Tutorials

Authorization and automatic payment capture workflow with Flow

Updated 2 months ago

Some 3PLs, ERPs and WMS, including NetSuite and Celigo, may sync orders with a Paid status, which can prevent backend and self-serve order editing. This workflow keeps orders authorized and editable during a set editing window, then uses Flow to capture payment automatically. This article will show you how it works and how to set up this workflow.

How it works

  1. Customer places an order → Payment is authorized (not captured).

  2. Order remains in “Authorized” state during the editing window in Customer Portal.

  3. Your 3PL, ERP or WMS (such as Netsuite/Celigo) is configured to exclude Authorized orders.

  4. After the edit window expires, Flow automatically captures the final payment amount.

  5. Once captured, the order syncs to your 3PL, ERP or WMS and is ready for fulfillment.

Set up Manual payment capture in Shopify

Steps

  1. In Shopify Admin, go to Settings > Payments > Payment methods.

  2. Select Manual for payment capture.

Set up the automatic payment capture workflow in Flow

Steps

  1. Go to Apps > Flow.

  2. Download the .flow file here

  3. Import the .flow file by clicking Import in your Flow dashboard.

  1. Open the newly imported workflow.

  2. Click Edit.

  1. Edit the Wait period in the workflow to match your editing window (e.g., 30 minutes) and click Apply changes.

  1. Click Turn on workflow.

Key benefits

With this setup:

  • Orders stay editable while still authorized.

  • Payments are captured automatically after the edit window.

  • Only finalized, fully paid orders sync to your 3PL/ERP/WMS

This workflow is an alternative to Putting fulfillments on hold during the editing window. Both approaches solve the same problem of premature syncing to a 3PL, ERP or WMS, but at different points in the process.

This workflow delays payment capture so orders aren't marked Paid until editing is done, while a fulfillment hold delays release for fulfillment instead. Feel free to choose the one that matches how your integration determines which orders are ready to sync, rather than using both together.

If you have any questions, reach out to [email protected].

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