--- title: "Approve orders before buyers receive tickets | Ticket Fairy Guides" description: "Review every order, or only orders containing selected ticket types. Choose when to take payment, then approve or decline each request before its payment hold expires." canonical: "https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/approve-orders-before-buyers-receive-tickets" --- 1. [Ticket Fairy](https://www.ticketfairy.com/) 2. [Guides](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides) 3. Approve orders before buyers receive tickets Setting up an event # Approve orders before buyers receive tickets A membership tier, an industry night and a limited guest allocation all admit people on your decision. Order approval gives a promoter that decision after checkout, covers the whole event or only the ticket types you pick, holds each ticket back until you accept or decline, and where the payment method allows it holds the payment too. Review every order, or only orders containing selected ticket types. Choose when to take payment, then approve or decline each request before its payment hold expires. For: Reviewing ticket requests before confirming admission Takes: 12 minutes [Watch the video: Approve orders before buyers receive tickets](https://d3lcdr963b5ubl.cloudfront.net/uploads/guides/video/approve-orders-before-buyers-receive-tickets/c6a08581198b67f9f900f2a04aeb181b027c4c8c897f8109fb0fe17116cb54b7/96d178f79ae9d39a/guide.mp4) · [English](https://www.ticketfairy.com/resources/captions/guides/guide-approve-orders-before-buyers-receive-tickets-96d178f79ae9.vtt) **Watch how it's done** 3 min 1 s, with captions. - [Require approval for every order](#step-1) - [When to review every order](#step-2) - [Require approval for one ticket type](#step-3) - [Turn on Hold payment until approved](#step-4) - [Place a test order](#step-5) - [Open Needs Approval](#step-6) - [Approve the order](#step-7) ## Before you start - You can edit ticket settings and review orders for the event. - You have decided whether every order needs approval or only orders containing particular ticket types. - You know whether you want to take payment at checkout or after approval, where the payment method supports a hold. 1. ## Require approval for every order [Play from here](#guide-video) Open **Tickets**, select **Settings**, and turn on **Require order approval** under **Ticket Settings**. **Note:** Every new order then waits for your decision, and every ticket type requires approval. Save the settings before you start taking requests. ![Ticket Fairy Ticket Settings with Require order approval and Hold payment until approved enabled for the event](https://www.ticketfairy.com/embeds/posters/marketing-tickets--event-order-approval.png) Tickets, Settings, Ticket Settings. ## When to review every order [Play from here](#guide-video) Use event-wide approval when every order needs your decision, and ticket-type approval when only a membership tier, guest request or other selected ticket needs review. An event-wide setting applies to every ticket type; a ticket-type setting applies to the whole order whenever that order contains at least one ticket from the selected type. 2. ## Require approval for one ticket type [Play from here](#guide-video) Leave event-wide approval off, open the ticket type, and turn on **Require order approval for this ticket type** in its options. **Note:** Save the ticket and repeat for the other types that need review. A ticket type inherits event-wide approval when the event setting is on, so turn the event setting off first when buyers should be able to buy some ticket types without review. ![Ticket Fairy ticket options with Require order approval for this ticket type and Hold payment until approved enabled](https://www.ticketfairy.com/embeds/posters/marketing-tickets--ticket-type-order-approval.png) Tickets, Edit Ticket Type, Options. 3. ## Turn on Hold payment until approved [Play from here](#guide-video) Turn on **Hold payment until approved** for event-wide approval, or **Hold payment until approved** in the ticket type for ticket-type approval. Supported payment methods then reserve the order amount at checkout and collect it only after you approve. **Note:** Leave the switch off when payment should be collected at checkout. A payment method that cannot hold the amount collects it at checkout, so declining that order refunds the buyer, and you may not get the processing fees back. 4. ## Place a test order [Play from here](#guide-video) Open the event in a private browser window and place an order containing the ticket type you set up. Checkout should say the order is waiting for approval and not issue usable tickets yet. **Note:** For ticket-type approval, repeat with an ordinary ticket on its own. That order should complete normally when event-wide approval is off. 5. ## Open Needs Approval [Play from here](#guide-video) Open **Orders**, choose **Needs Approval**, and review the buyer, tickets, total and **Hold expires** time. ![Ticket Fairy confirmation before approving a pending order](https://www.ticketfairy.com/embeds/posters/marketing-orders--approve-pending.png) Orders, Needs Approval, Approve. 6. ## Approve the order [Play from here](#guide-video) Select **...** on the order, then **Approve**, then check the order number and confirm **Approve**. A current held payment is collected and the tickets are issued; when checkout already collected payment, approval does not collect it again. **Note:** If the order appears as a shorter row, open it and select **Approve** there; on a phone, select **...** first, then **Approve**. Decide before the payment hold expires: an expired hold cannot be collected, the order is declined, the reserved amount is released and the buyer needs a new purchase link. ## Try these steps on your own event Create a free account, build your event and follow the steps above in your own dashboard. It takes a few minutes and you do not need to book a sales call. Your email address [Create a free account](https://manage.ticketfairy.com/welcome) [Book a demo](https://www.ticketfairy.com/event-ticketing/book-a-demo) No setup fees. No required monthly ticketing fee. No credit card required. ## Or have it done for you Fai, the assistant inside your dashboard, can turn order approval on for the event or selected ticket types, show you a pending order, and approve or decline it. She asks you to approve settings changes and asks again before the order decision. You can also complete the whole workflow in the dashboard. Your own AI assistant over the MCP server can show you a specified pending order and approve it only after you confirm. ### In your dashboard, with Fai Find my event by name. Require approval for \ and \. Show me the setting and ask me to approve it. Then open pending order \, show me the buyer, ticket types, total and payment state, and ask whether I want to approve or decline it. Do not make the order decision until I choose and approve it ### From your own assistant, over MCP Connect your assistant to [our MCP server](https://www.ticketfairy.com/mcp-server) and ask it: The copied MCP configuration includes `--read-only`. Remove `--read-only` only when you want your assistant to make changes. Routine changes run when requested; destructive actions ask you in a compatible client. If your client cannot ask, make the change in your dashboard. Find my event by name, open pending order \, show me the buyer, tickets, total and payment state, and ask me to approve the order. Do not approve it until I confirm ## Let Fai do it for you Fai works inside your Ticket Fairy dashboard. Create your account, open Fai and paste the prompt above. [Create a free account](https://manage.ticketfairy.com/welcome) [Book a demo](https://www.ticketfairy.com/event-ticketing/book-a-demo) No setup fees. No required monthly ticketing fee. No credit card required. ## Decline a pending order [Play from here](#guide-video) Open **Orders**, choose **Needs Approval**, select **...** on the order, then **Decline**, check the order number and confirm **Decline**. A shorter row opens into the order, where **Decline** does the same, and on a phone the order's **...** menu holds **Decline**. **Note:** A reserved amount is released. Payment already collected at checkout is refunded, and the buyer receives the rejection notification. ![Ticket Fairy confirmation before declining a pending order](https://www.ticketfairy.com/embeds/posters/marketing-orders--decline-pending.png) Orders, Needs Approval, Decline. Fai can decline the pending order after showing you the buyer, tickets, total and payment-hold deadline. MCP can open the order but cannot decline it, and the CLI does not expose this decision. ### In your dashboard, with Fai Open pending order \ for \. Show me the buyer, tickets, total, payment status and hold deadline, then ask before declining it ### From your own assistant, over MCP The copied MCP configuration includes `--read-only`. Remove `--read-only` only when you want your assistant to make changes. Routine changes run when requested; destructive actions ask you in a compatible client. If your client cannot ask, make the change in your dashboard. Find \ and open pending order \. Show me the buyer, tickets, total, payment status and hold deadline so I can decide in the dashboard ## Questions you might have Can I require approval for only one ticket type?: Yes. Leave event-wide approval off and turn on **Require order approval for this ticket type** on each type that needs it. What happens when one order contains an approval ticket and an ordinary ticket?: The whole order waits for your decision. Approving issues every ticket in the order; declining closes the whole order. Is the buyer charged before I approve?: With the event-wide **Hold payment until approved** switch, or the ticket type's **Hold payment until approved** switch, on, a supported payment method reserves the amount and collects it after approval. Other payment methods charge the buyer at checkout and refund them if you decline the order. With the switch off, payment is collected at checkout. Where do ticket-type approval orders appear?: Open **Needs Approval** and find the order. On a desktop, select **...** on the order, then select **Approve** or **Decline**. If the order appears as a shorter row, open it and use **Approve** or **Decline**. On a phone, select **...** first, then use **Approve** or **Decline**. What happens when a payment hold expires?: The reserved amount is released and the pending order is declined because the payment can no longer be collected. Use the displayed **Hold expires** time to act before that point. Can I approve only part of an order?: No. Approval applies to the order as a whole. Ask the buyer to place separate orders when different ticket requests need different decisions. Does order approval make the event invitation-only?: No. It lets a buyer place a request and gives you the decision afterwards. Use a password, personal invitation or hidden-ticket access code when access must be controlled before checkout. ## Still have a question? Book a demo and we will answer it on a call, on your kind of event. Or create your account and see it for yourself. [Book a demo](https://www.ticketfairy.com/event-ticketing/book-a-demo) [Create a free account](https://manage.ticketfairy.com/welcome) No setup fees. No required monthly ticketing fee. No credit card required. ## Related guides - [More ways to use Ticket Fairy](https://www.ticketfairy.com/features/checkout) - [Make your event invitation-only](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/make-an-event-invitation-only) - [Sell tickets by personal invitation](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/sell-tickets-by-personal-invitation) - [Password-protect your event](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/password-protect-your-event) - [Refund an order on your event](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/refund-an-order) - [Find and manage the orders for your event](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/find-and-manage-your-event-orders) - [Run ticketing for a university or campus event](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/run-a-university-or-campus-event) - [Use Freefund to reduce no-shows at free and RSVP events](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/reduce-no-shows-at-free-rsvp-events) - [Run an A/B test for your event](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/run-an-ab-test-for-your-event) - [Unlock hidden tickets with an access code](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/unlock-hidden-tickets-with-an-access-code) - [Schedule when your event goes live](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/schedule-when-your-event-goes-live) - [Postpone or reschedule an event](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/postpone-or-reschedule-an-event) - [Cancel an event](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/cancel-an-event) - [Take pre-registrations before your ticket on-sale](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/take-pre-registrations-before-your-on-sale) - [Create a reusable event template](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/create-a-reusable-event-template) - [Set up ticketing for a multi-day festival](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/sell-a-multi-day-festival) - [Sell parking, camping and merchandise with your tickets](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/sell-add-ons-with-your-tickets) - [Group your tickets into categories](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/group-your-tickets-into-categories) - [Issue reusable event passes to crew and artists](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/issue-entry-passes-to-your-crew) - [Create an event](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/create-an-event) - [Set up ticket types](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/set-up-ticket-types) - [Limit who can buy a ticket type](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/limit-who-can-buy-tickets) - [Sell tickets only to your NFT holders](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/sell-tickets-only-to-your-nft-holders) - [Add your flyer and description to your event page](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/design-your-event-page) - [Answer your buyers' questions on the event page](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/add-faqs-to-your-event-page) - [Choose who Ticket Fairy support contacts about your event](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/choose-who-ticket-fairy-support-contacts-about-your-event) - [Sell timed-entry tickets for an attraction, exhibition or food event](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/sell-timed-entry-tickets) - [Duplicate an event](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/duplicate-an-event) - [Run a recurring event series](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/run-a-recurring-event-series) - [Sell VIP tables and bottle service through your promoters](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/sell-vip-tables-and-bottle-service) - [Hold back tickets for later](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/hold-back-ticket-stock) - [Schedule ticket releases](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/schedule-ticket-sale-windows-and-release-tiers) - [Every Ticket Fairy guide](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides) ## Do this on your own event Create your account, build your event and follow the steps in your own dashboard. You do not need to book a sales call. [Create a free account](https://manage.ticketfairy.com/welcome) [Book a demo](https://www.ticketfairy.com/event-ticketing/book-a-demo) ## Sell tickets with Ticket Fairy Everything in these guides is in your dashboard from the day you sign up. - Set up your event in minutes - Free events are free - Fai, your co-pilot, is built in [Create a free account](https://manage.ticketfairy.com/welcome) No setup fees. No required monthly ticketing fee. No credit card required. ## See it on a call Book a demo and we will show you how Ticket Fairy handles your kind of event. [Book a demo](https://www.ticketfairy.com/event-ticketing/book-a-demo) [More ways to use Ticket Fairy](https://www.ticketfairy.com/features/checkout) ### Tips for selling more tickets Practical advice from working organizers, and every new guide as it is published. We respect your privacy. Unsubscribe anytime. --- This page is on Ticket Fairy, a ticketing, marketing and operations platform for live events and the venues that host them: festivals, club nights, concerts, conferences and tours, and night clubs, beach clubs and concert venues. It grows revenue with fan rewards that turn an audience into a sales channel, and runs the money side with payments and payouts, Vault business banking, and working capital advanced against ticket sales. [How Ticket Fairy ticketing works](https://www.ticketfairy.com/event-ticketing) · [Ticket Fairy for AI assistants](https://www.ticketfairy.com/llms.txt)