What is an authorisation adjustment?

In short

An authorisation adjustment is a change to the amount of an authorisation that has already been approved, made before the payment is captured: an incremental authorisation raises the amount and a partial reversal lowers it. An authorisation adjustment keeps the hold on the cardholder's account in line with what the merchant will finally charge.

Also called
Incremental authorisation, Authorisation top-up, Partial reversal
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Accepting payments
Facts checked

How an authorisation adjustment works

Hotels, car rental firms, fuel pumps and charging stations do not know the final amount when the customer starts. The merchant first authorises an estimate, then adjusts it as the bill grows or shrinks, and captures once.

Each adjustment is a message of its own that refers back to the first authorisation. The issuer updates the hold, and the capture is matched against the total.

What the Visa rules say

In the Visa Core Rules of 18 April 2026:

  • A merchant may send an incremental authorisation request after an approved estimated authorisation, when the estimate no longer covers the amount
  • The request carries the incremental indicator and the transaction identifier of the first authorisation
  • No amount for possible damage, theft or insurance premiums may be included
  • An incremental request does not extend the time allowed to process the transaction
  • Where the final amount is lower than the sum authorised, the merchant reverses the difference within 24 hours of completing the transaction

Why it matters to a gateway

Adjustments need their own API operations, linked to the original payment, and a ledger that tracks the total authorised and not only the first request. Support varies by acquirer and by merchant category, so the feature is enabled per merchant.

Adjustment, reversal or void?

Full reversal
Cancels the whole authorisation and releases the entire hold. A partial reversal, one kind of adjustment, releases only the part that will not be charged.
Partial capture
Collects less than was authorised. The rest of the hold still needs a reversal, or stays until the issuer drops it.

Where an authorisation adjustment shows up in a platform

Modules that do the work

Platforms that need it

Where it is written

The laws and standards this page's facts come from.

General information, not legal advice: what applies to you depends on your services and your market.

Every term

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