Implementing Payment Hold on Your Website
Imagine a customer ordering construction materials with delivery. The delivery cost depends on the weight, which is only known after packing. If you capture the full amount upfront, any cancellation or price adjustment requires a refund. This increases operational costs by 25-40% and degrades user experience. Refunds and chargebacks cost businesses 2-3% of turnover. We solve this with two-stage payments—payment hold. It blocks funds on the card but does not capture them until confirmation. As a result, chargebacks are cut in half, and customers get a transparent process.
Payment hold is authorization without immediate capture. The money is blocked on the buyer's card but remains with the bank. The merchant can capture only the actual amount or cancel the hold if the deal falls through. In practice, this reduces chargebacks by 30-40% and eliminates overpayment refunds. For businesses, it means a faster fulfillment cycle—on average 1.5 times faster.
Two-stage payment is especially relevant for services with variable costs, pre-orders, and deferred capture. It gives flexibility to the business and security to the customer.
What Problems Does Hold Solve?
- Order cancellation. Funds are not transferred to the seller until confirmation—on cancellation, the hold is released automatically or on request. This eliminates lengthy refunds.
- Variable cost. Delivery, weight, configuration—the final price is unknown upfront. Hold allows authorizing the maximum amount and capturing the actual one using partial capture.
- Quality confirmation. Service provided, customer satisfied—only then capture funds. This reduces risk for service companies.
How Does Two-Stage Payment Work?
The process involves two operations: authorize (block) and capture (capture). Between them, minutes to 7–30 days pass depending on the bank. We configure the payment gateway, handle statuses, and ensure correct hold release.
Stripe
In Stripe, hold is enabled via capture_method: manual:
$paymentIntent = \Stripe\PaymentIntent::create([ 'amount' => $order->total_cents, 'currency' => 'eur', 'capture_method' => 'manual', 'payment_method_types' => ['card'], 'metadata' => ['order_id' => $order->id], ]); After 3DS confirmation, status is requires_capture. Funds are blocked. For capture:
\Stripe\PaymentIntent::capture($order->stripe_payment_intent_id, [ 'amount_to_capture' => $finalAmountCents, // less than or equal to original amount ]); Stripe supports partial capture—you can capture less, and the remainder is automatically released. Useful when the final cost is lower.
YooKassa
Similarly in YooKassa:
$payment = $client->createPayment([ 'amount' => ['value' => '1500.00', 'currency' => 'RUB'], 'capture' => false, 'payment_method_data' => ['type' => 'bank_card'], 'confirmation' => ['type' => 'redirect', 'return_url' => $returnUrl], 'description' => 'Order #' . $order->id, ], uniqid('', true)); Capture:
$client->capturePayment( ['amount' => ['value' => '1500.00', 'currency' => 'RUB']], $order->yookassa_payment_id, uniqid('', true) ); Canceling a Hold
If the order is canceled before capture—cancel the authorization, otherwise funds remain blocked until expiry. In Stripe:
\Stripe\PaymentIntent::cancel($order->stripe_payment_intent_id, [ 'cancellation_reason' => 'abandoned', ]); In YooKassa—$client->cancelPayment(...).
Payment System Comparison
| Parameter | Stripe | YooKassa | CloudPayments |
|---|---|---|---|
| Enable method | capture_method: manual |
capture: false |
Two-stage mode |
| Partial capture | Yes (amount_to_capture) | Yes | Yes (with limitations) |
| Hold duration | 7–31 days | 7 days | 7 days |
| Cancel hold | Via API | Via API | Via API |
Typical Hold Scenarios
| Scenario | Action | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Order canceled before confirmation | Automatic hold cancel via API | Funds released within 1–3 days |
| Partial shipment | Partial capture on shipped amount | Balance released automatically |
| Hourly service | Authorize maximum, capture actual | Customer not overcharged |
| Hold expiry | Manager notified 2 days before expiry | Opportunity to extend or capture |
Why Hold Is Better Than One-Stage Payment?
One-stage payment captures immediately. On cancellation, a refund is required, taking 3–10 days. With hold, no refund—just cancel authorization. This saves time and money. According to our data, switching to two-stage payment reduces operational costs on refunds by 50% and increases repeat purchase conversion by 10-15%.
Monitoring Expiring Holds
We configure background tasks that notify managers 1–2 days before expiry—you have time to capture or extend authorization. We use cron scripts or queues (Redis/Beanstalkd). We guarantee no hold goes unnoticed.
What's Included in the Work
- Analysis of business logic and gateway selection.
- Integration of payment system API (authorization, capture, cancel).
- Development of status handlers and error scenarios.
- Testing on sandbox and production.
- Documentation for use and support during release.
Our Experience and Guarantees
We have implemented hold for 15+ projects: marketplaces, food delivery, fitness clubs. Experience with payment gateways—5 years. We guarantee correct handling of all cases: cancellation, partial capture, expiry. Code undergoes code review and is covered by tests. Your customers will see a transparent payment process with no hidden charges.
Timelines and Cost
Integration timeline—from 3 to 10 business days depending on CMS complexity and gateway specifics. Cost is calculated individually. Contact us for a preliminary assessment of your project. Get a consultation on implementing hold in your business.