Placing a hold on a cardCharges API

Use the Charges API to authorize a payment now, capture funds later.

Stripe supports two-step card payments so you can first authorize a charge, then wait to settle (capture) it later. When a charge is authorized, the card issuer guarantees the funds and holds the amount on the customer’s card for, usually, up to 7 days, or 2 days for in-person payments using Terminal. The payment_method_details.card.capture_before attribute on the charge indicates the time when the authorization expires.

If the charge isn’t captured within this time, the authorization is canceled and funds released.

Authorize a payment

To authorize a payment without capturing it, make a charge request that also includes the capture parameter with a value of false. This instructs Stripe to only authorize the amount on the customer’s card.

If you need to cancel an authorization, you can release it by refunding the relevant Charge object.

curl https://api.stripe.com/v1/charges \
  -u 
sk_test_4eC39HqLyjWDarjtT1zdp7dc
: \
  -d "amount"=999 \
  -d "currency"="usd" \
  -d "description"="Example charge" \
  -d "source"="tok_visa" \
  -d "capture"="false"

Capture the funds

To settle an authorized charge, make a capture charge request. The total authorized amount is captured by default, and you cannot capture more than this. To capture less than the initial amount (for example, 8 USD of a 10 USD authorization), pass the amount parameter. Partially capturing a charge automatically releases the remaining amount.

curl -X POST https://api.stripe.com/v1/charges/{{CHARGE_ID}}/capture \
  -u "
sk_test_4eC39HqLyjWDarjtT1zdp7dc
:"

Card statements from some issuers do not distinguish between authorizations and captured (settled) charges, which can sometimes lead to confusion for your customers. In addition, authorized charges can only be captured once. If you partially capture a charge, you cannot perform another capture for the difference. Depending on your requirements, you may be better served by saving customer’s card details for later and creating charges as needed.