Appointment and Cancellation Policy Template

What is a appointment and cancellation policy?

For a salon, spa, clinic, therapist, tattoo studio or groomer, a missed appointment is time you can't sell twice. A written appointment and cancellation policy that each client signs makes the rules clear before anyone is charged, so a fee for a no-show is something the client agreed to rather than a surprise — and it gives you a signed record if a charge is ever disputed.

This template sets out your policy in friendly, plain language addressed to the client. You choose an optional booking deposit and whether it is refunded or kept as credit when someone cancels in time, the hours of notice needed to cancel or reschedule, the late cancellation and no-show fees, a grace period for late arrivals and what happens after it, and whether fees are charged to a card on file or paid at the next visit. It also says when fees don't apply — when you cancel, when you're running late, genuine emergencies, and when you refill the slot — and lets you add your own rules, such as patch tests or children in the salon.

When to Use a appointment and cancellation policy

• A hair or beauty salon introducing a no-show fee
• A massage, physio or counselling practice with a 24- or 48-hour cancellation rule
• A tattoo or piercing studio taking booking deposits
• A dog groomer or pet spa with late-arrival rules
• Any appointment-based business that charges fees to a card on file

What You Fill In

15 blanks, then the name and email of each person who signs: client, business.

What the appointment and cancellation policy Covers

1. Booking deposits
2. Cancelling or rescheduling
3. Missed appointments (no-shows)
4. Arriving late
5. How fees are paid
6. When fees do not apply
7. Changes and your rights
8. Other appointment rules
9. Acknowledgement

Using the appointment and cancellation policy, step by step

1 Name your business and how clients cancel

Enter your business name, the kind of appointments the policy covers, and exactly how clients should cancel — phone, text or your booking page. The policy counts the time of their message as the time of notice.

2 Set deposits and notice

Add a booking deposit if you take one (a percentage or a fixed amount) and choose whether it is refunded or kept as a credit when a client cancels in time. Then set the hours of notice needed to cancel or reschedule without a fee.

3 Set the fees

Enter the late cancellation fee and the no-show fee, for example 50% and 100% of the booked service. Set the grace period for late arrivals and whether you then shorten the appointment, reschedule it or treat it as a no-show.

4 Choose how fees are paid and send

Choose whether fees are charged to the card on file — the client authorises this when they sign — or paid at the next visit. Add any other rules, then send it to the client to sign before their first booking.

Tips Before You Send It

• Keep fees in line with what a late cancellation really costs you — a proportionate fee is easier to defend than a punitive one, and some places regulate these charges.
• Show the same policy on your booking page and in confirmation messages so clients see it more than once.
• Send reminders a day or two before appointments — it prevents more no-shows than fees do.
• Apply the policy consistently, and use the discretion it gives you for genuine emergencies.

Appointment and cancellation policy: frequently asked questions

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This template is a general starting point, not legal advice. Laws differ between countries and states — have a lawyer review the agreement for your situation before you rely on it. Page last reviewed 2026-09-29.