Card payments
Taxi Card Payments Into Your Own Stripe Account
BookTaxiService is taxi booking and dispatch software that lets Australian taxi operators take card payments for bookings straight into their own Stripe account. You add your Stripe keys, switch card on, and your customers pay by card on the booking form, with the money landing in the Stripe account you already control.
Card is one of three ways a customer can pay. As of October 2026, a BookTaxiService booking form can offer card online, pay in car (cash, card in car or Cabcharge) and invoice, and each one shows only when you turn it on. Phone bookings and regulars are covered too: staff can charge a saved card from the booking screen and send a payment link when a trip costs more than planned.
Below: how a card payment works on a taxi booking, where the money goes, when the card is charged, what your office can do after the payment, a summary table and a seven-step setup checklist.
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How Do Online Card Payments Work for a Taxi Booking?
An online card payment for a taxi booking is a card charge or card hold the customer approves on the booking form before the trip. With BookTaxiService, the customer types their card into the form’s card field, Stripe handles any card authentication the bank asks for, and the payment goes to the taxi operator’s own Stripe account, either at booking or at a later capture point the operator sets.
The difference from a phone booking is who does the work. On the phone, someone reads a card number aloud and someone else keys it in. On a taxi booking system with card payments, the customer enters the card once and the booking arrives in your dashboard already paid, or already held.
Your Stripe Account, Your Money
Card payments in BookTaxiService run on the taxi operator’s own Stripe account. In Admin Settings, the Stripe section (“Add Stripe Keys”) takes your live and test publishable keys, secret keys and webhook signing secrets. Once your keys are in, customer card payments go directly to your Stripe account. BookTaxiService does not collect your fares and pass them on later.
Because the account is yours, Stripe’s processing fees and the timing of payouts to your bank follow your own Stripe account’s arrangements. BookTaxiService does not set either of them.
BookTaxiService does charge its own per-trip transaction fee, set by your plan. The fee applies to completed trips, card trips paid through your Stripe account included. The amount for each plan is on the pricing page.
The Payment Options Your Customers See
A BookTaxiService booking form shows the payment options you have switched on, and nothing else. Each option below comes with the setup it needs.
Card Online
“Card (online)” appears on the booking form when you turn card payments on and your Stripe keys are set up. Card is available on every plan. The form uses a card field for the customer to type their card details; Stripe handles any 3D Secure check the card needs. There are no Apple Pay, Google Pay or Link buttons on the form.
Pay in Car
Pay in car groups three methods:
- cash, which is on by default
- card in car, off until you turn it on
- Cabcharge, off until you turn it on
Staff record in-car payments in admin. BookTaxiService records the payment against the booking; it does not run a card terminal in the car.
Invoice
Invoice is a payment option when you turn it on for your booking form. You can also grant invoice to an individual customer, such as a hotel concierge or a regular who settles monthly. Corporate accounts are invoiced, and eligible issued invoices have a card payment page the customer can use to pay.
When the Card Is Charged
Charge timing in BookTaxiService is set by the operator, and there is no single “charged at the end of the trip” rule. You pick one of two approaches.
Charge at Booking (the Default)
By default, BookTaxiService charges the card when the customer books, so the payment is taken before the trip.
Authorise Now, Capture Later
Operators who prefer a hold can set authorise-then-capture instead. The card is authorised at booking, and the payment is captured at one of three points you choose, subject to checks:
- when the booking is confirmed
- when the trip is completed
- a set number of days before pickup
Capture can be for less than the authorised amount, so a shorter trip costs the customer less. A higher fare is a different matter: an increase goes through as a separate additional charge, not an automatic top-up of the hold.
Bookings Made Well Ahead
A card hold only lasts so long, so BookTaxiService uses an authorisation window, 48 hours by default. For a booking outside that window, say a Friday airport run booked three weeks out, the card can be saved and authorised nearer pickup, with the customer’s consent.
Phone Bookings and Repeat Customers
Phone and repeat customers in BookTaxiService can pay without reading out a card number every time.
Saved cards. A signed-in customer can pick a saved card or add a new one, and can tick “Save this card for faster checkout next time”. You can also require card on file, in which case the customer gives consent to your terms.
Charge saved card. Staff can use “Charge saved card” from the booking screen to charge a customer’s saved card.
New card over the phone. Taking a new card over the phone (a MOTO payment) needs enabling and is not available to every account. Plan on saved cards and payment links for phone work unless you have it switched on.
Payment links for extra charges. When a trip runs over, staff can send the customer a payment link for the additional charge, and the customer pays it by card online.
Invoice payment links. Eligible issued invoices have a card payment page, so account customers can pay by card without calling the office.
After the Payment: Records, Refunds and Receipts
Card payments in BookTaxiService appear in Admin Payments with their current status, including pending, awaiting capture, succeeded, failed and refunded. The settings screen gives you a webhook URL to register in Stripe and a signing secret to paste back, and that link helps keep those records current when Stripe confirms a payment.
Refunds. Staff can refund eligible card payments in full or in part from Payments or from the booking. Offline payments, invoice payments and additional-charge payments are refunded through their own flows, not the general refund button.
Confirmations and tax documents. Customers can receive payment confirmations and tax documents, and the trip receipt shows GST when the booking’s tax breakdown includes it. The BookTaxiService payments overview covers the rest of the money side.
Driver payouts. Where your plan includes driver payments, you can track driver payout records. Plans with driver auto payouts also let Australian operators export eligible payouts as an ABA bank file. BookTaxiService does not transfer money to drivers; you pay them from your bank.
Card Payments at a Glance
The table below sums up each payment need, what BookTaxiService does with it, and the setup it depends on.
| Payment need | What BookTaxiService does | Setup needed |
|---|---|---|
| Card payments online | “Card (online)” on the booking form; money goes to your own Stripe account | Turn card on and add your Stripe keys; available on every plan |
| Charge timing | Charge at booking by default, or authorise and capture at confirmation, completion or a set number of days before pickup | Choose your charge timing; capture is subject to checks |
| Bookings far ahead | Save the card and authorise nearer pickup, with customer consent | Authorisation window (48 hours by default) |
| Card authentication | Stripe handles any 3D Secure check the card needs | Stripe keys in place |
| Repeat customers | Saved cards at checkout; optional card on file with terms consent | Signed-in customers; card-on-file setting if you want it required |
| Phone bookings | “Charge saved card” from the booking screen; new card over the phone only where enabled | A saved card on the customer, or MOTO enabled for your account |
| Extra charges | Payment link sent to the customer for the additional amount | Raise an additional charge on the booking |
| Pay in car | Cash, card in car and Cabcharge, recorded by staff in admin | Cash on by default; turn on card in car and Cabcharge |
| Invoice | Invoice option, per-customer invoice grants, corporate invoicing, card payment page on eligible invoices | Turn invoice on, or grant it to a customer |
| Payment records | Card payment records and their current statuses in Admin Payments | Register the webhook URL and paste the signing secret |
| Refunds | Full or partial refunds of eligible card payments | Refund from Payments or the booking |
| Receipts | Payment confirmations and eligible tax documents; trip receipts show GST when applicable | None |
Setting Up Card Payments
Setting up card payments in BookTaxiService takes seven steps, all inside your own account and your own Stripe account:
- Create or use a Stripe account. Card payments run on your Stripe account, so set one up or use the one you have. Then choose a plan and sign up. Instant booking is available from Growth when your settings allow; on Starter, public bookings are quote-only.
- Add your Stripe keys in Admin Settings under “Add Stripe Keys”: your live publishable key and secret key, plus your test keys if you use them.
- Register the webhook. Copy the webhook URL from the settings screen into Stripe, then paste the signing secret Stripe gives you back into BookTaxiService.
- Choose your accepted payment methods: card online, and any of cash, card in car, Cabcharge and invoice.
- Choose your charge timing: charge at booking, or authorise and capture at confirmation, completion or a set number of days before pickup.
- Test a booking and check the payment appears in Admin Payments with the right status.
- Put the booking form live by embedding it in your website or sharing your hosted booking link. The guide to adding a taxi booking form to your website covers both.
Card Surcharges
Card surcharges in BookTaxiService are an operator setting. You can set a surcharge for card in Settings > Tax & Surcharges, and saving a non-zero card surcharge means acknowledging a disclaimer first. BookTaxiService does not decide whether a surcharge is lawful; following the Australian rules on card surcharges is the operator’s responsibility.
For how GST works on fares, levies and tax invoices, see GST for taxi operators.
Premium Taxi Service
Premium Taxi Service is an Australian taxi operator in Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane that has run on BookTaxiService since March 2026, taking bookings through its website booking form.
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
Where does the money from card bookings go?
Card payments taken through BookTaxiService go directly to the taxi operator’s own Stripe account. The operator adds their Stripe keys in Admin Settings, and customer card payments are processed on that account. BookTaxiService does not hold the fare and pay it out later.
Does BookTaxiService charge a fee on card payments?
BookTaxiService charges a per-trip transaction fee set by the operator’s plan, and the fee applies to completed trips, including card trips paid through the operator’s own Stripe account. Stripe’s processing fees are separate and follow the operator’s Stripe account. The fee for each plan is on the BookTaxiService pricing page.
When is the customer’s card charged?
By default, BookTaxiService charges the card at booking. A taxi operator can instead set authorise-then-capture, with capture at confirmation, at trip completion or a set number of days before pickup, subject to checks. For bookings outside the authorisation window (48 hours by default), the card can be saved and authorised nearer pickup with the customer’s consent.
Can my staff take a card payment over the phone?
Staff can charge a customer’s saved card from the BookTaxiService booking screen with “Charge saved card”, and can send a payment link for an additional charge. Taking a brand-new card over the phone (MOTO) needs enabling and is not available to every account.
Can customers still pay cash or Cabcharge?
Yes. BookTaxiService groups cash, card in car and Cabcharge under “Pay in car” on the booking form. Cash is on by default; card in car and Cabcharge are off until the operator turns them on. Staff record in-car payments in admin, and BookTaxiService does not run a card terminal.
Can I refund a card payment?
Yes, for eligible card payments. BookTaxiService staff can refund a card payment in full or in part from Admin Payments or from the booking. Offline payments, invoice payments and additional-charge payments are refunded through their own flows.
Start Taking Card Payments on Your Taxi Bookings
Choose your plan, add your Stripe keys and put a booking form live that takes card payments into your own account.
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