Authorization hold (also
card authorization,
preauthorization, or
preauth) is the practice within the
banking industry of authorizing electronic transactions done with a
debit card or
credit card and holding this balance as unavailable either until the merchant clears the transaction (also called
settlement), or the hold "falls off." In the case of
debit cards, authorization holds can fall off the account (thus rendering the balance available again) depending on the bank's policy; in the case of credit cards, holds may last as long as 30 days, depending on the issuing bank.