With Auto Payments, you can define when and how much to charge or authorize a guest, based on their booking source.
💡 Before you start: Make sure your payment gateway is connected and your booking sources are configured correctly.
✨ What can you automate?
Auto Payment Settings can be used to manage:
💳 Feature | What it does |
💳 Credit Card Validation | Authorizes a small amount to verify that the guest's card is valid. |
💰 Reservation Payment | Automatically collects all or part of the reservation balance. |
🔐 Security Deposit | Places an authorization/hold for a refundable security or damage deposit. |
↩️ Auto Refund | Automatically refunds reservation payments according to your configured rules. |
🚀 Getting Started
Open Auto Payment Settings
Auto Payment rules are configured per booking source, so make sure you're editing the correct channel before saving your settings.
📍 Navigation:
Settings → Auto Payments
🌎 Global vs. Property-Specific Settings
ChargeAutomation supports two levels of Auto Payment configuration:
🌐 Global Auto Payment Rules
Global rules apply to your properties by default.
Use global rules when most or all of your properties follow the same payment policy.
🏠 Property-Specific Rules
You can create custom payment rules for an individual property.
Property-specific rules take priority over global rules for that property.
This is useful when, for example:
🏡 One property requires a higher security deposit.
💰 Different properties have different payment schedules.
📅 A particular property has different reservation-payment requirements.
💡 Tip: If a property doesn't have custom payment rules configured, it will use your global Auto Payment rules.
💳 Credit Card Validation
💳 Credit Card Validation
What is it?
Credit Card Validation uses a pre-authorization to verify that the guest's card is valid after the booking is received.
The specified amount is authorized on the card and is subsequently released according to the configured authorization behavior.
When should I use it?
Use this option when you want to:
✅ Verify that a payment method is valid.
🛡️ Identify potentially invalid cards early.
💳 Confirm that the card can support a future payment.
💰 Reservation Payment
💰 Reservation Payment
Use Reservation Payment when you want ChargeAutomation to automatically collect some or all of the reservation balance.
You can configure how much to collect and when to collect it.
Common examples
100% at booking
Collect the entire reservation amount immediately.
50% at booking + 50% before check-in
Split the reservation payment into two scheduled charges.
Full payment before arrival
Collect the remaining balance a specified number of days before check-in.
If you don't want ChargeAutomation to collect reservation payments automatically, leave this option disabled.
🔐 Security Deposit
🔐 Security Deposit
Use Security Deposit settings to authorize a refundable amount before the guest's stay.
You can configure your Security Deposit in two ways:
Auto Payment Settings: Configure the security deposit as part of your automated payment rules.
Dedicated Security Deposit page: Use the dedicated Security Deposit page for more focused security deposit configuration and management.
The deposit is generally processed as an authorization/hold, rather than an immediate captured payment. The length of time an authorization can remain active depends on the payment gateway, card type, and country.
Recommended timing
For many properties, configuring the security deposit 1–2 days before check-in can provide protection while keeping the authorization close to the guest's arrival.
⚠️ Important: Authorization periods vary by payment gateway and card network. Always consider the authorization window supported by your gateway when configuring the timing.
💡 Tip: If you're only looking to configure or manage Security Deposits only, you can also go directly to the dedicated Security Deposit page instead of navigating through Auto Payment Settings.
⏰ Configure Automatic Deposit Release
ChargeAutomation now allows you to configure when security deposits are automatically released after checkout.
To configure this in Auto Payments:
Go to Settings → Auto Payments
Select the relevant Booking Source.
Open Security Deposit Settings.
Click Additional Rules.
Select Automatic Release.
Choose how many days after checkout the deposit should be released.
Click Save.
To configure this in Security Deposit:
Go to Settings → Security Deposit
Click Additional Rules.
Select Automatic Release.
Choose how many days after checkout the deposit should be released.
Click Save & Activate.
↩️ Reservation Auto Refund
↩️ Reservation Auto Refund
If you're collecting reservation payments through ChargeAutomation, you can optionally configure automatic refunds.
This allows you to define refund behavior when a reservation is cancelled.
If you configure a cancellation grace period during which the guest receives a full refund, ChargeAutomation can automatically refund an eligible reservation payment according to your Auto Refund rules.
⚠️ Important: When an Auto Refund rule conflicts with a cancellation fee, the Auto Refund policy takes priority.
You can leave Auto Refund disabled if you prefer to process refunds manually.
📋 Copy Auto Payment Settings
If multiple booking sources use the same payment rules, you don't need to configure each one manually.
You can copy the settings from one booking source to one or more other booking sources.
How to copy settings
Go to Settings → Auto Payments.
Click the ✏️ pencil icon for the booking source you want to copy.
Select Copy Settings To.
Choose the booking source(s) you want to copy the settings to.
Save the changes.
🏠 Applying Auto Payment Settings to an Existing Booking
Changing your Auto Payment rules does not necessarily mean existing bookings already have the new rules applied.
You may need to manually apply the Auto Payment settings to an existing reservation.
To apply the rules:
Open the relevant booking.
Click the ⋮ three-dot menu on the right side of the booking.
Select Apply Auto Payment.
ChargeAutomation will apply the appropriate Auto Payment rules to the reservation.
🔎 Troubleshooting
If an automatic payment isn't being created or processed, check the following:
1. Verify the Booking Source
Make sure the reservation's booking source matches a booking source with Auto Payment rules configured.
2. Check the Property
If the property has custom payment rules, those rules may override your global settings.
3. Review the Payment Rule
Check:
💰 Amount or percentage
📅 Charge timing
🔐 Security deposit amount
⏰ Deposit release timing
↩️ Refund conditions
4. Check the Payment Gateway
Make sure the property is connected to the intended payment gateway and that the payment method can be used for the transaction.
5. Check the Booking's Payment Schedule
Open the reservation and review its Payment Schedule to confirm whether the expected payment or security deposit was created.
6. Apply Auto Payment Manually
If the booking doesn't have an Auto Payment rule applied, use:
Booking → ⋮ → Apply Auto Payment
⭐ Best Practices
Before activating Auto Payments
✅ Confirm your payment gateway is connected.
✅ Review every booking source.
✅ Confirm your reservation-payment schedule.
✅ Confirm your security-deposit amount.
✅ Set an appropriate deposit-release period.
✅ Check whether any properties have custom payment rules.
✅ Make sure your PMS isn't simultaneously charging the guest for the same payment.
💡 Recommended setup approach
Start with your global rules, then add property-specific overrides only where necessary.
This keeps your configuration easier to maintain while still allowing individual properties to have different payment requirements.
❓ Frequently Asked Questions
Do Auto Payment rules apply to all properties?
Global rules can apply across your properties. However, properties with custom payment rules will use those property-specific settings instead.
Do I need to configure every booking source?
Yes, Auto Payment settings are configured per booking source. You can use Copy Settings To to quickly duplicate rules across multiple sources.
Can I change the payment schedule on an existing booking?
Yes. Existing payment schedules can be adjusted from the reservation's Payment Schedule. Depending on the payment status, you can also charge now, change the amount, mark a payment as paid, or void a scheduled payment.
Can I release a security deposit automatically?
Yes. The automatic release timing can now be configured under:
Security Deposit → Additional Rules → Automatic Release.
What should I do if an Auto Payment isn't showing on a booking?
First verify the booking source and applicable property settings. If the rules were added or changed after the booking was created, use Apply Auto Payment from the booking's three-dot menu.
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