Before Arbyn ever asks a shopper why they're returning something, it checks whether the order can be returned at all. This runs upfront, before the reason pills, before a photo request, before anything else, so a shopper never fills out a whole return only to be told no at the end. This article covers exactly what Arbyn checks, in what order, and what a shopper sees at each outcome.
What it does
When a shopper starts a return, Arbyn looks at the real order in Shopify and checks it against four things, in a fixed order: whether a return is already on record for it, whether the items are marked final-sale, whether it's actually been delivered yet, and whether it's still inside your return window. The first thing that blocks it is what the shopper sees, Arbyn doesn't run every check and combine them, it stops at the first real reason.
Where to find it
This runs automatically, there's nothing to turn on. The only configurable pieces are your return window (in days) and which collections or products are marked final-sale, both set in Settings → Guardrails → Returns.
How it works
Arbyn checks eligibility in this order, and stops at the first block it finds:
1. Already returned. If a return already exists for this order, in any status, Arbyn doesn't start a second one. The shopper sees "A return for this order is already in progress" along with a way to check on that return's status instead, so they're never stuck wondering whether their new attempt did anything.
2. Final-sale items. If you've marked the item, or the collection it belongs to, as final-sale, the order is blocked here regardless of anything else, including delivery status or how recently it arrived. Final-sale is a hard rule: it's checked before the return window even matters, because a final-sale item was never eligible for return in the first place, no matter when it shipped.
3. Not yet delivered. Returns open once an order actually arrives, not before. Arbyn tells the difference between two situations here, and says the right one: if the order has shipped and is on its way but hasn't arrived, the shopper is told returns open once it arrives, with an offer to track it. If the order hasn't shipped at all yet, Arbyn says that plainly too, rather than implying something is already on its way when it isn't.
4. Past the return window. Once an order is confirmed delivered, Arbyn measures days from that delivery date against your configured return window (30 days if you haven't set one). If a delivered fulfillment doesn't carry a delivery date at all, Arbyn doesn't guess or assume the window has passed, it lets the return proceed rather than wrongly blocking a shopper on missing data.
If none of the four checks block it, the order is eligible, and Arbyn moves on to asking the shopper's reason and the rest of the guided flow.
The EU, EEA, and UK statutory floor
Customers shipping to these regions have a legal right to return an order within at least 14 days of delivery, regardless of your own return window. If your own window is already 14 days or longer, nothing changes, it applies as normal. If your window is shorter than 14 days, or you don't offer returns for a particular reason at all, Arbyn still treats 14 days as the floor for a qualifying order shipped to one of these regions, since your own policy can't shrink below what the law requires there. This is based on where the order actually shipped, not where the shopper happens to be chatting from.
Good to know
The check order is fixed and deliberate. Already-returned beats final-sale beats delivery beats window, always in that sequence. A shopper never sees a confusing or contradictory reason because two checks technically both applied.
Missing delivery data never wrongly blocks a return. If Arbyn can't prove an order is outside your window because the delivery timestamp itself is missing, it lets the return through rather than guessing against the shopper.
A not-yet-shipped order and an in-transit order get different, honest copy. Arbyn never tells a shopper their order is "on its way" if it genuinely hasn't shipped yet.
Final-sale is checked by product or by collection, whichever you configured, and it always wins over delivery status or window: a final-sale item delivered yesterday is still not eligible.
This eligibility check is separate from the resolution flow. Passing this check only means the shopper can start a return, what happens next (which reasons you accept, which resolutions you offer) is covered in the article on how Arbyn handles returns, exchanges, and refunds.
FAQ
What happens if a shopper tries to return an item that's already being returned? Arbyn recognizes the existing return and doesn't start a duplicate. Instead it offers to show them the status of the return already on file.
Does the return window start from the order date or the delivery date? The delivery date. Arbyn only starts counting once a fulfillment is confirmed delivered, not from when the order was placed or shipped.
What if I haven't set a return window? Arbyn uses a default of 30 days until you set your own in Settings → Guardrails → Returns.
Can a shopper return a final-sale item if it arrived damaged? Not through this eligibility check, final-sale is a hard block regardless of the reason they'd give. If you want damaged final-sale items handled differently, that needs to be reflected in which products or collections you actually mark as final-sale.
Does the EU/EEA/UK 14-day right ever shrink my own longer return window? No, only ever upward. If your own window is already longer than 14 days, it stays exactly as it is for every customer, the statutory right only raises the floor for orders shipping to those regions, it never lowers what you already offer.