# Capture a payment

By default, a card payment is authorized and the funds are captured in the same step. With **pre-authorization** you split this in two: the payment first places a hold on the customer's card (the money is reserved but not taken), and you **capture** it later — when you're ready to fulfill the order. This page explains when to use it, how to capture, and the time limit you need to respect.

A pre-authorized payment shows as **Uncaptured** in your dashboard until you capture or cancel it. For the full list of states, see [payment statuses](https://docs.monei.com/troubleshoot/payment-statuses/.md).

## When to use pre-authorization[​](#when "Direct link to When to use pre-authorization")

Pre-authorization is useful when you want to confirm a card is valid and reserve the funds, but only charge once you can deliver — for example, to check availability before shipping, or to hold a deposit. If you charge immediately on every order, you don't need it.

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Pre-authorization is a card feature. Most other payment methods capture immediately and can't be authorized-only.

## Turn on pre-authorization[​](#enable "Direct link to Turn on pre-authorization")

How you authorize-only depends on how you take payments:

* **Through an e-commerce platform** — set the payment action to **Authorize** (instead of **Sale**) in your MONEI plugin settings. The order is authorized at checkout and you capture it later from your store admin.
* **Directly with MONEI** — create the payment with `transactionType: AUTH` instead of the default `SALE`. See the [monei.js reference](https://docs.monei.com/monei-js/reference/.md) and the [Create Payment API](https://docs.monei.com/apis/rest/payments-create/.md).

## Capture the funds[​](#capture "Direct link to Capture the funds")

You can capture the **full** authorized amount or **part** of it, but **only once** — capture isn't a repeatable action. If you capture less than the authorized amount, the rest of the hold is released back to the customer and can't be captured later (useful when only some items ship).

* **Through an e-commerce platform** — capture the order from your store admin (for example, by creating the invoice or marking it captured, depending on the platform).
* **Directly with MONEI** — capture from the payment in your [dashboard](https://dashboard.monei.com/), or call the [Capture Payment API](https://docs.monei.com/apis/rest/payments-capture/.md) with the amount to capture.

Platform merchants: capture inside the platform

If you sell through an e-commerce platform, capture from the platform — not the MONEI dashboard. Capturing in the dashboard leaves the order out of sync with your store.

## Capture before the authorization expires[​](#expiry "Direct link to Capture before the authorization expires")

An authorization is not held forever. **By default, uncaptured payments expire after 7 days** — capture before then or the hold is released and the funds return to the customer. You can extend this to up to 30 days by [contacting support](https://support.monei.com/hc/requests/new); the exact limit depends on your card processor.

## Cancel instead of capturing[​](#cancel "Direct link to Cancel instead of capturing")

If you decide not to charge an authorized payment, [cancel it](https://docs.monei.com/payments/cancel/.md) to release the hold right away rather than waiting for it to expire.