Glossary
Cash on delivery glossary
Short, plain definitions of the terms used in COD, Shopify payments and Gulf delivery. Each links to the guide that explains it in full.
- Arabic checkout
A Shopify checkout shown in Arabic. Shopify shows the checkout in the language the shopper browses the store in, so Arabic must be added and published in Settings > Languages. Arabic isn't on Shopify's list of languages with ready-made checkout translations, so every checkout screen should be checked in Arabic.
- BenefitPay بنفت باي
Bahrain's national e-wallet, run by The BENEFIT Company. Merchants sign up to accept it through an acquiring bank, and whether it can appear at a Shopify checkout depends on the store's payment provider.
- BNPL (buy now, pay later) اشترِ الآن وادفع لاحقًا
A way to pay where the shopper splits the price into instalments, or pays later, through a provider instead of paying the full amount at checkout. On Shopify, BNPL options appear at checkout through a payment provider. Khaleeji COD never hides or renames them.
- Cash on delivery (COD) الدفع عند الاستلام
A payment method where the shopper pays the courier, usually in cash, when the order arrives. On Shopify, COD is a manual payment method, so the order stays pending (unpaid) until the merchant records the payment.
- COD confirmation تأكيد الطلب
Contacting the shopper before a cash on delivery order ships, by phone, SMS or WhatsApp, to check that they placed it, that the address is right and that they know the total to pay.
- COD fee رسوم الدفع عند الاستلام
An extra charge for shoppers who choose cash on delivery. Shopify has no built-in setting for a fee on one payment method, so stores add it with an app, a fee product or a shipping rate. The fee is collected at the door, so a refused parcel brings in nothing.
- COD form app
A Shopify app that takes cash on delivery orders in its own form on the product or cart page and creates them in Shopify through the Admin API, so the shopper never opens Shopify's checkout. Shopify's payment customizations don't run on orders created this way.
- COD refusal رفض استلام الطلب
When the courier reaches the shopper with a cash on delivery order and the shopper won't accept or pay for it. The courier then takes the parcel back to the merchant (RTO).
- COD remittance
The courier passing on to the merchant the cash it collected from shoppers on COD orders. It arrives on the schedule in the courier contract, minus any fees the contract lets the courier deduct, and the merchant then marks the matching Shopify orders as paid.
- COD rename إعادة تسمية الدفع عند الاستلام
A Khaleeji COD setting that changes the name shoppers see for Cash on Delivery at checkout. By default it shows «الدفع عند الاستلام» to shoppers whose checkout language is Arabic, and "Cash on Delivery" to everyone else. Both names can be edited.
- cod-refused tag
A customer tag that Khaleeji COD reads at checkout. When the tag rule is on, a customer tagged cod-refused or cod-blocked doesn't see Cash on Delivery, as long as the checkout is linked to that customer (signed in, or a draft order assigned to them). The refuser scan adds cod-refused only after the merchant confirms, and merchants can add either tag by hand.
- Country-limited city rule
An entry in Khaleeji COD's blocked-city list written with a two-letter country code and a colon, such as KW:Salwa or AE:Al Ain, so it hides COD only for addresses in that country. A plain city name, such as Salwa, matches in every country.
- Customer tag وسم العميل
A label a merchant adds to a customer record in Shopify, such as cod-refused. A checkout rule can read a customer's tags only when the checkout is linked to that customer; a guest checkout carries no tags.
- Draft order مسودة طلب
An order a merchant creates in the Shopify admin on a customer's behalf, for example for a phone or email sale (apps can create them through the API too). It becomes a regular order when it's completed, by the customer through its checkout link or by the merchant in the admin. Payment customizations run on a draft order's checkout link, but not when payment is collected inside the admin.
- Emirate code
The short code Shopify's address data uses for each of the seven UAE emirates. Written with the country in front, they are AE-AZ (Abu Dhabi), AE-AJ (Ajman), AE-DU (Dubai), AE-FU (Fujairah), AE-RK (Ras al-Khaimah), AE-SH (Sharjah) and AE-UQ (Umm al-Quwain).
- Failed delivery attempt محاولة توصيل فاشلة
A delivery the courier tried but couldn't complete, for example because nobody answered, the address couldn't be found or the shopper wasn't there. After a set number of attempts or days, which depends on the courier, the parcel goes back to the merchant (RTO).
- Fake COD order طلب وهمي
A cash on delivery order placed with no intention of accepting it, such as a prank, an order under a made-up name and number, or a test of whether COD works. The main fix is confirming the order before it ships.
- First-order rule
A Khaleeji COD rule that hides COD on a first order above an amount the merchant sets. A checkout counts as a first order when it's a guest checkout or the customer has 0 previous orders.
- Fulfillment تنفيذ الطلب
In Shopify, the record that an order's items have been sent, usually with a tracking number. Fulfilling an order lets Shopify send the shopper a shipping confirmation. Khaleeji COD's money-lost report counts a cancelled COD order as shipped only if it has a fulfillment.
- GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) مجلس التعاون الخليجي
The group of six Gulf states: the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain and Oman.
- GCC preset إعدادات الخليج
A one-click button in Khaleeji COD that fills in starting rules: on Pro, hide COD for tagged customers, carts above 1,500, first orders above 500 (in the shop's currency) and products tagged no-cod, plus the COD rename; on Free, only the cart rule and the rename. Nothing changes at checkout until the merchant clicks Save rules.
- KNET كي نت
A Kuwaiti online payment method for debit cards issued by banks that are KNET members. The shopper usually finishes the payment on a separate payment page. Shopify Payments isn't available in Kuwait, so stores offer KNET through a third-party payment provider.
- mada مدى
Saudi bank debit cards that run on the mada network. In 2018 the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) allowed all banks to switch on mada cards for online payments, so shoppers can pay with them at stores whose payment provider supports mada.
- Makani number رقم مكاني
A 10-digit number from Makani, the official geographic addressing system used in Dubai, Ajman, Umm Al Quwain, Fujairah and Ras Al Khaimah. It points to a building's entrance, and shoppers find it on the Makani plate at their building or in the Makani app.
- Manual payment method طريقة دفع يدوية
A Shopify payment method where the payment happens outside the online checkout, such as cash on delivery, a bank transfer or a money order. Merchants add one in Settings > Payments, and orders paid with it stay pending (unpaid) until the merchant marks them as paid.
- Money-lost report تقرير الأموال المفقودة
A Khaleeji COD estimate of shipping money lost to refused COD orders: cancelled COD orders from the last 60 days that had shipped × (shipping out + shipping back), using the per-order costs the merchant enters. It leaves out packaging, fees and ad spend.
- OTP (one-time password) رمز التحقق لمرة واحدة
A short code sent to the shopper's phone by SMS or WhatsApp, which they type in to prove the number works before the order is placed. It catches fake and mistyped numbers but can't stop a real shopper changing their mind.
- Partial COD الدفع الجزئي
A setup where the shopper pays part of the order online before it ships, such as the delivery cost, and the rest in cash on delivery. Shopify's normal checkout has no deposit option for COD: on Shopify Plus a draft order can ask for a deposit, and on other plans partial COD needs an app or a manual process such as a separate payment link.
- Payment customization
A Shopify Function, added by an app, that hides, renames or reorders payment methods while the shopper is at checkout. A store can have up to 25 active. They don't run in the Shopify admin, POS, order editing, admin draft orders or orders created through the Create Order API.
- Pending payment الدفع قيد الانتظار
The payment status Shopify gives an order paid with a manual method such as cash on delivery. The order stays pending until the merchant marks it as paid, usually once the courier's payout for that order arrives.
- Product tag وسم المنتج
A label a merchant adds to a product in Shopify. Checkout rules can read product tags: in Khaleeji COD, a product tagged no-cod in the cart hides Cash on Delivery for that checkout.
- Refusal rate نسبة رفض الاستلام
The share of shipped cash on delivery orders that end up refused: COD orders that shipped and were then cancelled ÷ COD orders that shipped, for the same period, × 100.
- Refuser scan
A Khaleeji COD Pro feature that reads orders placed in the last 60 days that are now cancelled (up to 1,000 per scan), keeps those paid by COD and lists the customers to tag cod-refused. Nothing is tagged until the merchant confirms, and the scan can't see why an order was cancelled.
- Region code
A code for the region in a shipping address, written as country then region, such as AE-DU for Dubai or KW-JA for Al Jahra. Shopify stores UAE emirates without the country (DU) and Kuwait governorates with it (KW-JA). In Shopify's address data only the UAE and Kuwait have a region field; Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain and Oman don't, so COD rules there have to use city names.
- Repeat refuser
A customer who has refused more than one cash on delivery order and has few or no delivered ones. Tagging such a customer cod-refused lets a checkout rule hide COD on their next order, while they can still pay online.
- Right to left (RTL) من اليمين إلى اليسار
The direction Arabic is written: lines start on the right. On a right-to-left page the layout is mirrored, while numbers and Latin words such as brand names still read left to right within the line.
- RTO (return to origin) الإرجاع إلى المرسل
When the courier brings a parcel back to the sender because it couldn't be delivered or the shopper refused it, also called return to sender. For a COD order it means no payment, a delivery fee the merchant may still pay, and stock off sale until the parcel is back.
- RTO rate
The share of shipped parcels that come back to the sender: RTO parcels ÷ parcels shipped × 100, for the same period.
- Saudi National Address العنوان الوطني
Saudi Arabia's official address format, run by SPL (Saudi Post): building number, street, district, city, postal code and secondary number, plus a short address of four letters and four numbers. Saudi media report that since January 2026 parcel companies may not accept shipments without one.
- Shopify Function
App code that changes Shopify's backend logic at a set point, such as which payment methods a checkout shows. Stores on any plan can use public apps from the Shopify App Store that contain Functions; only Shopify Plus stores can use custom apps with Functions.
- Shopify Scripts
Code that Shopify Plus stores used to customize checkout, including hiding payment methods. Shopify stopped Script editing and publishing on April 15, 2026, and set Scripts to stop running on June 30, 2026; Shopify Functions replace them.
- Short address العنوان المختصر
The Saudi National Address in a short form of four letters and four numbers. According to SPL, people can find theirs through SPL Online, Absher and Tawakkalna, among other services.
- Utility template
A WhatsApp Business Platform template category for non-promotional messages that are typically triggered by a user's action or request, such as an order confirmation or a delivery update. Meta categorizes a template that mixes in promotional content as marketing.
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Khaleeji COD has been submitted to the Shopify App Store and is in review. Email us and we'll tell you the day it's live.
In review for the Shopify App Store · Email: 9090mohammad123@gmail.com