How long can you hold money on a customer's credit card before charging? The answer depends on your business type, your payment processor, and the card network. Most merchants get 7 days. Hotels get up to 31 days. With the right setup, you can configure holds from 1 to 28 days regardless of your industry.
This guide explains credit card hold durations, what determines your limits, and how to extend holds beyond the standard 7-day window.
Standard Hold Durations by Card Network
Visa and Mastercard — the two dominant card networks — set the rules for how long merchants can hold authorized funds. These rules vary by merchant category.
Visa categorizes merchants and assigns authorization time limits based on the merchant category code (MCC). The standard authorization window is 7 days for most merchants. After 7 days, the authorization expires and funds are released to the cardholder.
Certain industries receive extended authorization windows. Lodging merchants (hotels, B&Bs, vacation rentals) get up to 31 days. Vehicle rental companies get 31 days. These extended windows recognize that these businesses need time after the service period to assess charges.
Mastercard follows a similar structure. Standard authorizations expire after 7 days. Hotel and lodging merchants receive extensions up to 30 days. Vehicle rental merchants also receive extended periods.
The difference between Visa and Mastercard limits is minimal in practice — both provide roughly 4 weeks for accommodation and rental businesses, and one week for everyone else.
Amex generally follows the same patterns as Visa and Mastercard but may have slightly different policies depending on the merchant agreement. For most businesses, the practical limits are the same: 7 days standard, extended for hotels and car rentals.
Why Hold Duration Matters for Your Business
The hold duration determines your decision window — the time between when a customer authorizes the deposit and when you must capture or let it expire. Getting this right directly impacts your operations.
If your hold expires before you can inspect and decide, you lose the ability to capture. This is the worst outcome — you protected nothing.
A common mistake: setting a 7-day hold for a 7-day vacation rental. The rental ends on day 7, leaving zero time for checkout inspection, cleaning assessment, and capture processing. By the time you discover the stained carpet, the authorization has expired.
Held funds reduce the customer's available credit for the entire hold duration. A €500 hold for 28 days means €500 of the customer's credit limit is unavailable for nearly a month.
For customers with limited credit, this creates real inconvenience. They might not be able to make other purchases while your hold is active. Unnecessary long holds generate customer complaints and potential disputes.
The optimal hold duration is your service period plus a buffer for inspection and processing. Here are practical recommendations:
| Business Type | Service Period | Recommended Hold |
|---|---|---|
| Weekend car rental | 2–3 days | 7 days |
| Week-long vacation rental | 7 days | 10–14 days |
| Equipment rental (daily) | 1 day | 3–5 days |
| Hotel stay (1–3 nights) | 1–3 days | 7 days |
| Hotel stay (1 week) | 7 days | 14 days |
| Event venue | 1 day | 7 days |
| Photography equipment | 1–2 days | 5 days |
| Boat rental | 1–7 days | 7–14 days |
| RV/Camper rental | 3–14 days | 7–21 days |
The buffer accounts for time zones, weekends (you might not inspect on Saturday), and processing time. Better to have a few extra days than to miss the capture window.
How PayRequest Enables 1–28 Day Holds
Traditional deposit collection through card terminals or basic payment processors limits you to your assigned merchant category duration. PayRequest's security deposit feature gives you control over the hold duration from 1 to 28 days.
PayRequest uses Mollie's manual capture mode to create pre-authorized payments. When you create a Smart Link with deposit mode, you set the hold duration as part of the configuration. This duration is passed to Mollie, which instructs the card issuer to maintain the hold for that period.
The configurable range of 1 to 28 days covers virtually every business scenario:
- 1–3 days: Daily equipment rentals, photography gear
- 5–7 days: Weekend car rentals, short hotel stays, event venues
- 10–14 days: Week-long vacation rentals, medium-term equipment hire
- 21–28 days: Extended vacations, monthly equipment leases, seasonal rentals
One of the significant advantages of PayRequest + Mollie is that hold duration isn't restricted by your merchant category code. Whether you're classified as a "general merchandise" seller or a "hotel," you can configure holds up to 28 days.
This matters because many businesses that need extended holds don't fall into the hotel or car rental categories that traditionally receive them. Photography studios, event venues, tool rental companies, and coworking spaces all benefit from longer hold periods but aren't classified as "lodging" or "vehicle rental."
What Happens When a Hold Expires
Understanding hold expiration helps you plan your workflow and avoid surprises.
When a hold reaches its configured duration without being captured, the authorization expires. The card issuer automatically releases the reserved funds. The customer's available credit is restored within 1–3 business days.
From your perspective, the hold simply disappears. You can no longer capture against that authorization. The money is gone.
The card issuer doesn't notify you when a hold is about to expire. You need your own tracking system to monitor hold timelines. PayRequest's dashboard shows the remaining time on every active hold with a visual countdown, so you always know when action is needed.
If a hold expires and you still need to charge the customer:
New pre-authorization: Send the customer a new deposit link and ask them to authorize again. This requires customer cooperation and doesn't guarantee they'll comply.
Regular charge: If you have the customer's card on file or their agreement to charge, you can process a standard payment. This should be covered in your deposit terms.
Invoice: Send a separate invoice for the amount owed. This is the least desirable option — you've lost the guaranteed funds and are now chasing payment.
The best approach is to avoid expiration entirely. Set appropriate hold durations and monitor your dashboard for upcoming expirations.
Extended Holds: Best Practices
Configure the hold to start counting from when the service begins, not when it's booked. If a customer books a vacation rental 3 months in advance, don't collect the deposit 3 months early — the hold would expire long before the stay ends.
Send the deposit link close to the service date. For vacation rentals, 1–3 days before arrival is ideal. For car rentals, at the time of pickup. For event venues, 1 week before the event.
While you can set holds up to 28 days, longer isn't always better. Longer holds impact customers more and increase the chance of them contacting their bank about the pending transaction.
Calculate: service period + inspection time + 1–2 business days for processing. A 3-night hotel stay needs about 7 days (3 nights + 1 day checkout + 2 days inspection + 1 day buffer), not 28 days.
Customers appreciate knowing when their hold will be released. PayRequest's customer status page shows the hold countdown, but also mention the timeline in your booking confirmation.
"Your €500 deposit hold will be released within 48 hours of checkout unless charges apply."
This sets expectations and reduces "when is my deposit returned?" inquiries.
Don't wait until the last day of the hold to capture. Process captures as soon as you've completed your inspection and know the charge amount. This releases the remaining held funds sooner, improving the customer experience.
For a 14-day hold on a vacation rental, aim to capture or release within 48 hours of checkout — not on day 13.
Industry-Specific Hold Duration Guidance
Standard holds of 7–14 days work for most hotel stays. Set the hold at check-in (or pre-arrival via email link), and release within 24–48 hours of checkout. Capture for minibar, room damage, smoking, or late checkout fees.
Hold durations of 10–14 days cover most weekly rentals. For longer stays (2+ weeks), extend to 21–28 days. Vacation rental hosts should account for cleaning inspection time, which may happen 1–2 days after checkout.
7–14 day holds cover most car rental scenarios. Vehicle deposit links should account for vehicle inspection, toll processing (which can be delayed), and fuel charge calculation.
3–7 day holds suit most equipment rentals. Equipment rental deposits need enough time for testing and inspection — some equipment issues only appear when the next customer tries to use it.
Getting Started with Configurable Hold Durations
Stop being limited by default 7-day hold periods. PayRequest's security deposit feature lets you configure hold durations from 1 to 28 days, matching your exact business needs.
Create a Smart Link with your preferred hold duration, share it with customers, and manage everything from a visual dashboard. Start your free trial — €20/month includes all features, 0% platform fees.