When your clients book an appointment online, and No-show protection is enabled, a small booking fee (also called a protection fee) is added to their checkout. This fee is paid by the client — it does not come out of your earnings — and helps keep their account secure, holds the appointment slot, and supports ongoing platform improvements.

The booking fee is applied only when all of the following conditions are met:

You have Payments enabled. No-show protection is turned on, either Collect deposits or Capture card details. If you have Collect deposits turned on at the account level, but not at the individual service, Goldie will Capture card details for that service instead.

The appointment's original price (before any discounts or rewards) is at least $10 (or the equivalent in your local currency), or includes at least one variable-priced service.

To review your No-show protection settings, go to Menu (☰) → Settings → Payments → No-show protection.

When your client books online, the fees are broken down clearly in the checkout summary.

With the fee payer set to Paid by me, your client will see:

Deposit: $10.00 — Fees: $1.20 — Total: $11.20

With the fee payer set to Paid by client, the Fees line will include both the transaction fee and the booking fee — for example: Fees: $1.85 — Total: $11.85

Since no deposit is collected upfront, the client is only charged the booking fee at the time of booking:

Fees: $1.20 — Total: $1.20

Your client can tap the (i) icon next to "Fees" to learn more. The booking fee is paid directly to Goldie to support a secure payment experience and ongoing platform improvements, it is not part of your earnings.

The booking fee cannot be paid with a Gift Card. Even when a client's Gift Card has a sufficient balance, the booking fee must always be paid by card. In this case, your client will see a separate "Pay remaining" amount for the booking fee that requires card payment.

When a client pays a deposit for an appointment, their card is automatically saved on file for that appointment. This enables two things:

1. Option to have an additional no-show fee on top of the deposit

If a customer does not show up to the appointment and your policy supports an additional no-show fee, you will have the opportunity to charge the card for the remainder of the appointment.

Pro Tip: To prevent disputes or to increase the likelihood of winning them, make sure any additional fees are readily visible and near the top of your policy.

Five minutes before the appointment starts, Goldie checks whether the card on file has sufficient funds for the amount due. If insufficient funds are detected, you and the staff member assigned to the appointment will receive a push notification.

This means you will know if you can charge the card on file for the remainder of the appointment cost, avoiding any potential awkward conversations about the payment declining.

In the Appointment details screen, the card status will appear as either:

This label is visible from the moment the verification result comes in until one hour after the appointment end time.

All fees are displayed clearly in your Payments dashboard. When you expand a transaction, you'll see:

Fees — the transaction fee paid by you.

Fees (paid by client) — the transaction fee and/or booking fee charged to the client.

Net amount — your final earnings after all deductions.

These fees are also included in your Payments reports under the Net profit breakdown, so you always have a clear picture of your actual earnings.

If a client disputes a transaction that includes a booking fee:

For Capture card details or Deposit appointments (where only the $1.20 booking fee was charged), you are not responsible for the chargeback.

If the entire transaction amount is disputed, standard dispute rules apply.

If you cancel an appointment, the booking fee is automatically refunded to the client.

Does the booking fee reduce my earnings?
No. The booking fee is charged to the client and does not reduce your payout. Your service price stays the same.

Can I turn off the booking fee?
You can turn off the booking fee at any time by disabling No-show protection in your Payments settings.

Does the booking fee apply to manually created appointments?
No. The booking fee only applies to appointments booked through your online booking page.

Will Goldie check if my client's card has enough funds before the appointment?

Yes. For online booking appointments with a card on file, Goldie automatically checks whether the card has sufficient funds to cover the amount due 5 minutes before the appointment start time.

What happens if the card has insufficient funds?

The Account Owner and any staff member with payment permissions will receive a push notification alerting them that the client's card likely has insufficient funds, prompting them to update the payment method before the appointment begins. Tapping the notification opens the Appointment details screen directly.

What if the client has multiple cards on file?

All cards associated with the client are verified. Priority is given to the card used for the deposit or initial card capture. The result of the most recent verification is shown on the Appointment details screen, either Ready to charge or Unable to charge and that label remains visible for up to one hour after the appointment ends.

Will a card marked "Unable to charge" still appear as a payment option?

No. Cards flagged as Unable to charge are automatically hidden from the Payment methods screen to avoid confusion at checkout.

Does Goldie hold or reserve the funds during verification?

No. This is a verification-only check, no funds are held or reserved at any point during the process.

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