Reserve Inventory allows Swap to temporarily hold exchange items in Shopify when a return is submitted. The requested stock remains available until the RMA is processed or the reservation expires — if the exchange does not go ahead, the hold is released automatically.
Enabling Reserve Inventory
Enable the Enable stock reservation for newly ordered items toggle under Settings → Exchanges in your Swap Dashboard.
When enabled, define the number of days of inventory to reserve for each exchange request.
Key details
Default reservation period: 1 day
Allowed range: 1–100 days
Whole numbers only (no decimals or special characters)
Reservations expire at 23:59 on the final day
How reservations work
Swap checks stock availability in real-time when an exchange request is submitted. Safety stock settings may restrict item availability even when stock appears sufficient — if safety stock is set to 1, items with only one unit remaining will appear unavailable to prevent overselling.
When an exchange request (RMA) is submitted:
A draft order is created in Shopify for the reservation period you configured.
The reserved inventory is held until the exchange is processed or the reservation expires — whichever comes first. Shopify removes the hold automatically on expiry.
If the reservation is successful, a note is added to the RMA showing the draft ID and reservation expiry date.
If the reservation fails:
An error message is displayed in the portal.
The return submission will not complete if a draft order cannot be created.
If inventory is unavailable, the RMA moves to Needs review.
Processing RMAs with reserved inventory
When the RMA is processed, the draft order is approved and the reservation is cancelled automatically.
If no reservation was created, Swap checks stock at the point of processing. If inventory fluctuates significantly between submission and processing, items may be out of stock by the time the RMA is actioned.
If Reserve Inventory is not enabled, stock is only checked when processing begins.
Reserve Inventory with the Exchange API
Reserve Inventory is also available when the Shopify Exchange API is enabled. When both are active, Swap creates a draft order to hold the exchange item's stock at the point of return submission.
The draft order is used for reservation purposes only. A note is added to the draft: "Draft created for reservation for order [order number] and will be deleted once RMA is processed. Exchange item will be added directly in the original order."
The exchange item is added directly to the original order when the RMA is processed — the draft order is then deleted.
RMA closed: the reservation is removed and a note is added to the RMA.
RMA deleted: the draft order is deleted and a note is added to the RMA.
Creating exchange orders on return submission
For merchants whose stock is managed by a third-party warehouse management system (WMS) rather than Shopify natively, Swap can create the exchange order immediately when a return is submitted — without waiting for the RMA to be processed.
Shopify draft orders (used by standard Reserve Inventory) are not typically recognised by external WMS systems. Only a placed, unfulfilled order reserves stock in most WMS integrations. This setting ensures the exchange order appears in Shopify as unfulfilled at the point of return submission, so the WMS can pick it up.
Enable the Create exchange order on return submission toggle under Settings → Exchanges in your Swap Dashboard.
When enabled:
The draft order is completed immediately on return submission, creating a confirmed exchange order.
A log entry is added to the RMA confirming the exchange order was created.
Exchange items cannot be edited after the order has been created.
If an error occurs during order creation, the return submission is not blocked — a log note is added to the RMA instead.
If the RMA is closed, deleted, or exchange items are removed after an exchange order has been created, a warning is displayed. The completed exchange order must be handled manually.
For Exchange API merchants, the exchange item is added to the original order at the point of return submission.