | Original invoice UUID |
A few points to know:
- Validate the original first. A note can only refer to an invoice that already has a MyInvois UUID.
- Lines follow the original. Use the same classification codes and SST treatment as the invoice lines you are adjusting.
- Walk-in customers on a consolidated e-Invoice. Many individual travellers do not ask for their own e-Invoice, so their bookings go into your monthly consolidated e-Invoice. LHDN’s FAQ confirms that adjustments can also be made to consolidated e-Invoices, and that one note can refer to several original e-Invoices. Agree with your accountant how you report these refunds, for example one note per refund or one note each month against the consolidated e-Invoice.
What to check after every refund
Run through this list before you close the case:
- The customer statement shows the correct balance, usually zero.
- The invoice value equals what you actually kept.
- Every Refund Note has a date, bank account, and payment reference.
- The customer’s cancellation request and any supplier notice are attached.
- Supplier refunds or credits are claimed and recorded against the supplier bill.
- The tour profit and loss reflects the cancellation.
- Credit notes and Refund Notes have been submitted to MyInvois and validated, once your account is connected.
During the monsoon months, you may handle many of these in one week. A weekly check by the owner or finance staff catches the ones that were transferred but never recorded.
How WauHub records refunds
In WauHub, refunds start from the original invoice, so nothing gets lost between WhatsApp and the bank.
- Credit notes reduce what the customer owes without returning money.
- Refunds ask one question first: are you returning an overpayment, or refunding invoice value? Returning an overpayment records the money going out and leaves the invoice value unchanged. Refunding invoice value reduces it and records the same amount going out of the bank.
- Keeping the deposit. If the invoice has a required deposit, WauHub suggests the refund amount that keeps it, so staff do not work it out by hand.
- Payment details. Each refund records the date returned, payment reference, bank account, reason, and an optional supporting document such as the cancellation letter.
- MyInvois. Once your MyInvois account is connected, you submit credit notes (type 02) and Refund Notes (type 04) from the invoice. Each one refers to the original invoice’s UUID, and its lines follow the original invoice’s classification codes and SST treatment.
- Reports. Booking collections, customer statements, and receivables all reflect the refund, so the owner sees the real position.
See invoice management and LHDN e-Invoice for more detail.
Related reading
- e-Invoice for travel agencies: customers and suppliers
- Jakarta flights cancelled: how much tour profit can you afford to lose?
- Cash flow management for Malaysian travel agencies
- Group departure checklist
Get your refunds in order before the monsoon peaks
Refunds will come this season, whether from customers who change their mind or resorts that close early. The agencies that come through it calmly are the ones that record every refund against the booking it came from.
If you want to see how WauHub handles credit notes, Refund Notes, and MyInvois for a cancelled booking, book a demo with our team.