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Pre-Authorizing a Credit Card

Running a pre-authorization in EPASS is used to verify the authenticity of the customer's credit card or to create a temporary hold for a specific amount. Amounts that are pre-authorized can later be captured and converted to a credit card payment.

Before Starting​

You need to do the following before you can pre-authorize credit cards:

  1. Create a dedicated Payment Type for pre-authorizations.
  2. Grant the Add PreAuth security option to Users or Groups that need to pre-authorize credit cards.
How to Activate the Security Setting

  1. Go to Tools > System Maintenance.

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  2. On the Tables tab, select User Security, and then click Open.

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  3. Select a User or Group from the list, and then click Security.

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  4. In the Keyword search box, enter PreAuth. Select Invoice Detail - Add PreAuth Payment.

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  5. Click OK.

Pre-authorizing a Credit Card​

Note

For non-cash customers (the EPASS Pay Cash Customer checkbox is cleared on the customer account record), pre-authorizations require the cardholder's:

  • Full name
  • City
  • State/Province
  • ZIP/postal code

This information must be present in the customer account record or entered during a form keyed pre-authorization.

Steps​

  1. Go to the Details of the customer's invoice. Make sure that you are in Edit mode.

  2. Click the Payment Tab.

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  3. In the Payment Type dropdown, select your pre-authorization Payment Type.

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  4. Select the Entry Method from the dropdown.

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  5. Enter the Amount to pre-authorize. (This is only available if the pre-authorize payment type has been configured to allow authorization amounts. See Adding a Pre-Authorization Payment Type.)

  6. Click OK. Once the pre-authorization is processed, the result appears in the Invoice Details.

Note

Pre-authorizations can't be moved to a different invoice as a result of copying or splitting the invoice.

Capturing a Pre-Authorization Amount​

Capturing a pre-authorization converts it to a credit card payment. You can capture the full amount that was pre-authorized or a partial amount.

Note

The pre-authorization payment type must have the Allow Pre-Auth Amount & Capture setting active to allow payment captures. See Adding a Pre-Authorization Payment Type.

Steps​

  1. Select the pre-authorization line in Invoice Details.

  2. Click Capture.

  3. Enter the amount that you want to capture, and then click OK.

    • If you enter the full amount, the pre-authorization will immediately convert to a credit card payment using the credit card payment type that the pre-authorization is linked to. If applicable, EPASS applies any credit card upcharges.

    • If you enter a partial payment, the remaining amount will be processed and reversed first before the partial amount is converted to a credit card payment. Click Yes at the prompt to confirm the partial capture.

Voiding a Pre-Authorization​

Voiding an uncaptured pre-authorization removes it from the invoice and releases the hold on the customer's credit card.

Notes

  • A pre-authorization that has been captured is converted to a credit card transaction. Generally, you can only void a transaction on the same day it was processed and before it's included in your daily batch. However, transactions that are created from a partially-captured pre-authorization can't be voided, and must be refunded instead.

  • A pre-authorization for a "zero amount" ($0.00) can't be voided.

  • You can have EPASS automatically void uncaptured pre-authorizations after a specific amount of time has passed. Go to Tools > System Maintenance > Variables > EPASS Pay. On the EPASS Pay tab, select Automatically Void Pre-Auth If Not Captured and enter the number of days. If this setting is not enabled, you must either manually void any uncaptured pre-authorizations or allow them to expire according to the card issuer’s policy.

caution

We recommend that you void pre-authorizations through EPASS only and not through Pulse. Transactions voided in Pulse are not reflected in EPASS and this may cause errors in your data and reporting.

Steps​

  1. Select the pre-authorization line in Invoice Details.

  2. At the bottom of the Invoice Details window, click Void.

  3. Click Yes to confirm.

If the void is successful, a confirmation prompt appears and the pre-authorization is removed from the invoice and voided.

Note

You need to void or capture pre-authorizations before an invoice can be finished.

See Also​

Updated

May 19, 2026