Expiring Authorizations

Each card network sets an authorization validity window, the time a merchant has to clear a transaction. Once this window passes, any hold on cardholder funds should be lifted so those funds are available for other transactions.

Lithic uses a set of rules, informed by networks' authorization validity guidelines and clients' needs for timely access to available funds, to identify authorizations that are not expected to clear further. For each of these, Lithic releases any pending amount back to the cardholder's available balance. This is called expiring the authorization.

To trigger expiration manually — for example, when you want to make funds available to your cardholder to spend elsewhere and have high confidence the authorization will not clear — use the Expire Authorization endpoint. This endpoint is available to Processor Gateway clients only.

Please keep in mind:

• Expiring an authorization does not prevent subsequent clearing. Expiring releases the hold, but clearing messages can still arrive afterward. If a merchant clears against a manually expired authorization, you assume financial liability for any resulting losses.
• Expiration is irreversible. Once an authorization is expired, it cannot be reinstated. Only authorizations with a nonzero pending amount can be expired.
• Automatic expiration timing is not configurable. Lithic's automatic expiration is informed by network guidelines on authorization validity windows and clients' needs for timely access to available funds — not a setting you can adjust. To release a hold before the automatic expiration time, use the Expire Authorization endpoint.
• There is no universal rule for when to expire early. The right choice depends on your program's risk policy and operational preferences.

Expiration timing

If you take no action, Lithic automatically expires authorizations according to the timelines below. These are informed by network guidelines and general guidance and are subject to change.

Mastercard

Visa

Amex

All other authorizations default to 7 days. If a merchant submits a final clearing before the hold expires, Lithic releases the hold when that clearing is processed, after a brief processing delay.

Preauthorization holds after partial or non-final clearing

You may see a transaction with a remaining pending hold even after a clearing event. A common reason: the clearing is not marked as FINAL, so additional clearing may still arrive. The remaining hold continues to apply until a subsequent event releases it or it expires automatically.

Your options:

• Wait for automatic expiration at the standard time.
• Expire the authorization manually to release the remaining hold early.

Expiring vs. reversing an authorization

A reversal is initiated by the merchant acquirer to cancel an authorization they no longer intend to clear. Expiration is how Lithic releases a hold when an authorization is not expected to clear — either automatically based on timing rules, or manually via this endpoint.