Deposit vs. pre-authorization
A Canadian booking business should treat online deposits and pre-authorizations as different online payments, one a charge and one a hold. A deposit is a real charge for part of the price, taken when the customer books. A pre-authorization is a hold that reserves funds without charging them. You later capture the final amount or release the hold. Both reduce risk before you deliver, and they answer different situations. A clinic holding a Saturday appointment wants the deposit, because the fee for the slot is money you intend to keep. A tool rental wants the pre-auth, because the total can change when the item comes back. Charging that estimate in full, then refunding the difference, leaves the guest reconciling two amounts. Pick the button that matches the job.
When to use a deposit
Deposits suit bookings, events, custom orders, and appointments, anywhere a no-show or a late cancel costs you the slot. Collect even a partial deposit when the guest picks the time, by a payment link or a keyed card, and block the calendar only after the charge succeeds. The receipt should say deposit, the date, and any balance due on arrival. People tend to cancel earlier once something has been paid, which frees the time for the next person. Keep a pre-authorization for amounts you may release. If the rest of the bill is a repeating instalment, open that schedule only after they agree. One visit stays one deposit.
When to use a pre-authorization
Pre-auths fit rentals, hotels, equipment, and services where the final total is uncertain, such as extra time, fuel, or damage. You hold an estimated amount, then capture the exact figure when the service ends. Capture before the hold expires. Miss that window and you have to ask for the card again. If the rental is cancelled, release the hold the same day so the guest is not waiting on the bank to drop a hold you already decided against. A non-refundable booking fee stays a deposit. The amount you capture should match the rental sheet, and you should write the hold's expiry next to the booking.
Setting it up
Use payment links or your checkout to collect deposits, and use the gateway to place pre-authorizations. On a booking, send the link when the time is chosen and block the slot after the deposit succeeds. On a rental, hold the estimate and capture the real total at return. Combine either path with recurring payments only after the customer agrees to an instalment plan. Staff should be able to point at the deposit button and the hold button. See online payments or book a demo and walk one booking deposit and one rental hold before the team uses them. The receipt should name which of the two the guest agreed to.
A Saturday appointment held with a deposit
A clinic with a wait list still lost Saturday appointments to people who never arrived. It started sending a payment link for a deposit when the guest picked the time. The calendar block happened only after the charge succeeded. The receipt named the deposit, the date, and the balance due on arrival. Cancellations moved earlier because something had already been paid. A pre-authorization would have been the wrong button: the fee for holding the slot was a real charge, not a hold you might release. If the rest of the bill is a set instalment, that belongs in recurring billing. One deposit is a link or the virtual terminal. Both sit on online payments. Staff should be able to point at which button takes the deposit.
A rental that needed a hold, not a second charge
A tool rental charged the full estimate on day one and refunded the difference when the tool came back early. Guests saw a large charge, then a refund, and called because the two amounts did not match the conversation at the counter. A pre-authorization for the estimated amount, captured for the real total at return, would have matched the rental sheet. Capture before the hold expires. If you miss that window, you have to ask for the card again. Release the hold the same day if the rental is cancelled, so the guest is not waiting on their bank to drop a hold you already decided not to take. A non-refundable booking fee stays a deposit. Book a demo and walk one booking deposit and one rental hold. Booking flows also live on online bookings.