Cancellation Policy for Appointments: Templates + ₹ Examples

A cancellation policy for appointments tells clients four things: how late they can cancel or reschedule for free, what a late cancellation costs, what happens if they do not turn up, and how refunds are paid. A common starting point: free changes up to 24 hours before, 50% charge after that, no refund for a no-show.

Below are copy-ready cancellation and no-show policy templates for Indian clinics, therapists, coaches, tutors, salons and photographers, each with ₹ examples. You will also find a fee guide, the consumer-protection basics to keep your policy fair, and the simplest way to enforce it: take payment when the slot is booked.

What should a cancellation policy for appointments include?

Write it in plain words. A client should understand the whole policy in under 30 seconds on a phone. If you need a longer version for packages or events, keep a short summary on the booking page and link the full text. For the meaning of the term itself, see our glossary entry on cancellation policy.

How much should a late cancellation fee be?

Tie the fee to what you actually lose. If a slot cancelled 3 hours before is almost impossible to refill, keeping 50-100% of the fee is reasonable. If you can usually refill a slot with 24 hours' notice, do not charge anything before that point. The table below is a starting guide, not a rule.

Example: Dr. Sneha Kulkarni in Nagpur charges ₹800 a consultation. Under her policy, a patient who cancels with less than 12 hours' notice pays ₹200, which is adjusted against the next visit. A patient who simply does not come forfeits the ₹800 paid at booking. She refills most late gaps from walk-ins, so she keeps the fee small. To set the base fee itself, see how much to charge for a consultation.

Is a cancellation fee allowed in India? Consumer-protection basics

Yes, you can charge a cancellation or no-show fee, but it has to be fair and disclosed. The Consumer Protection Act, 2019 came into force on 20 July 2020. It defines an unfair contract to include imposing a penalty that is “wholly disproportionate to the loss” caused, or any unreasonable charge or condition that puts the consumer at a disadvantage. Consumer commissions can declare such terms void.

• Show the policy before the client pays, on the booking page and in the confirmation.
• Keep fees proportionate to your real loss. Keeping 100% of a ₹1,500 session cancelled a week ahead is hard to defend.
• Give the same rights both ways. If you cancel, the client gets a full refund or free reschedule.
• Allow for genuine emergencies, such as hospitalisation or a death in the family.
• Refund promptly to the original payment method and say how long it takes.

Cancellation policy templates by profession

Copy the template closest to your work, change the brackets, and paste it into your booking page, confirmation message and invoice footer. Each one has been written so a client can read it on WhatsApp without scrolling much.

Cancellation & Rescheduling Policy • Free cancellation or rescheduling up to [24] hours before your appointment. • Cancellations within [24] hours: [50]% of the fee is kept. • No-show without notice: the fee is not refunded. • If we cancel, you get a full refund or a free reschedule, your choice. • Refunds go to your original payment method within [7] working days. To reschedule, use the link in your confirmation message.

General template (any service business)

Appointment Policy, [Clinic Name] • Consultation fee (₹[800]) is paid at booking. • Reschedule free up to [12] hours before your slot. • Cancel with less than [12] hours' notice: ₹[200] is kept and adjusted against your next visit. • Missed appointment without informing us: the fee is not refunded. • Arriving more than [15] minutes late may mean waiting for the next free slot. • Medical emergencies: call us and we will reschedule at no cost.

Clinic / doctor / dentist / physiotherapist

Session Policy • Sessions are ₹[2,000] for [50] minutes, paid at booking. • You can reschedule or cancel free of charge up to [48] hours before. • Within [48] hours: [50]% of the fee is kept. Within [12] hours or no-show: the full fee is kept. • If you join late, the session still ends at the booked time. • If I need to cancel, you will get a full refund or the next available slot. • One late change per [6 months] is waived, because life happens.

Therapist / counsellor / life coach

Package Refund Policy • [6]-session package: ₹[10,800], valid for [90] days from the first session. • Unused sessions can be refunded within [14] days of purchase, minus sessions already taken at the single-session rate of ₹[2,000]. • After [14] days, unused sessions can be rescheduled within the validity period but are not refundable. • Each session follows the 24-hour reschedule rule; a no-show counts as a session used.

Refund policy for coaching packages

Class & Fee Policy, [Tutor Name] • Monthly fee of ₹[3,000] is due by the [5th] of each month. • Demo class: ₹[200], adjusted against the first month's fee if you join. • Please inform at least [4] hours before if your child will miss a class. • Classes missed with notice: [1] makeup class per month. • Classes missed without notice are not carried forward. • If I cancel a class, an extra class will be scheduled that month.

Tutor / coaching class (message to parents)

Booking & Deposit Policy, [Salon Name] • Services over ₹[2,000] need a deposit of ₹[500] at booking. Bridal packages need [20]% of the package. • Reschedule free up to [24] hours before. • Cancel within [24] hours or no-show: the deposit is kept. • Bridal bookings cancelled less than [30] days before the date: the deposit is not refunded. • Arriving more than [15] minutes late may shorten your service.

Salon / spa / makeup artist

Shoot Booking Terms, [Studio Name] • A [30]% advance (₹[12,000] on a ₹[40,000] shoot) confirms your date. • Cancel more than [30] days before: advance refunded minus ₹[2,000] for admin. • Cancel [14-30] days before: [50]% of the advance refunded. • Cancel under [14] days: advance kept; the balance is not charged. • Date change: free once, subject to availability, if requested [14]+ days ahead. • If we cannot attend, you receive a full refund of all payments.

Photographer / videographer

Free to reschedule up to 24 hours before. Late cancellations: 50% kept. No-shows: no refund.

One-line version for your booking page or Instagram bio

Cancellation and no-show policy at a glance

The ₹ amounts are worked examples. Set your own based on your fee and how easily you can refill a slot.

How to enforce a cancellation policy without awkward conversations

A policy you have to chase is a policy that will not be followed. The easiest enforcement is to collect the fee or deposit at booking, so the policy decides what is refunded instead of you asking for money afterwards. A hospital in Singapore that started collecting deposits for sleep-study appointments reported monthly no-shows falling from 9.1% to 4.3%, though that was a before-and-after project rather than a trial. Our guide to advance payments for appointments covers how much to take and when.

1. 01Collect payment or a deposit when the slot is booked, through UPI or card.
2. 02Show the policy on the booking page, right above the pay button.
3. 03Repeat the one-line version in the confirmation message.
4. 04Send a reminder 24 hours before with a reschedule link, so clients move slots instead of skipping them.
5. 05When someone cancels late, reply with the policy line and a rebooking link. No lectures.
6. 06Use discretion for genuine emergencies and note the waiver in your client records.

Reminders matter as much as fees. A systematic review of 29 reminder studies found reminders cut non-attendance by about 34% of the baseline rate. Our playbook on how to reduce no-shows covers the full reminder cadence, and these cancellation and reschedule message templates cover the replies.

How Book A Sloth applies your policy automatically

On Book A Sloth, clients pay up-front through Razorpay (UPI, cards or netbanking) when they book, and the booking confirms on payment. Confirmations and a 24-hour reminder go out on email and WhatsApp, and clients use the built-in reschedule and cancel flow instead of messaging you. Because the money is already collected, your cancellation policy is something you apply, not something you chase. See how payments at booking work.