The buyer receives the full purchase amount back — a refund is not reduced by the fee. Whether the merchant gets the fee on an already processed operation back depends on the contract: the work of processing the payment was done, so by common acquiring practice it stays withheld.
How it looks in money
- The buyer receives the whole purchase amount, not the amount minus the fee.
- The difference is covered by the merchant: the payment landed already net of the fee.
- Partial refunds follow the same logic — the stated part of the purchase is returned.
What to build into your process
- Budget for refunds if your cancellation rate is high: it is part of the cost of sales.
- Cancel instead of refunding while the money has not been captured — then there is no operation at all.
- Check the exact fee terms for refunds in your contract; they are fixed during onboarding.
How a cancellation differs from a refund is covered separately.
