Automatically Release Payment Authorizations After Checkout

This feature is currently in a pilot phase and is planned for a broader release soon. If you are interested in joining the testing phase, please reach out to our support. Your feedback is crucial in shaping its final form — thank you for your patience and support!

What This Feature Does

When a guest checks out without a charge being captured, their payment authorization
stays open on their card until it expires or is manually released. By default, Stripe holds these
authorizations for up to 30 days.
With this feature, you can configure Cloudbeds to automatically release unused
authorizations a set number of days after checkout — no manual follow-up required.

Who This Applies To

This feature is available to properties using Cloudbeds Payments. It applies to
reservation-level authorizations only. Authorizations associated with house accounts or
group profiles are not affected — those continue to follow the gateway's standard expiration
rules.

How to Configure It

1.  Go to Finance -> Payment Options
2. Open Credit Card settings
3. Set the number of days after checkout before unused authorizations are released
4. Save

Once configured, the system automatically schedules a release for any reservation that
checks out with an unused authorization still open.

What to Expect

• No action required at checkout. Once the setting is saved, the release is scheduled
  automatically when a guest checks out.
• Releases are processed in the background. A release scheduled for a given day will
  execute in the early hours of that day — typically by 2:00 AM in the property's
  timezone.
• You'll see three entries on the reservation activity log:
  At checkout
  "Payments post check-out event — Uncaptured authorizations will be voided in [N] day(s) on
  [date]."
  Once scheduled
  "Void scheduled — Void of USD [amount] scheduled for [date] on Reservation #[number]."
  Once executed
  "Authorization voided — Cloudbeds Payments void of USD [amount] processed for
  Reservation #[number]."
• Manual voids still work. If staff manually voids an authorization before the scheduled
  release runs, the scheduled release becomes a non-event — there is nothing left to
  release.

A Few Things to Know

• Setting 0 days is accepted but does not currently trigger an immediate release. The
  authorization will expire following Stripe's standard 30-day window instead. We know
  same-day release is a useful scenario — it's on our near-term roadmap and we'll
  keep you updated as part of your early access.
• Reservations checked out before this feature was enabled are not retroactively
  processed. The auto-release only applies to checkouts that occur after the setting is
  configured.
• Once a release is scheduled, it cannot be cancelled via the UI. If you need to hold an
  authorization longer, manually capture or void it before the background sweep runs.
• This feature cannot extend an authorization past Stripe's 30-day window. It can only
  release earlier than that limit — not beyond it.