All Tools
Tools/Payment Authorization Flow
🔄
MessagingAvailable
Payment Authorization Flow
Step through a complete card payment — authorization, clearing, and settlement — as an animated sequence diagram. Switch between in-store (card present) and online 3-D Secure (e-commerce) flows.
In-store chip or contactless payment — from card tap through online authorization, clearing, and final settlement of funds to the merchant.
1 / 14
CardholderCard / device
MerchantPOS terminal
AcquirerMerchant bank
NetworkCard scheme
IssuerCardholder bank
1
Card Presented
2
Authorization Request
3
Acquirer Routing
4
Network → Issuer
5
Issuer Decision
6
Network → Acquirer
7
Acquirer → Terminal
8
Approved · Receipt
9
Capture / Batch
10
Clearing File
11
Presentment
12
Net Settlement
13
Acquirer Funded
14
Merchant Paid
Initiation
Card Presented
Cardholder taps, inserts, or swipes the card at the terminal.
The terminal runs the EMV kernel — application selection, GPO, read records, offline data authentication, and cardholder verification (CVM). Contactless completes in a few hundred milliseconds.
Initiation
Authorization
Issuer Risk Check
Response
Clearing
Settlement
Completion