How it works
Shopify shows every order as Unfulfilled until someone fulfils it, course orders included, so they sit in your unfulfilled orders next to parcels that really need packing. Auto-fulfilment has Alva Courses fulfil them for you.
Fulfilment never controls access. Alva Courses enrols the student when the order is paid, whether or not the order is ever fulfilled. Auto-fulfilment only changes the order's fulfilment status in Shopify.
Turn on auto-fulfilment
1. Open the Order Fulfillment tab
In the Shopify admin, open Alva Courses and click Settings. Then open the Order Fulfillment tab.
2. Tick Enable automatic order fulfillment
In the Auto-Fulfillment section, tick Enable automatic order fulfillment, then save from the save bar. A Changes saved message confirms it. Ticking the box does not ask you to approve a new Shopify permission.
3. Check your course products don't require shipping
In Shopify, open each product linked to a course and make sure its shipping settings do not mark it as a physical product. Check every variant buyers can choose. An order with any line that requires shipping is never auto-fulfilled.
4. Confirm the status on the home page
Click Alva Courses in the Shopify admin sidebar to return to the app's home page. The Settings Status card should show Auto-Fulfillment as Enabled.
5. Test with an order
Place a test order for a course product, as in Send yourself a test enrolment. Once the order is paid, it should show as Fulfilled in Shopify's Orders list within moments.
Which orders Alva Courses fulfils
Alva Courses fulfils an order only when every line item on it is a product or variant linked to one of your courses, and none of them requires shipping. It then fulfils every open line item, at its full quantity, in a single fulfilment.
An order that mixes a course with anything else — a physical product, a product not linked to a course, a custom item or a tip — is left entirely alone. The student is still enrolled; you fulfil that order yourself, course items included.
Alva Courses also skips any part of an order whose fulfilment is on hold or scheduled for later in Shopify. If the whole order is on hold or scheduled, nothing is fulfilled.
When it runs
Auto-fulfilment runs once per order, as soon as Shopify reports the order as paid, straight after Alva Courses enrols the student. An order still awaiting payment is fulfilled when it is marked as paid.
If Shopify has not finished setting up the order's fulfilment yet, Alva Courses checks again a few times over a few seconds. After that, nothing retries it. Orders paid before you turned the setting on are not fulfilled retroactively.
What learners see
Alva Courses fulfils orders without notifying the customer, so Shopify's shipping confirmation email is not sent. Learners hear from you through the Alva Courses enrolment email, sent when Send enrollment emails is ticked in Settings → Email Settings. Their access is the same either way.
If an order stays Unfulfilled
Alva Courses never goes back to an order it skipped. Work through these checks, then fulfil the order yourself from Shopify's Orders page.
- Check the Settings Status card shows Auto-Fulfillment as Enabled. Only orders paid after you saved the setting are fulfilled.
- Check every line on the order is a course product. A single other item, even a tip, keeps the whole order out.
- Check no line requires shipping. Fixing the product afterwards does not fulfil an order that was already paid.
- Check the order is paid, its fulfilment is not on hold, and it has a customer. An order with no customer is not processed at all, so the buyer is not enrolled either.
- If all of that is right, Shopify most likely did not answer in time. If it keeps happening, email us: a store missing Shopify's fulfilment permission for Alva Courses shows up the same way.
Common questions
Does auto-fulfilment affect a student's course access?
No. Alva Courses enrols the student when the order is paid, whether or not the order is ever fulfilled. Auto-fulfilment only changes the order's fulfilment status in Shopify.
Will it fulfil orders paid before I turned it on?
No. Auto-fulfilment runs once, as each order is paid. Orders paid before you saved the setting stay Unfulfilled until you fulfil them from the Orders page in Shopify.
Does the customer get a shipping confirmation email?
No. Alva Courses fulfils the order without notifying the customer, so Shopify does not send its shipping confirmation. Learners get the Alva Courses enrolment email instead, when Send enrollment emails is ticked.
Do I need to approve a new Shopify permission?
No. Ticking the box does not open a permissions screen. The fulfilment access auto-fulfilment uses is part of the permissions Alva Courses requests when you install it.
See also
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Last updated 2026-10-09