Authorization adjustment
Authorization adjustment, also known as incremental authorization, allows merchants to modify the amount of a previously authorized payment before capturing it. This is useful when the final payment amount isn’t known at the time of the initial or when the authorized amount needs to be increased or decreased.
Benefits:
- Provides flexibility to accommodate final charges, such as additional hotel fees or updated shipping costs.
- Helps avoid rejection by the card network when capturing higher amounts.
- Improves customer experience by reducing the need to cancel and reauthorize transactions.
Common use cases:
- Hospitality
Adjusting a guest’s final hotel bill, including incidental charges. - Restaurants
Modifying a customer’s order during the visit. - Other services
Car rentals, taxis, or parking services, where the final price may vary. - E-commerce
Adjusting shipping or tax calculations after the initial authorization.
Key considerations:
- Not all merchants or support authorization adjustments.
- Incremental authorizations may have limits on the total amount or the number of adjustments.
- Adjustments do not extend the validity period of the original authorization.