We receive many queries on a variety of charge descriptions related to many credit cards or bank accounts but when a particular charge description in question contains a name like Google, the diligence gets intense as the suspicion is. Fraudsters often use names of many such giant names to avoid early detection. Google temporary hold charges appearing on your credit are significant for your purchase with Google and they have labeled the hold charges on your credit card. But what if fraudsters are using it?
Whenever you make a purchase with Google for any of their products/services offered and feed in your credit card details, Google’s payment platform for card and account verification will carry a standard practice that will appear on your credit card statement as GOOGLETEMPRARYHOLD, but they don’t actually charge anything. But if they are ingenuine they might.
How would you determine the difference between a genuine and ingenuine charge and what shall be the process is mentioned below. Under what common possible scenarios Google temporary hold charges appear, are listed below along with the easy steps on how you shall verify.
What Does Google Temporary Hold Charge On Credit Card Mean?
You are most likely to see a temporary hold when you add a new card to your Google Pay account. Whenever you add a new card to Google Pay, Google immediately initiates a small transaction (also called a pre-authorization charge) to that card to ensure that it’s valid. These transactions are mostly $1 to $2, and the transactions are intended to never be fully complete, i.e., Google will essentially cancel the transaction before the money is deducted from your account.
- The temporary hold on request is placed by your bank, and these hold normally go away after 48 hours. After the hold falls off, it’ll be then taken off your card statement, and then money will be returned to your account total.
Understanding Google Temporary Holds
- Google temporary holds are brought in use for verification of your payment method and that your bank is holding the money.
- You will always see a temporary hold if you’ve recently added a new card to Google Pay.
- When you make a Google purchase or use Chrome auto-fill, you may also see a temporary hold.
What Does Google Temporary Hold Charge Indicate On Credit Cards?
Likewise to a pre-authorization charge from Google Pay, when you are paying for a Google service (such as a Google Play Store purchase or YouTube Premium), using your Google Wallet, or by Google Chrome auto-fill, you will then see a “GOOGLE *TEMPORARY HOLD” charge.
- This hold helps verify that your card is valid and there are enough funds to complete the purchase.
- Once again, these holds are placed by your bank, and then the hold goes away once the transaction has been completed.
- Even if you didn’t pay Google for anything and have used a card you’ve saved to Google Chrome auto-fill], you will then also see this temporary hold on your account.
Charges most often say that there is a deduction in your account, but when you see “GOOGLE *TEMPORARY HOLD,” these are generally for transactions that are never completed. The money is returned to your bank account after the hold goes away.
Understand Charges From Google On Your Credit Card
Google states that on making a purchase with Google, you’ll see a charge description on your credit/debit card bill or bank statement that starts with “GOOGLE*” which usually ends with your Google purchase name. Whenever you use a payment method through a Google service, for a purchase or with permission of autofill on Chrome, you may then see a charge on your account with the description GOOGLE *TEMPORARY HOLD. It’s actually for verification on your credit that your card account is active and valid. When the transaction is completed the actual charges of the purchase, of the hold will go away.
Below, our team has collected some of the common Google purchases that might appear on your credit card bill, that might be responsible for Google temporary hold charge;
| Statement item | Google product |
| GOOGLE *AdsChile only | Google Ads |
| GOOGLE *ADWS*DLColombia only | Google Ads |
| GOOGLE *ANDROID TEMP | Android (Autofill) |
| GOOGLE *CHROME TEMP | Google Chrome (Autofill) |
| GOOGLE *{Company} | Google Play Store for Apps |
| GOOGLE *CLOUD_{BAID} | Google Cloud |
| GOOGLE *Commerce Ltd | Google Play Music |
| GOOGLE *{Developer} | Google Play Store for Apps |
| GOOGLE PLAY JAPANJapan only | Google Play Store for Apps |
| GOOGLE *Devices | Google Store |
| GOOGLE *GOOGLE | YouTube Premium |
| GOOGLE *Google, Inc. | Google Play Music |
| GOOGLE *Google Music | Google Play Music |
| GOOGLE *Google Play | Google Play Movies & TV |
| GOOGLE *Google Storage | Google Drive |
| GOOGLE *Google Store | Google Store |
| GOOGLE *Google Surveys | Google Analytics |
| GOOGLE *GoogleShopping | Google Shopping |
| GOOGLE *GPAY TEMP | GPay (Pay Online with GPay) |
| GOOGLE *Music | Google Play Music |
| GOOGLE* Google Storage | Google One |
| GOOGLE *PAYMENTS TEMP | Google Payments |
| GOOGLE *Play StoreChile only | Google Play Store for Apps |
| GOOGLE *YoutubeChile only | YouTube PremiumYouTube MusicYouTube MemberYouTube Super |
| GOOGLE *PLAY-YOUTUBE*DLColombia only | Google Play Store for AppsYouTube PremiumYouTube MusicYouTube MemberYouTube Super |
| GOOGLE *Play Credit | Google Play gift cards and other transfers to a Google Play balance |
| GOOGLE *Play Newsstand | Google Play Newsstand |
| GOOGLE *PROJECT FI | Google Project Fi |
| GOOGLE *SERVICES | Google FiberYouTube TV |
| GOOGLE WORKSPACE {first_7_letters_of_domain_name} | Google Workspace |
| GOOGLE STORE {store_location} | Google Store |
| GOOGLE *Voice | Google Voice |
| GOOGLE *WALLET | Google Wallet |
| GOOGLE *WALLET TEMP | Google Wallet |
| GOOGLE *YouTube Videos | YouTube Movies |
Possibilities: Why is Google Temporary Hold Charge Appearing On Credit Card
A Google temporary hold charge is a standard practice used for the verification of your payment method and ensuring that it has enough funds before initiating a transaction. Below is a detailed explanation of when and why you might see such a hold;
1. Google Ads
If you have recently created a new Google Ads account or have modified your billing settings, Google may then place a temporary hold on your bank account/credit card.
This hold is a form of pre-authorization to confirm that your payment method is valid and can successfully cover the estimated cost of your ad spend.
For instance, if you set a daily budget for your ads, Google will then place a hold to ensure your card has sufficient funds. This hold is normally released or adjusted after the actual charges are processed depending on your ad spend.
2. Google Play Store:
In case you alo purchase apps, in-app items, or subscriptions from the Google Play Store, Google in this scenario also places a temporary hold on your credit card for verification of the card’s validity and ensuring funds availability for the transaction.
This type of hold is short-term and is either converted into a final charge or released in case the transaction is canceled or does not go through.
3. Google Cloud Services
Whenever you access Google Cloud services, like computing resources or storage, a temporary hold is then also placed on your credit card for helping Google ensure that your payment method can cover potential charges.
If you later modify your usage or billing settings, the hold will be then updated according to your new usage estimates. Hold is released or may convert into a final charge depending on your actual usage and billing cycle.
4. Google Workspace
For your subscriptions to Google Workspace (formerly G Suite), a temporary hold is placed on your card when you first subscribe or adjust your billing information.
This hold verifies the new user registration for the payment method and ensures the recurring subscription charges. If the subscription is successfully processed, the hold mostly gets converted into a final charge.
5. Google Store Purchases
When making a purchase from the Google Store for hardware or other products, a temporary hold could also be placed on your card to confirm your identity and ensure the availability of sufficient funds to cover the purchase.
6. Account Verification
While you set up or verify any Google service, a temporary hold could also be placed on your card to verify its validity and ensure that the card is active and capable of handling transactions.
How Does Google Temporary Hold Charge Work?
Temporary holds are a set of standard practices in the payment processing system and are used to protect both the merchant and the cardholder. Understand the simple breakdown below of the process;
- Pre-Authorization: Google places a temporary hold on a bank or credit card to verify its validity and check sufficient funds. This is often a small amount or a nominal fee.
- Processing: The hold is then processed as a pending transaction on your credit card statement and does not immediately affect your available balance.
- Release or Conversion: If the transaction turns out to be successful, the hold is then later converted into a final charge, and in case the transaction is canceled or not completed, the hold is released, and any of the pending amount is returned to your bank account or credit card balance.
How Could Google Temporary Hold Charge Appear On Credit Cards?
Google aims to convey clear information about the charges it levies on its users and has decided on charge descriptions by forming a standardized format that helps quickly identify the nature of the transaction to both the merchant and the cardholder.
When you make a payment or buy a subscription through Google services, Google uses a template including key elements like the service name (e.g., Google Ads, Google Play), a reference number, and the type of transaction (e.g., temporary hold, authorization) and this ensures that the description later appearing on your credit card statement is enough informative.
Google tries to offer as many details to help you recognize the charge and understand its nature, while also being in compliance with industry standards for transactions. The description is diligently designed to be recognizable and distinctly different from other transactions, below are some charge descriptions for Google temporary holds that other users have received;
- GOOGLE TEMP HOLD 1234****5678 MCHTID POS
- GOOGLE AUTHORIZATION 2345****6789 TEMP CHRG
- GOOGLE PREAUTH 3456****7890 TXN ID PHYS
- GOOGLE PENDING 4567****8901 AUTH CHECK POS
- GOOGLE HOLD 5678****9012 MCHT REF TEMP
- GOOGLE TEMPORARY 6789****0123 TXN AUTH PHYS
- GOOGLE PRE-AUTH 7890****1234 CHRG ID POS
- GOOGLE VALIDATE 8901****2345 TEMP REF TXN
- GOOGLE HOLD 9012****3456 AUTH PENDING POS
- GOOGLE AUTH 0123****4567 TEMP TXN ID PHYS
- GOOGLE PRE-CHARGE 1234****5678 TEMP AUTH POS
- GOOGLE TXN HOLD 2345****6789 AUTH TEMP CHRG
- GOOGLE TEMP 3456****7890 AUTH REF TXN POS
- GOOGLE AUTH PEND 4567****8901 TXN TEMP PHYS
- GOOGLE TEMP AUTH 5678****9012 CHRG ID POS
- GOOGLE HOLD TEMP 6789****0123 TXN AUTH PHYS
- GOOGLE PREAUTH 7890****1234 TEMP REF POS
- GOOGLE PEND AUTH 8901****2345 TEMP TXN CHRG
- GOOGLE TEMP CHARGE 9012****3456 AUTH REF POS
- GOOGLE AUTHORIZATION 0123****4567 TXN TEMP
How Would You Verify Google Temporary Hold Charge?
Below our expert team has collected some of the efficient ways to verify Google’s temporary charge;
Check The Charge Origin As Google
Any charges for Google products or services will appear on your card statement which starts with ‘Google’.
If it’s a Google Play purchase, go to the Play Unrecognised Transactions Troubleshooter.
All Google Play purchases appear on your statement under these names:
- “GOOGLE*App developer name,” for Android apps
- “GOOGLE*App name,” for Android apps
- “GOOGLE*Content type,” for example: “GOOGLE*Books”
If the charge on your credit card is not in one of these formats, it definitely does not come from Google.
Double-Check Common Issues
These common issues are often confused for unauthorized charges;
- Family and friends: Check with family or friends who have access to your card or account to buy something.
- Canceled orders: If you have canceled an order recently, you might still find a pending charge. This amount will disappear after some time as the cancellation is processed.
- Duplicate charges: With some purchases, you might see a pending authorization as the same amount as the charge. It should disappear after a few days.
- If you still think you have been charged wrongly for something, sign in to Subscriptions and Services and check your orders for duplicates.
- Recently added payment methods: After you add a payment method to your payments profile, such as a new card, you might see a small pending transaction on your bank statement. This is a temporary hold that you will not be charged for.
Verify Your Google Purchase History
Many people often forget a purchase that they make. Before you report a charge as unauthorized, I would suggest you compare your Google purchase history with the charges mentioned on your card or bank statement and try recalling any purchases that you’ve forgotten.
To get your Google purchase history:
- Sign in to Google Payments subscriptions and services.
- Click on the individual subscriptions and services to get transactions for that product.
Check Your Subscriptions
Check and ensure that the charge is not because of a subscription purchased that you or a family member has set up. Here is the simple process;
- Checking Your Purchase History.
You must without any delay check your recent purchase history and underline the ones which seem unfamiliar to you to verify them.
- Checking the amount of the charge.
The amount of the charge must exactly match the purchase value. Remember that additional charges like taxes or shipping charges are also levied, but only added in the final statement.
Check If Your Issuer Declined Your Payment
In some cases, your payment issuer, which is your bank or credit card issuer, may have declined your payment. In other cases, the issuer could be the telecom carrier for your carrier billing account or your eWallet provider.
If you see one of the following error codes or error messages, then it means that your issuer has declined your payment:
Error codes:
- OR-CCSEH-22
- OR-HDT-14
- OR-PMCR-32
- Error messages:
- “[Your payment issuer] declined your payment.”
- “Correct this card info or try a different card.”
- “Transaction declined. Try a different payment method or contact your card’s issuer.”
- “Your purchase on your [telecom carrier] billing account was declined. Please select a different payment method.”
- “Your transaction can’t be completed.”
Check If You Must Verify Your Payment Info Or Identity At Payments.google.com
If you are seeing one of the following error codes or error messages, you shall try to verify your payment info or identity:
- Error codes:
- BM-CPEC-02
- OR-CAC-02
- OR-HDT-09
- OR-IEH-01
- OR-IEH-02
- Error messages:
- “Your payment was declined due to an issue with your account”
- “Verify on payments.google.com”
- “Verify your payment method”
- “Verify in your Google Account’s payment methods”
- “Please verify your card information and try again”
- “For your security, please verify the security code for your card”
Check If You Should Contact Google Support
If you get one of the following error codes or error messages, you may need to contact Google support:
- Error codes:
- OR-BAIH-01
- OR-BAIH-08
- OR-BAIH-09
- OR-BAIH-10
- OR-CAC-01
- OR-CAC-05
- OR_CCR_68
- OR-CCSEH-05
- OR-CCSEH-21
- OR-CCSEH-23
- OR-CCSEH-24
- OR-CUSEH-02
- OR-HDT-16
- OR-REH-04
- OR-TAPSH-08
- Error messages:
- “Your request failed”
- “We couldn’t complete this action”
Considering the Security
Whosoever it is, if you are unsure about the charges you must consider taking some initiatives and check if your account is secure, by following below mentioned simple ways;
Check Email Notifications:
- Check any confirmation emails or receipts from Google which might contain details about the charge and can help you confirm whether it matches your recent activities.
Access Google Account:
- Log in to your Google account(s) such as Google Ads, Google Play, or Google Cloud. Review your billing or transaction history and check for any such recent activity that could align with the hold.
Contact Google Support:
- If you are still unsure about the charge as it doesn’t match any known transactions, contact Google Support and ask for clarification. They shall provide detailed information about the charge and help resolve any issues.
Conclusion
Knowing your recent purchases always is efficient in ascertaining the origin and nature of such charges that you are worried about.
The super simple mobile banking apps always contain details of every account activity and a quick log-in and glance at your statement could say more than sufficient which you can use to cross-match the charges mentioned against any such description. If there is any element of doubt contact your credit card issuer or bank immediately.
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