Holds and decisions
A payment that is over a merchant's limit, or needs a screening check, is held until someone with the right role releases or declines it. If nobody decides within the workspace's hold expiry, the shopper is refunded automatically.
#Why a payment is held
| Hold | When | Decided by |
|---|---|---|
| Over the merchant's payment limit | The payout is over the merchant's largest single payment, or would take the day's payouts past its daily limit | Decide limit holds (PAYMENT_DECIDE), held by Treasury and Operations |
| Screening check needed | The merchant is on the Enhanced screening tier, or its verification is still pending | Decide screening holds (PAYMENT_SCREEN_DECIDE), held by Compliance |
#Deciding a hold
- Open the payment from Needs a decision on the Payments page.
- Review the merchant, the amounts and the reason.
- Select Release to continue the payment, or Decline to refund the shopper. A decline needs a reason.
Someone without the permission sees which team must decide instead.
Maker-checker. You cannot release a payment you locked yourself. A release is also refused if the merchant has since been paused, rejected or expired, or the corridor has been halted; decline it instead.
#Automatic refunds
Every held payment shows how long is left: "Refunds the shopper automatically in…". When the workspace's hold expiry passes (default 24 hours, set in Policies), the payment is refunded and the refund is recorded in the audit log. Funds are never left in limbo.
Key takeaway
A hold is a pause for a person, not a dead end. A different person from the one who locked it releases or declines it, and if nobody does, the shopper gets their money back.