Introduction

In circuly, the term "pending return" appears in multiple tabs and processes within the circuly Hub. It’s not just a label—it’s a core status that plays a critical role in operations like cancellations, returns, and subscription reactivations. This article explains what "pending return" means, when and how it’s applied, what it triggers, and which settings it depends on.

What does “pending return” mean?

The status "pending return" indicates that a product is still with the customer but is expected to be returned.

You’ll see this status in the Status column of various lists in the circuly Hub, including:

• Subscription List
• Return List
• Asset List
• Email History
• And others like Orders, Payments, Recurring Payments, etc.

What does "pending return" do?

If the status of a subscription is not set the to "pending return":

• The subscription stays active, and payments continue unless manually paused or canceled.
• The return process will not begin.
• The product will not appear in the Returns tab, and follow-up actions (like sending return emails) will not be triggered.

Setting the status to “pending return” is essential to:

• Start the return workflow.
• Give the customer a defined window to return the product.
• Potentially trigger reactivation and charges if the product is not returned.

Why is a product “pending return”?

When a subscription is marked as pending return, it means the customer has the product but hasn’t returned it yet. This could be because:

• The subscription period is still ongoing.
• The return is within the allowed Return until period.
• The customer is delayed in sending it back.
• The customer changed their mind and wants to continue the subscription.
• The customer is not planning to return the product.
• In rare cases, the customer may be fraudulent.

Regardless of the reason, you expect the product to come back. If not, you must have safeguards in place—like reactivating the subscription to continue charging the customer.

Automatically set to “pending return”

circuly will automatically update the subscription status to pending return in the following scenarios:

• Subscription end date is reached and auto-renew is turned off.
• Customer cancels via the Self-Service Portal, and the setting to auto-trigger pending return is enabled.
• Swap is initiated, either by the customer or from the circuly Hub (in this case, the status becomes “pending replacement”, which follows the same logic as pending return).
• Manual cancellation of the order from the circuly Hub.

Exception: If the product is marked as stolen/missing during a swap, the status is not set to pending return—because you no longer expect the item to come back.

Manually set to “pending return”

You may need to manually assign the pending return status in the following cases:

• A customer emails your team or contacts support to cancel the subscription. Read more about how to process a return request made by the customer via email.

• A circuly user manually marks the subscription as pending return from the Subscription List.

Doing so triggers the return workflow, including return instructions and tracking.

What does “pending return” trigger?

When a subscription is marked as pending return, circuly triggers the following actions:

1. The subscription appears with the status “pending return” in the Subscription List.
2. The order/product is listed in the Returns tab under the same status.
3. If return-related settings are configured (see below), circuly starts the return timeline.
4. If the product is not returned within the Return Until Period, circuly can reactivate the subscription and resume recurring charges—only if the Reactivation settings are enabled.

Key settings connected to “rending return”

To make the “pending return” workflow work efficiently, configure the following in Settings > Subscriptions > Cancel Subscription:

• Return Until Period: Number of days a customer has to return the product.
  
• Reactivate Subscription: Enable to automatically reactivate subscriptions if the product isn’t returned.
  
• Reactivate Subscription Period (days): Defines when the reactivation should happen after the return window ends.
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Learn more about the return workflow and the assoiciated settings here.