Online shopping is now easier than ever, thanks to e-markets, online stores, and online payment systems like PayPal, making a purchase and sending money through the internet requires only a few clicks. However, sometimes things don’t go as planned; problems occur if you mistakenly send money to the wrong place, and the amount is instantly deducted from your PayPal account.
Thankfully, there is no need to panic because if you notice your slip-up in time, you have the option to sometimes cancel the payment and receive the money back. This PayPal-related post discusses how to cancel PayPal transaction. We also share other options you may have to get your money back after the recipient claims the payment.
Is It Possible To Cancel A PayPal Payment?
The short answer is – Yes! It is possible to cancel PayPal payment, but there are limitations. Only the type of payments that have to be accepted by the recipient can be canceled. Furthermore, to have to take action before the payment is claimed, otherwise a PayPal payment, cancellation is impossible since the money has been transferred to the recipient’s account. Although, you might even get a refund, but more on that later.
PayPal has detailed, specific conditions for canceling a payment. There are only a few situations where payment needs to be claimed, which we’ve listed below. The recipient’s email doesn’t have a registered PayPal account. As soon as it’s registered, the transfer is complete.
In case the email address you have sent the money to does not exist, then the funds will stay in limbo, and after a 30 days’ time period, the payment will be canceled automatically, and the money will be returned to you.
How To Tell If A PayPal Payment Is Claimed?
If you think that you have transferred money through PayPal to an incorrect email address, then if luck is on the side, no PayPal account will be associated with the incorrect email address.
All unclaimed funds have an option to ”Cancel” in the actions, if you don’t see a cancel option, then the transfer has been made, and you won’t be able to get your money back. After the PayPal transaction is complete, you can only get your money back by reaching out to customer services or the payment recipient and requesting a refund.
You have a better chance of getting your unclaimed payment only if:
- The payment is sent to an email ID that is not associated with a PayPal account. Once an email address is added to the PayPal account, the account will automatically be credited with the payments.
- If you sent the payment to a PayPal account with an unconfirmed email address because PayPal only allows payment on accounts with a confirmed email address for security reasons.
How To Cancel A Payment That’s Pending
Canceling a PayPal payment is easy if you have done it before. However, if you are new to this, then you may be confused about the proper method of retracting an unclaimed payment.
Begin by logging into your PayPal account and then go to the ”Activity” page, where you will see a list of the previous transactions. Locate the payment you want to cancel within the list.
Hopefully, if the payment hasn’t been claimed, you might have an option to cancel it using the cancel link. When you click the link, it will take to the next page, and your money will come back to your account as soon as the process is complete.
However, the absence of the cancel link means that the money has been claimed, and you need a plan ”b” to get your money back, but more on that later.
Steps for canceling a PayPal payment:
- Sign in to your PayPal account.
- Go-to the ”Activity” page by clicking the option found at the top of the page.
- Identify the pending payment and click Cancel.
- Click ”Cancel Payment” on the next page to complete the process.
Even though there is a chance that you might get your money back, but you most probably wouldn’t be able to return the payment to the same place it came from.
PayPal might automatically withdraw money from your bank account if your PayPal balance is insufficient, and those funds will then appear in your PayPal balance. You can indeed transfer the funds back to your bank account, but this process will take a few working days.
How to cancel periodic payments on PayPal?
It is easy to set up periodic PayPal payments, including ongoing charges of apps and other services. However, when it comes to canceling PayPal payments, that is where the trouble starts if you do not cancel the PayPal transaction and confirm the cancellation of the service from the business itself.
To correctly cancel ongoing PayPal payments, we recommend you to follow the following two methods. The first method is similar to the process that we have previously discussed in this guide; the only additional step is to filter Automatic Payments on the Activity page.
The second best way to cancel an ongoing PayPal payment is to log into the website, then select the settings option (available in the upper right part of the screen). After that, select “payments,” then click the “view” option that is available next to the “Manage Your Automatic Payments” option. After selecting this option, a new page will open where you would have to choose the service/business you wish to cancel your periodic PayPal payments.
For further assistance, we have made a step-by-step method for you, and the process is as follows:
Guide to canceling an ongoing PayPal payment:
- Log in to your PayPal account.
- Find the settings icon in the top right corner and click it.
- Find the payment option in the top middle of the menu and click it.
- Next, find the “manage your automatic payments” option and click view.
- Find the business/service you want to cancel and click cancel.
If you plan to cancel a payment before it is charged for the coming month/subscription period, make sure that you cancel the payment at least 24 hours before the payment is scheduled to occur.
What should I expect after the successful cancellation of a PayPal Transaction?
Once you have successfully canceled your PayPal transaction, you will receive your funds back in your PayPal account, regardless of whether the original payment was sent via bank or PayPal funds. If you do not receive your payments immediately, you will probably receive them within the next four working days.
How long can it take to receive a refund or a chargeback?
If you have successfully canceled a PayPal payment, then what you’ll get is a chargeback. If you were unable to cancel the payment, then you can demand a payment refund.
According to the Fair Credit Billing Act, you can request a chargeback from your bank within 60 days from the payment date. However, bear in mind that getting both chargebacks and refunds from PayPal is usually a lengthy process. Several PayPal users complain about the money-back process being slower than expected.
According to PayPal’s policy, you should expect your chargebacks according to the following time duration:
| Payment Method | Cancellation Method | Chargeback Time |
| Bank account or debit/credit card | Canceled payment on PayPal | About 5–30 days |
| PayPal balance | Canceled payment on PayPal | Immediately or within 5–7 days |
| Any of the above | Pending payment canceled automatically | Immediately or within a couple of days |
How to check the status of your canceled PayPal payments?
No matter if you want to know the status of the payment that you have canceled or refund request, follow the steps below to know the current status in your PayPal account:
- Go to your account and select Activity
- Go to the drop-down menu and choose filters
- Select the “Refunds” option
- Now select the transaction you want to check the payment update
Refund status is usually marked as one of the following:
- Pending: Refund status marks “Pending,” usually due to bank delays or if your email ID has not been confirmed yet.
- Refunded or Partially Refunded: You must have some or complete payment returned to your account if you see this status.
- Temporary Hold: This status shows that your refund was released, but your bank has not approved the payment yet.
- Completed: If you see this status, your money should be in your account because the refund process has been completed, and your bank has received the payment.
In case your account is showing “Refunded” or “Completed,” but you have not received the money, then you should immediately contact PayPal’s customer support service via web chat or call.
What should I do if my PayPal payment can’t be canceled?
If you have already made a payment and you weren’t able to catch the payment in time, then you can try the following ways to get your payment back:
It would be an ideal situation if you know and trust the receiver because you can request them to return the money. They can easily replace the payment from the Activity page; this process will neither cost you or the receiver any additional fee.
Since PayPal is a commonly used payment method for shopping, requesting a retailer’s refund is usually very tricky. You would have to contact them via live webchat or email their customer service department and ask them for a refund.
The customer service team will guide you about the refund policy of their business. You may have to return the purchased product and fill out a refund form. The refund process can take a few weeks or more.
In some cases, retailers deny your refund request; in such a case, you can report your refund issue in PayPal’s Resolution Center. The customer service representative will provide you the best possible solution.
Conclusion
PayPal is generally a safe method of payment. However, canceling a payment and requesting a refund can be trickier if you are unaware of how to cancel PayPal invoice and request refunds. We hope that this guide will help you get your hard-earned money back.
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Bethany Wilson 
Abdul Wahab 
