Overview

If you are implementing a Search, look and book integration keep reading to learn about the available payments scenarios, methods, timings, etc, and how to set the best fit for your business case.

What is Payments?

Payments is the Demand API component that enables you to charge travellers for bookings that have been made.

There are two main ways that bookings payments can be done:

Do I need to use Payments?

• Use Payments if you are implementing an integration that provides the entire booking journey (the Search, look and book flow).
• If you are implementing a Content only flow, then you can skip this section.

Key benefits

Although Pay at property can be handy for many travellers, we encourage our partners to use Online payments as it brings a wide range of benefits:

Payment options

Which payment options are available depends upon the particular payment scenario you are using, and the payment timings and methods that are available for a chosen property. Accepted methods might vary from property to property.

Navigate though these sections to learn more about the most common payment scenarios.

Online payment

There are two main Online payment use cases with different flows and payment methods:

	Type of partner	The flow
	Paying on travellers behalf: These are partners with a Booking payment agreement that allows them to directly charge the traveller. → Check instructions here	The partner pays Booking.com on behalf of the traveller, by Virtual credit card (VCC). Then Booking.com pays the property.
	Partners not paying on travellers behalf: In this sort of payment scenarios, partners are not entitled to directly charge the traveller. → Check instructions here	The traveller pays Booking.com via the partner. Booking.com directly charges guest's credit card. In this case, Booking.com is the merchant of record, on behalf of the property.

In all Online payments Booking.com is responsible for paying the property (as per their agreement with Booking.com).

Pay at property

Apart from Online payments, Demand API also supports payments made at the property, offering the option of paying offline at checkin date whenever the property allows it. This way travellers can pay for their stay directly on arrival.

There are two main Pay at property uses cases with different flows and actors involved:

	Type of traveller	The flow
	A regular traveller: A regular traveller who pays directly at the property with the accepted method and at checkin date. → Check instructions here	The traveller makes the booking: Provides personal details and card information to secure the booking or prepayment if needed. The partner forward booking details to Booking.com. Then the property handles the payment.
	Business traveller: The traveller is a company employee and the booking is made for a business trip. Corporate partners have the option of paying on behalf of their employees, using a pre-authorised virtual credit card (VCC)1. → Check instructions here	The traveller makes a reservation for business travel. The partner forwards a VCC and payment authorisation details. Booking.com sends an authorisation form with VCC details. The property charges VCC as authorised when traveller stays.

¹ This is also known as "Payment instructions".