You can collect a Stripe security deposit without building an API integration by using PayRequest to create a hosted authorization link. Connect an eligible Stripe account, configure the deposit request, let the customer authorize and verify the reserved funds before handover. After inspection, release the hold or make a supported final capture.
Stripe also supports manual authorization through its own Dashboard; it is not accurate to say every Stripe hold requires a developer. The reason to use PayRequest is the shareable deposit link and dedicated request, customer-status and management workflow. This guide takes you through the first request with a practical acceptance checklist.
Decide which no-code route you actually need
| Route | Best starting point | What you still own |
|---|---|---|
| Stripe Dashboard | Staff want to manage an individual authorization directly in Stripe | Customer authorization, references and deadline checks |
| PayRequest with Stripe | You want a hosted deposit request and customer status page | Rental terms, inspection and the amount to capture or release |
| Custom integration | Your software must create deposits and synchronize bookings automatically | Development, webhooks, retries and operating controls |
Stripe documents authorization and manual capture, including the Dashboard route. PayRequest documents its merchant deposit workflow. Choose one owner for each request rather than creating parallel holds in two tools.
Step 1: prepare the rental before opening checkout
Write down the booking reference, customer, amount and currency, pickup time, expected return, inspection time and responsible employee. Explain that the security amount is reserved on the customer's card and reduces available funds. It is separate from the rental fee.
For your first request, choose a short rental with an inspection you can complete comfortably. Standard online authorization windows vary by card and transaction type. The actual capture-before deadline takes priority over any duration entered in a form. Do not promise a universal seven-day or thirty-day hold.
Step 2: create the deposit link in PayRequest
Sign in to the correct business, connect the eligible Stripe account and open Create a security-deposit link. Confirm that you are creating a security deposit, not an ordinary immediate payment.
Set the amount and the deposit options offered to your account. When using a Security Deposit product, enable partial capture if you want to charge less than the full amount after inspection. Include understandable customer instructions and keep the rental reference in your operational record. Never put card numbers in notes.
Before sending, review the amount, currency, linked business and customer-facing explanation. Use the resulting authorization link in your booking message. If your customer has already received it, share that existing request again rather than creating another deposit simply to remind them.
Step 3: verify authorization before releasing equipment
A link created or opened is not proof that funds are reserved. Ask the customer to complete the provider checkout, including any bank verification, then inspect the merchant record.
| What you see | What it establishes | Your next action |
|---|---|---|
| Waiting for customer | The request exists; authorization is not confirmed | Share the existing link |
| Processing authorization | The provider result is not yet final | Wait and check; avoid a second authorization |
| Funds reserved / Authorized | A confirmed reservation exists | Check amount, exact reference and deadline |
| Authorization attempt expired | That checkout attempt expired | Check other attempts and provider records before replacing it |
| Released / Expired | That reservation is no longer available to capture | Resolve any remaining obligation separately |
Open Security Deposits, then the underlined customer name or View Deposit. For Stripe, Check linked authorization checks the exact payment reference. The Stripe card reservations overview can help investigate a reservation not attached to the expected request. A missing row or expired checkout does not prove that no other hold exists.
Step 4: complete one inspection and one decision
For a fictional booking, €350 is reserved. The complete return inspection supports €100 for a missing item and €50 for another agreed cost. The total proposed charge is €150.
With partial capture enabled and a valid authorization, choose Partial Capture on the deposit detail page. Review €150 charged and €200 released before the final Capture confirmation. This action charges the customer; the public website walkthrough is only a simulation.
The current Stripe deposit flow makes one final capture. The released €200 is not a balance for another charge later. If nothing is owed, release the complete €350 instead. Wait for provider confirmation before telling the customer the action succeeded. Their bank determines when a released hold disappears; it may not appear as a separate refund.
Use the partial-capture guide for settlement details. For a cash-to-card changeover, use the cash security deposit alternative checklist.
Check capacity and costs before the busy weekend
Current plan allowances are three new requests and one open request on Free; fifteen new requests and five open on Premium; unlimited on eligible Business and Growth plans. The request allowance is per calendar month. Waiting requests also count as open, so five live rentals plus one uncompleted request can exceed Premium's open allowance.
PayRequest currently documents €0 platform fee for this Stripe security-deposit capture flow. Stripe processing fees and any subscription are separate. Ordinary payment fees do not describe this deposit flow. Confirm your own account's current terms rather than applying a single advertised processing percentage.
For longer rentals, Business supports merchant-requested replacement authorizations only with the customer's prior saved-card renewal consent and the documented eligibility limits. It is not an automatic extension or guaranteed thirty-day reservation. Do not make renewal a requirement for your first short-rental setup.
Your first-request acceptance checklist
Before using the workflow routinely, verify that you can identify the business and reference, see the confirmed reserved amount, read the deadline, locate capture and release controls, and find the final result. Confirm the customer knows whom to contact. These are recommended checks, not a report of a live transaction test.
Create your PayRequest account, connect your Stripe account and prepare one short rental you can inspect before the confirmed deadline.
*Editorial note: substantially rewritten on 28 October 2026 using current PayRequest and Stripe documentation. AI assisted with text and cover. The €350 settlement and acceptance checklist are illustrative, not a real customer result or guarantee of collection.*
