# Move patients through the Front Desk

> In Velarya, the Front Desk board shows today's visits at your location in five columns: Upcoming, Confirmed, Arrived, In Session and Completed. Drag a patient's card to the next column, or use the button in their panel. Add walk-ins with + New Walk-In, and move a finished visit to Completed to open checkout.

- Source: https://velarya.com/help/move-patients-through-the-front-desk
- Who can do this: Admins, Location Managers and Front Desk. The board takes Front-desk board at View; moving and opening cards takes Calendar & appointments at Manage; walk-ins also take Check-in & scanning; promoting a walk-in and checkout take Transactions / orders at Edit; the QR scanner takes Check-in & scanning.
- Plans: Basic, Scale, Branded, Connected
- Time: 1 minute per patient
- Last verified: 2026-10-01

## Before you begin

- Today's visits are booked: Book an appointment for a patient.
- To award points on arrival, the check-in challenge gives points: Set up check-in rewards.

## Move a patient through the day

The Velarya Front Desk board is today's schedule for your location, one card per booked service, in five columns: **Upcoming**, **Confirmed**, **Arrived**, **In Session** and **Completed**. Each card shows the patient, the time, the provider's photo or initials and a payment badge: **Paid**, **Membership** or **Unpaid**.

1. Select **Front Desk** in the left sidebar. The page shows today's date with "(Today)".
2. Drag the card from **Upcoming** to **Confirmed** when the patient confirms, or open the card and select **Confirm**.
3. Drag the card to **Arrived** when they arrive, or select **Mark Arrived** in the panel. Velarya checks them in and adds any check-in points.
4. Drag the card to **In Session** when treatment starts, or select **Start Session**.
5. Drag the card to **Completed** when treatment ends, or select **Mark Completed**. The **Checkout** panel opens for payment.

![Front Desk board for today with Upcoming, Confirmed, Arrived, In Session and Completed columns, Arrived outlined](https://velarya.com/assets/help/move-patients-through-the-front-desk/front-desk-board-d57d9c39.webp)

For staff with **Clinical charts & forms**, the panel's **Forms & Charts** block shows the visit's forms and charts with their status, and **Chart** opens the visit's **Clinical** tab, as [Chart a visit: notes, charts and photos](https://velarya.com/help/chart-a-visit) shows.

To find someone fast, select **Search client by name…** and type their name. Each result shows the patient's column, and **Check In** next to a patient who has not arrived moves them straight to **Arrived**.

A red stripe down the left of a card means the patient has a scheduling alert, such as a timing or parking instruction ([Add notes, tags and alerts to a patient](https://velarya.com/help/add-notes-tags-and-alerts)). Allergies are medical alerts, shown on the patient's profile, as [Record a patient's medical history and files](https://velarya.com/help/record-medical-history-and-files) explains. When you drag that card to **Arrived**, a **Scheduling alert for** dialog opens with the patient's first name and the alert: select **Mark as arrived** to go on, or **Cancel**. The alert also shows in red at the top of the patient's panel.

## Check a patient in by scanning

The QR code button next to **+ New Walk-In** opens the **Check-in scanner**. Scan the code in the patient's app, or find them under **Manual lookup**, then select **Check in** with their name: today's visit moves to **Arrived** and any check-in points are added. [Check in a patient with a QR code](https://velarya.com/help/check-in-a-patient-with-a-qr-code) walks through the scanner.

## Add a walk-in

A walk-in is someone at the desk without a booking. Velarya holds them on the board as a card in **Arrived** until you find them a time, they leave, or the day ends, and creates no sale while they wait.

1. Select **+ New Walk-In**. A **New walk-in** card opens at the top of **Arrived**.
2. Type the patient's first and last name.
3. Select **Add details** for **Phone (optional)**, **Email (optional)**, **Service interest (optional)** and **Notes (optional)**. A phone number that matches a patient in **Clients** shows under "Matches an existing client?": select the match to fill in their name. When you promote the walk-in, pick the same patient under **Client** so the visit joins their existing record.
4. Select **Save**. "Walk-in added" appears with the name, and the card shows a **Walk-in** badge and **Assign service & time**.

![New walk-in card with a name, Hydrafacial as the service interest and the Save button](https://velarya.com/assets/help/move-patients-through-the-front-desk/front-desk-walk-in-73fa2049.webp)

If the person leaves, select the cross on their card, then **Dismiss walk-in** in the dialog that asks to dismiss them. They leave the board, and Velarya creates no patient record and no sale. **Keep on board** closes the dialog.

## Turn a walk-in into an appointment

Promoting a walk-in books their visit on the spot and checks the provider's, room's and patient's schedule, as the Calendar does.

1. Select **Assign service & time** on the walk-in's card. **Promote walk-in** opens.
2. Under **Client**, link the patient if they are already in **Clients**. Leave it blank to add them to **Clients** as a new patient from the walk-in's name, phone and email.
3. Under **Services**, select **Add service**, select every service for this visit, choose each **Variation** and select **Done**.
4. Under **Provider**, pick who treats them.
5. Check the **Time**. It starts now; keep today's date.
6. Select **Promote to appointment**. A message confirms the walk-in was promoted, and their card becomes a visit in **Arrived** that keeps its **Walk-in** badge. Each further service shows as its own card in **Upcoming** at its start time.

![Promote walk-in drawer with a Hydrafacial, Maya Fournier as provider, the date and time, and Promote to appointment](https://velarya.com/assets/help/move-patients-through-the-front-desk/front-desk-promote-drawer-6225ed97.webp)

## What happens when a walk-in is promoted?

Promoting a walk-in in Velarya turns the placeholder card into a booked, arrived visit with a sale behind it.

- With **Client** left blank, Velarya adds a new patient to **Clients** from the walk-in's name, phone and email. [Add a patient](https://velarya.com/help/add-a-patient) covers the other ways to add one.
- The visit's sale appears in **Transactions**, unpaid, ready for checkout.
- The patient counts as arrived, so any check-in points are added.
- The walk-in card leaves the board, and the visit card keeps a **Walk-in** badge for the day.

When the time clashes with the schedule, **This conflicts with the schedule** asks you to **Save anyway** or **Go back**, as [Book an appointment for a patient](https://velarya.com/help/book-an-appointment-for-a-patient) explains.

## Hand a finished visit to checkout

Moving a visit to **Completed** opens the **Checkout** panel. To take payment earlier, open the card and select **Apply payment** in the ⋯ menu of its panel.

1. Select the patient's card in **In Session** to open its panel.
2. Select **Mark Completed**, or drag the card to **Completed**. The **Checkout** panel opens with the visit's services and total.

![Appointment panel for a visit in session, with its service, total and the Mark Completed button outlined](https://velarya.com/assets/help/move-patients-through-the-front-desk/front-desk-mark-completed-5404866e.webp)

3. Choose how the patient pays in **Checkout** and take the payment, as [Take payment at checkout](https://velarya.com/help/take-payment-at-checkout) shows. If the visit is already paid, the panel says Paid: select **Complete & Close**. The card shows a check mark and stays in **Completed**.
4. To finish the payment later, select **Save for Later** instead. "Saved as draft" appears, and the card shows **Parked**. Select the card and **Open Checkout** to pick it up again.

A card already in **Completed** that has not been paid opens checkout from **Open Checkout** in its panel.

## What do patients see?

A promoted walk-in gets the same booking confirmation as any visit booked from the Calendar. When a patient reaches **Arrived**, their check-in points land in the patient app as [Check in a patient with a QR code](https://velarya.com/help/check-in-a-patient-with-a-qr-code) describes. Confirming, starting or completing a visit on the board sends the patient no appointment message.

## How does the Front Desk board behave?

The Velarya Front Desk board follows these rules:

| Situation | What Velarya does |
|---|---|
| You open **Front Desk** | Shows today at the location you are working in. Other days are on the **Calendar** |
| Order within a column | Sorts by start time, except **Arrived** (by arrival time) and **Completed** (latest first) |
| A card moves to **Arrived** | Records the arrival and adds check-in points, as a QR scan does |
| A card moves to **Completed** | Opens the **Checkout** panel |
| A visit your team booked has not been paid | Stays on the board with an **Unpaid** badge until checkout |
| A visit is paid in **Completed** | Shows a check mark and locks the card in place |
| A walk-in is promoted | Books the visit and its unpaid sale, and the patient is checked in |
| A walk-in is dismissed | Removes the card, with no patient record or sale |
| Someone else moves the same card | Refreshes the board and asks you to try again |

The board refreshes itself every 10 seconds, so a visit booked, moved or paid on the **Calendar**, in the patient app or at another desk appears without reloading the page.

## If something goes wrong

**"Unable to load appointments for this day."** The board could not reach your schedule. Select **Retry**, and check your connection if it keeps happening.

**"Booking is off" on Front Desk.** **Enable online booking** is off for your practice. An Admin selects **Go to Booking settings** and turns it on.

**The walk-in button reads "No Access" and cards will not move.** Your role has **Calendar & appointments** below **manage**. Ask an Admin to set it to **manage** in your role.

**"You don't have permission to view the Front Desk."** Your role lacks **Front-desk board** at **view**. Ask an Admin to add it.

**The QR code button is grayed out.** Your role lacks **Check-in & scanning**. Ask an Admin to turn it on in your role.

**A message starting "Cannot move from".** Move the card back one column at a time, or use **Move back to…** in its panel. A checked-out card stays in **Completed**. To give money back on a checked-out visit, an Admin or Location Manager refunds it in **Transactions**, as [Refund a payment](https://velarya.com/help/refund-a-payment) shows.

**"Another user updated this appointment. Refreshing…"** Someone changed the same visit a moment before you. The board reloads; make your move again.

**"Enter both a first and a last name" when saving a walk-in.** Type the name as first name and last name, then select **Save**.

**"1 service still needs its options configured" in Promote walk-in.** Select the pencil on the service, choose its **Variation**, then select **Promote to appointment** again.

## Frequently asked questions

### Where do I manage other days' visits?

On the Calendar. The Front Desk board is today's floor at the location you are working in, so the day's arrivals and checkouts sit in one place. The Calendar shows any day, and a visit you book or move there appears on the Front Desk board as soon as its day comes, in the column that matches where the patient is.

### Do walk-ins count as sales?

Not until you promote them. A walk-in card holds a name and a few details while you find a time. Promote to appointment creates the visit and its sale, unpaid, in Transactions. Dismissing a walk-in removes the card and creates no patient record and no sale, so people who leave without a treatment never touch your reports or revenue.

### What does the Waitlist button on the Front Desk do?

The Waitlist button on the Front Desk opens the waitlist in Transactions. It appears as Waitlist: with a count when patients are waiting for a time today. From that list you can book a waiting patient into an opening, for example after a same-day cancellation: Book on their row opens the New appointment drawer with the patient, the service and their requested date filled in.

### Does moving a card to Arrived give check-in points?

Yes, when your check-in challenge gives points. Dragging a card into Arrived, selecting Mark Arrived, selecting Check In in the search and promoting a walk-in all check the patient in, and a message such as +50 pts check-in confirms the points. The rules in your check-in challenge, such as how often a patient can earn, apply to each of these.

### Can I undo a move on the Front Desk board?

Yes, until the visit is checked out. Drag the card back to an earlier column, or open it and choose Move to Upcoming, Move back to Confirmed, Move back to Arrived or Move back to In Session in its menu, one column at a time. Once payment is taken, the card shows a check mark and stays in Completed.