# Deposits, waivers and manual payments

## Security deposits

Set the amount per property in the **Guide editor → Payments & rules** (0 means no deposit). Choose how it is taken:

- **Card pre-authorisation (hold)** — the amount is reserved on the guest's card but not charged. You release it after check-out, or capture part of it if something is damaged. Holds expire after 7 days (30 days if your Revolut account supports extended authorisations — see **Settings → Payments**).
- **Charged, then refunded** — the amount is taken and refunded after check-out. Use this for longer stays.

Because a card hold only lasts a limited time, guests can place it from **5 days before check-in** (28 days with 30-day holds); until then the portal tells them when. If a hold still expires before check-out, the guest is asked to place it again.

A single booking can skip the deposit: **Edit booking → No security deposit for this booking**.

## Release a deposit

**Departures** shows deposits to release after check-out. Click **Release** (or open the booking → **Release deposit**):

- **Release in full** — the hold is cancelled or the charge refunded.
- **Retain part** — enter the amount and a reason (extra cleaning, damage, missing items, late check-out, unpaid extras). The rest goes back to the guest; the guest receives an email with the reason.

![Departures: deposits ready to release](/site/img/docs/d-departures.webp "Departures: deposits ready to release")

## Waive a payment

A payment the guest is completing at that very moment can't be waived or marked as paid — wait until it has gone through or failed.

Sometimes a guest shouldn't pay — your own guests, a repeat guest, a complaint. Open the booking and click **Waive** on the tourist tax or the deposit, choose a reason and add an optional note. The portal unlocks when the other steps are done. **Undo waiver** asks the guest to pay again.

> **Important:** Waiving the Malta eco-contribution only removes the charge for the guest. The contribution is still due to the MTA and stays in your quarterly return, marked as absorbed by you.

![The booking drawer with each payment and its actions](/site/img/docs/d-booking-drawer.webp "The booking drawer with each payment and its actions")

## Cash and bank transfer

If the guest paid outside the portal, click **Mark as paid (cash / transfer)** on the payment. It is recorded with your name and the time in the activity log. Turn on **Manual payment** in **Settings → Payments** and add instructions if you want guests to see that option.

## Failed payments

When a card is declined the payment shows **Failed** with the reason, and the guest can try again in the portal. You can also waive or mark it as paid.

## Frequently asked questions

### When can I release the deposit?

Any time after the payment is held — usually after check-out. The dashboard warns you if the guest hasn't checked out yet.

### What if the hold expired before I released it?

The money was never charged, so the guest already has it back. After check-out the booking shows the deposit as released; before check-out the guest is asked to place the hold again.