The money from completed sales sits with the provider and never reaches the account. The dashboard says “under review”, the emails say “risk department”, and nobody names a date. Meanwhile payroll, stock and advertising all stall while the question “when” goes unanswered. What resolves this is not pressure but two specific things: what your contract actually says, and how to make the provider answer on substance.
A settlement delay and a hold are not the same thing
Settlement delay is the agreed gap between a transaction and money landing on the account. Ours is written as a number: settlement in euro via SEPA runs on T+7 at 0.20 %. That is not a freeze; it is how the payment chain works.
Reserve is the agreed share of turnover a provider holds against disputes and refunds. The standard is 10 % for 180 days. Also not a freeze — as long as the percentage and the period are in the contract.
A hold is when money is not paid out under either scheme: the settlement period has passed, the reserve is not the reason, and the payout is still not there. That is what has to be worked in writing.
Why payouts get stopped
- A chargeback spike. The dispute rate crossed a threshold and the provider holds funds until it understands the scale.
- A sharp jump in volume. Doubling in a week looks like a change of business model and triggers a review.
- Transactions that do not match the profile. A different product, a different payer country, unusual amounts.
- An overdue document request. The provider asked for a contract, an invoice or proof of delivery, the email went unanswered, and payouts stopped automatically.
- Customer complaints. A handful of non-delivery reports is enough for funds to be held pending clarification.
- A request from the card scheme. Sometimes the pause does not come from the provider at all — it comes from above, and the provider is only executing it.
The distinction matters: the first five have a resolution that depends on you. The last one does not, and there the valuable thing is a provider that tells you plainly what is happening.
What to ask in the very first email
- The grounds for the hold, with the contract clause it rests on.
- Exact figures: how much is held, how much is in reserve, how much is due for payout.
- The date or the condition on which payouts resume.
- The list of documents that closes the question.
- The release date for reserve on transactions whose period has already expired.
Keep the email short and full of dates. A line like “please state the grounds for the hold and the contract clause, together with the amount and payout date for transactions from the 1st to the 15th” works far better than a page of frustration: it cannot be answered with a template.
What to do when nobody replies
- Resend, quoting the date of the first email. A dated thread is what counts in anything that follows.
- Send whatever was asked for. Half of all drawn-out cases are documents nobody ever sent and nobody chased.
- Do not open a second account “around” the problem. Moving turnover to another entity while the question is open almost always makes the position worse.
- Bring up a backup channel in parallel. It will not speed up the payout, but it stops the sales freeze — and that costs more than the held amount.
- Quantify the damage. Amounts, dates, correspondence: record everything you would need if this becomes a formal claim.
Why a transparent reserve beats a lower rate
The rate gap between providers is usually a fraction of a percent. The gap between “10 % held for 180 days” in the contract and “reserve at the provider’s discretion” is your entire liquidity. At 50,000 EUR a month, a standard reserve keeps roughly 30,000 EUR locked at all times: older tranches release, new ones go in, and the balance holds at that level. It is predictable, so it can be planned for. A discretionary reserve cannot be planned for — and it is exactly what turns into frozen payouts.
So four lines get checked before signing: the reserve percentage, its release period, the settlement period, and the grounds on which payouts may be suspended.
How to avoid a repeat
- Keep the dispute rate under control: a recognisable name on the statement, support that answers, honest delivery times.
- Warn the provider about volume growth in advance — a sale or an ad launch is not force majeure.
- Answer document requests the same day, from one address.
- Keep a second acceptance channel so one pause does not stop sales.
- Terms as numbers in the contract, not as words in an email thread.
Frequently asked questions
Can the reserve simply never come back
The reserve is your money, held for the period the contract sets. Confirmed chargebacks and refunds are settled from it and the remainder is released. If the percentage and the period are not in the contract, that is a question for before signing, not after.
When are payouts formally late
The clock runs from the settlement period in the contract. On T+7 the money for a transaction is due seven days after it; anything later and unexplained is grounds for a written request.
Will switching providers release the frozen money
No. The funds stay with whoever holds them, and the matter is closed in correspondence with them. A new provider solves a different problem — keeping sales running while that plays out.
Will a new provider ask about this history
Most likely yes, along with statements. A hold is not in itself a reason for a decline; trying to conceal it is.
Acceptance with reserve terms agreed upfront is a merchant account, the technical side is covered under payment processing, and settlement runs through a business IBAN.