Managing Expired Credit Card Authorizations During NetSuite Item Fulfillment

The duration until a credit card authorization expires is primarily determined by the issuing bank, not by the payment gateway, merchant bank account, settlement currency, or payment method. Consequently, authorization durations can vary significantly between different issuing banks, even for the same card type (e.g., a Visa card from Chase versus one from HSBC). NetSuite typically does not provide direct visibility into the issuing bank during the authorization or funds capture process, making it challenging to identify a specific duration based on a table of issuing bank authorization policies.

To manage credit card authorizations effectively within NetSuite, a recommended approach involves the following steps:

1. Capture authorization during Sales Order entry and save.

2. Attempt to capture funds during the save of the Item Fulfillment.

   a. If the funds capture succeeds (i.e., the authorization has not expired), allow the Item Fulfillment to save normally.

   b. If the funds capture fails (i.e., the authorization has expired), processing a new authorization and funds capture as part of the Item Fulfillment save process may be required. This functionality may necessitate the use of a NetSuite bundle (e.g., Credit Card Reauthorization bundle #88050) or custom scripting to achieve automated reauthorization.

   i. If this reauthorization succeeds, save the Item Fulfillment normally.

   ii. If this reauthorization fails, it is critical to stop the Item Fulfillment and/or take corrective action. For example, the Item Fulfillment could be saved but with a status that prevents shipment, or the Item Fulfillment could be prevented from saving entirely, flagging the originating Sales Order as "Pending Approval" with a reason code. This allows the company to follow up with the customer regarding the credit card, ensuring that products are not shipped with the risk of non-payment.