Pre-authorisations

Hold an amount on a card, then capture or release it.

A pre-authorisation holds an amount on a customer’s card without taking the money. You then either capture it (taking some or all of the amount) or reverse it (releasing the hold). Typical uses: bookings with a cancellation window, deposits, and checking a card is good before provisioning.

1. Pre-authorise

   POST /preauth with the same card fields as a charge (or a card_token), plus currency, amount and reference.

   curl https://api-sandbox.paychoice.com.au/api/v5/preauth \
     -u "$PAYCHOICE_USERNAME:$PAYCHOICE_PASSWORD" \
     -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
     -d '{
       "currency": "AUD",
       "amount": "50.00",
       "reference": "BOOKING-7781",
       "card_token": "c629ac3b-682b-41e4-9a81-9445960843cf"
     }'
   

   {
     "pre_auth": {
       "id": "6b1e2c3d-4f5a-4b6c-8d7e-9f0a1b2c3d4e",
       "pre_authid": "24007-P-14CULT45",
       "reference": "BOOKING-7781",
       "amount": 50.0,
       "currency": "AUD",
       "status": "Approved",
       "status_code": "0",
       "error": "Transaction Approved",
       "error_code": "00",
       "created": "2026-11-04T03:10:44.207Z",
       "merchant_guid": "315564b9-b863-4016-8c53-02c9d8cc80b7"
     },
     "object_type": "pre_auth",
     "from_item": 0,
     "to_item": 0,
     "total_count": 0
   }
   

   Keep pre_authid — it’s the handle for the next step. This response has no link field.

2. Capture

   POST /charge with pre_authid, amount, currency and a reference. The amount can be less than the hold.

   curl https://api-sandbox.paychoice.com.au/api/v5/charge \
     -u "$PAYCHOICE_USERNAME:$PAYCHOICE_PASSWORD" \
     -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
     -d '{
       "pre_authid": "24007-P-14CULT45",
       "currency": "AUD",
       "amount": "45.00",
       "reference": "BOOKING-7781-CAPTURE"
     }'
   

   The response is a normal charge object, exactly as for Charging via the API, and a webhook follows.

3. Or reverse

   POST /reverse with the pre-authorisation’s reference releases the hold.

   curl https://api-sandbox.paychoice.com.au/api/v5/reverse \
     -u "$PAYCHOICE_USERNAME:$PAYCHOICE_PASSWORD" \
     -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
     -d '{ "reference": "BOOKING-7781" }'
   

   {
     "is_successful": true,
     "reference": "BOOKING-7781",
     "object_type": "reversal_response",
     "from_item": 0,
     "to_item": 0,
     "total_count": 0
   }
   

   Reverse returns a flat object rather than an envelope.

Pre-authorisation is card-only. Holds are released by the card issuer after a period if neither captured nor reversed; the exact window depends on the issuer, so reverse explicitly when you know you won’t capture.