When using the Charge on Approval feature (Manual Approval Payment Mode is set to Charge registrant on approval) it's possible that the credit card processing may fail when you attempt to later approve and charge the registrant. A common approval failure can be caused if the supplied credit card no longer has sufficient funds. The exact reason for failure will be displayed at the time of approval and, depending on the failure, the solutions discussed below may help to resolve the failed transaction.
Depending on the type of failure, the solution could be as simple as just approving the registration again at a later time. In some cases, such as a restriction applied by the cardholder's issuing bank, it may be necessary to contact the cardholder to ask them to investigate the restriction with their financial institution. Such restrictions can be applied by issuing banks for reasons that have nothing to do with the registration charge (e.g. spending limits, purchase category restrictions, etc.). Once resolved by the registrant, the registration can then be approved and the payment processed.
Handle Failed Payments For Charge On Approval Registrations
When using Charge on Approval (Manual Approval Payment Mode set to Charge registrant on approval), a payment may fail when you attempt to approve a registration.
Depending on the type of payment failure, the solution could be as simple as just approving the registration again at a later time (e.g. if a card declines because of insufficient funds). In some cases, such as a restriction applied by the cardholder's issuing bank, it may be necessary for the cardholder to contact their bank to ask them to investigate the restriction with their financial institution.
ClearEvent now includes a secure, built-in workflow to help resolve these failures. You no longer need to manually collect or update credit card details in Stripe, or manually notify the cardholder.
What Happens When A Payment Fails
If a payment fails during approval in the Event Manager App, you will:
See the failure reason directly in the approval dialog
See the card type and last 4 digits used
Be prompted with an option to email the registrant to update their payment details
Request Updated Payment Details
To resolve the failed payment:
Go to Event Manager App > Registration section > Registrants tab
Open the registrant record
Click Approve & Charge
If the payment fails, click Email registrant to update payment
This will:
Prompt you to send a secure email to the registrant. You may modify the default message as needed.
Include a secure payment update link
Provide context about the failure and next steps. You may
What The Registrant Experiences
The registrant will:
Receive an email requesting payment updates
Click a secure link to update their card details
Submit new payment information safely (no manual sharing required)
Once completed:
You will be notified automatically via an email message.
The registration remains pending approval
Complete The Approval
After the registrant updates their payment method:
Return to Event Manager App > Registration section > Registrants tab
Open the registrant
Click Approve & Charge again
If the updated card is valid, the payment will process successfully.
Where To See Payment Status
You can track payment issues and updates in:
Registrant Details > Payment tab
Displays last failed payment details
Shows when a payment update request was sent
Registrants tab
Columns for:
Last Payment Failure
Payment Update Request Sent
📝 Important Notes
Manual updates in Stripe are no longer recommended and should be avoided for security reasons
Registrants should always update their payment details using the secure link provided
Payment is only processed when you approve the registration again
💡 Tips For Common Payment Failures
Ask registrants to check with their bank if the error mentions restrictions or declines
Suggest using a different credit card if the issue persists
Ensure sufficient funds are available before retrying approval
Learn More
For step-by-step instructions registrants can follow, see this article.
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