How orders, payments, invoices, and tickets fit together
How orders, payments, invoices, and tickets fit together
Use this when an order looks paid but not booked, booked but unpaid, missing tickets, waiting for a refund, or blocked from sending a payment link.
ToucanTix keeps operational state and financial state separate. Check both before you resend documents, issue tickets, cancel, refund, or tell a customer the order is complete.
The four state groups
| State group | What it tells you | What it does not prove |
|---|---|---|
| Order state | Whether the order is new, requested, reserved, booked, canceled, or expired. | Whether money has been received or refunded. |
| Payment state | Whether the customer still needs to pay, payment is pending, payment failed, or payment is recorded. | Whether tickets were generated or whether the customer can enter. |
| Invoice state | Whether an invoice exists, needs payment, is paid, requires a refund, or is refunded. | Whether the booking should remain active operationally. |
| Ticket state | Whether tickets or vouchers exist and can be used for entry or redemption. | Whether the invoice is correct or the payment provider has settled the money. |
How to read a common order
- Start with the order state on the order overview.
- Check whether the order has Open items.
- Open Invoices when financial state matters.
- Check whether payment actions such as Initiate payment, Copy payment link, or Send payment link email are available.
- Open Attendees or the document downloads when entry, tickets, vouchers, or personalization matter.
- Open History when you need to see how the order reached its current state.
State combinations that need care
| What you see | What it usually means | Safe next check |
|---|---|---|
| Booked order with unpaid invoice | The booking may exist, but payment follow-up is still needed. | Check Open items, invoice state, and available payment-link actions. |
| Paid invoice with missing tickets | Financial state looks complete, but document or ticket generation may not be complete. | Check Attendees, ticket downloads, products, and order History before resending email. |
| Reserved order with a deadline | Capacity is held only until the reservation or unpaid-order deadline. | Check the deadline before promising the customer that places are still held. |
| Canceled order with a payment | The operational order ended, but a refund or accounting correction may still be required. | Check invoice state, refund indicators, and finance process before editing services. |
| Failed payment with a created order | The customer may have started checkout without completing payment. | Check whether the order is still payable, expired, auto-canceled, or replaced by another order. |
| Refund required | A refund or refund follow-up is expected, but the customer may not have received money back yet. | Check invoice state, payment provider state, and your team's refund responsibilities. |
Rules of thumb
- Do not treat Booked as proof of payment.
- Do not treat Paid as proof that tickets were generated.
- Do not resend an email until you confirm the order has the expected documents.
- Do not create a manual payment link when the payment link action is unavailable.
- Do not edit paid services or quantities until you understand the refund and invoice result.
