Gift Certificates
A gift certificate is prepaid value someone buys for a student. It's issued against a card, it carries a code and a balance, and it can be redeemed as a payment method the same way cash or a card can — either by the student at checkout, or by an admin taking a payment.
Gift certificates live under Admin > Gift Certificates, in the Promotional section of the sidebar.
Quick Stats
Three figures sit above the table.
| Stat | What It Shows |
|---|---|
| Outstanding Liability | The total unredeemed value across every active certificate — money you've been paid but haven't yet delivered training for |
| Active Certificates | How many still have value on them |
| Issued This Month | How many were sold this calendar month |
Outstanding Liability is the one your bookkeeper will ask for. It's a liability, not revenue: the value is owed as training until it's redeemed or voided.
Navigating the List
What Each Column Shows
| Column | What It Shows |
|---|---|
| Code | The certificate code. Click to copy it, and each has its own shareable link. |
| Balance | What's left, with a bar showing how much of the original value remains |
| Recipient | Who it's for |
| Purchased By | Who paid for it |
| Issued | When it was sold |
| Status | See Statuses below |
| Actions | A menu button with additional options |
Searching and Filtering
- Search: find a certificate by code, recipient, or purchaser.
- Status: a select beside the search box. It opens on Active — redeemed and voided certificates are kept forever and would otherwise crowd the table.
Sorting
The default sort is by issue date, newest first.
Issuing a Certificate
Click Create Gift Certificate. The form opens in a side drawer.
Certificate Details
| Field | Required? | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Certificate Code | Yes | The code the recipient redeems. Must be unique — if it isn't, the error appears on this field. |
| Original Amount | Yes | The face value. Must be greater than 0. |
| Recipient Name | Yes | Who the certificate is for |
| Recipient Email | Yes | Where the certificate is emailed |
| Self-purchased | No | A switch. Turn it on when the recipient is buying for themselves — the purchaser fields then disappear. |
| Purchased By | Yes, unless self-purchased | Search for an existing student, or type a name |
| Purchaser Email | Yes, unless self-purchased | Where the purchase receipt goes |
Payment
| Field | Required? | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Method | Yes | How the certificate was paid for — card, cash, check, and so on |
| Card | Only for card payments | A card already on the purchaser's account, or a new one |
| Received date | Yes | When you took the money |
| Notes | No | Free text, for your own records |
If you choose a card and the purchaser isn't linked to a student record, you'll see:
"Card payments need the purchaser linked to a student record. Choose a student under Purchased By, or record this as cash or check."
Pick the purchaser from the student search rather than typing their name free-hand, or take the money as cash or check instead.
Viewing a Certificate
Clicking a row opens the drawer, with two tabs.
Overview Tab
| Section | Shows |
|---|---|
| Basic Information | The code and the original amount |
| Recipient | Name and email |
| Purchaser | Name and email |
A balance bar shows what's left against the original value.
Usage Tab
Every redemption against this certificate, with an Export CSV button for the full history.
The bar shows value remaining, so it drains as the certificate is used: green above 50% left, yellow between 20% and 50%, red below 20%.
This is the reverse of the coupon redemption bar, where the bar fills up and red means exhausted. See Icons & Statuses.
Redeeming a Certificate
A gift certificate is a tender — one of the ways a payment can be made.
- Students enter the code when registering. It's applied after any coupon, and any unused balance is shown as remaining. If a coupon and certificate together cover the whole cost, no card details are asked for at all.
- Admins choose Gift certificate as the method when recording a payment.
Partial redemption is normal: a $500 certificate against a $300 class leaves $200 on the code for next time, and the status becomes Partially Redeemed.
Statuses
| Status | What It Means |
|---|---|
| Active | Issued, with its full value unspent |
| Partially Redeemed | Some value spent, a balance remaining |
| Fully Redeemed | Spent in full |
| Voided | Cancelled by an admin. Any remaining balance is unusable. |
Actions & Menus
| Option | What It Does |
|---|---|
| Resend Email | "Resend certificate code to its recipient?" — emails the certificate again |
| Resend Receipt | "Resend the purchase receipt for code to its purchaser?" |
| Download Receipt | Downloads the purchase receipt as a PDF instead of emailing it |
| View Recipient | Opens the recipient's student record. Only when they're linked to one. |
| View Purchaser | Opens the purchaser's student record. Only when they're linked to one. |
| Void Gift Certificate | Cancels the certificate permanently |
Voiding
Voiding asks you to confirm:
"Are you sure you want to void the code? Any remaining balance will no longer be redeemable. This action cannot be undone."
There is no un-void. Any remaining balance is gone, and the purchaser has paid for something they can no longer use. If the money needs to go back, refund the original purchase payment as well.
When Things Are Disabled
| What's Disabled | Why |
|---|---|
| Void Gift Certificate | Hidden once the certificate is already voided, or fully redeemed — there's nothing left to void |
| View Recipient / View Purchaser | Only appear when that person is linked to a student record |
| Purchased By / Purchaser Email | Hidden when Self-purchased is switched on |
| Card selection | Only appears when the payment method is a card |
| Redeemed and voided certificates missing from the list | The status filter opens on Active. Change it to see them. |
| A code won't redeem at checkout | It's voided, fully redeemed, or mistyped. The student sees "This code isn't valid, or has no balance remaining." |
Icons on This Page
| Mark | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Active / Partially Redeemed / Fully Redeemed / Voided chips | Where the certificate stands |
| Balance bar — green / yellow / red | Over 50% left, 20–50%, under 20% |
→ Full list: Icons & Statuses
Key Relationships
- Students: recipient and purchaser can each be linked to a student record, which is what makes View Recipient and View Purchaser work — and what a card purchase requires.
- Payments: a redemption is a payment with the gift certificate as its tender, and shows in payment history like any other.
- Coupons: both can be used on the same registration. The coupon comes off first; the certificate covers what's left.
- Registrations: value is consumed at the point of payment against a registration, not reserved in advance.
Tips & Notes
- Watch Outstanding Liability, not the certificate count. It's the number that matters at the end of a quarter — unredeemed value is training you still owe.
- Link the purchaser to a student record. It's required for card purchases, and it's what lets you jump straight to their record later when they call about the code.
- Refund before you void, not after. Voiding removes the value; it does nothing to the money. If you're making someone whole, refund the purchase payment too.
- Export the usage CSV at year end. The Usage tab shows redemptions, but the CSV is the record your accountant will want.
- A partial balance is fine to leave. Certificates don't expire on their own, and the balance stays on the code until it's used.