the merchant's choosing, the merchant instructs the credit card machine to submit the finalized transactions to the acquirer in a "batch transfer," which begins the settlement process, where the funds are transferred from the customers' accounts to the merchant's accounts. This process is not instantaneous: the transaction may not appear on the customer's statement or online account activity for one to two days, and it can take up to three days for funds to be deposited in the merchant's account. The preauthorization will be terminated if it is allowed to expire before the settlement occurs. For example, if an individual has a credit limit of $100 and uses a credit card to make a purchase at a retail store for $30, then the available credit will immediately decrease to $70, because the merchant has obtained an authorization from the individual's bank by swiping the card through its credit card terminal. If the billing statement were then sent out immediately, the actual charges would still be $0, because the merchant has not actually collected the funds in question. The actual charge is not put through until the merchant submits their batch of transactions and the banking system transfers the funds. A debit card works differently. Like in the previous example, if one has a balance of $100 in the bank and used a debit card to make a purchase at a retail store for $30, the available balance will immediately decrease to $70, as a hold on the $30 is enacted because the merchant has obtained an authorization from the bank by swiping the card through the credit card terminal. However, the actual balance with the bank is still $100, because the merchant has not actually collected the funds in question. Delays Some services, like hotels and rental cars, have the card as authorized at the beginning of service, but the settlement will not be placed until the completion of the service. Many times, there are additional deposits required in addition to the anticipated cost of the service to cover any additional unexpected charges for damages, excessive mileage or fuel, or if hotel guests charge room service, movies, or phone calls to the account. Upon the completion of the service, the vendor will then process the settlement of any final charges and submit them to the processor. It is not until then that the vendor will receive any funds, even though