AddisFly - Visa Guarantee — Recording, Releasing and Refunding
The policy — what a guarantee is for, how much, who may waive it — lives in the Visa Services SOP. This page is the other half: how to record it on the case, and what to say when a customer asks about theirs.
A guarantee is customer money held as a liability. It is never income, and it is never quietly retained.
Where it lives
Every field is on the Visa Application case:
| Field | What it holds |
|---|---|
guarantee_required |
Whether this case needs one at all |
guarantee_status |
Not Required · Pending · Held · Released · Forfeited |
guarantee_amount |
What we are holding |
guarantee_instrument |
Cash · Bank Transfer · Cheque · Partner Blanket Guarantee · Waived |
guarantee_received_on / guarantee_payment_entry |
When it arrived, and the money record |
guarantee_released_on / guarantee_release_entry |
When it went back, and the money record |
guarantee_bank_guarantee |
The cheque or bank guarantee held, for partners |
guarantee_waiver_approved_by |
Who approved a waiver — required if the instrument is Waived |
The five states, and what each one obliges you to do
- Not Required — Tier 2 consulting, or a product with no guarantee. Nothing to do.
- Pending — the case needs a guarantee and we have not received it. The application should not be submitted from here. Chase it, or agree an alternative (below).
- Held — money is in. Record the amount, the instrument, the date and the payment entry. From this point we owe it back.
- Released — the passenger's return is confirmed and the money has gone back. Record the date and the release entry.
- Forfeited — an overstay fine or extension was deducted. Deduct only what was actually charged, return the balance, and tell the customer in writing what was deducted and why.
Today's reality — read before you trust the data
At the time of writing there are 6 visa cases, every one marked "guarantee required", every one still "Pending", and not a single guarantee amount recorded. Guarantees are being handled outside the system, so the case file cannot tell you whether we hold someone's money.
That means: do not answer a customer from the case alone. Check with Finance, then record what you find, so the next person does not have to ask.
"Where is my guarantee refund?"
This is the most common question, and one is open right now.
- Find the case and read
guarantee_status. - Held → is the return confirmed? Until it is, the guarantee is not due. Tell the customer what is outstanding.
- Released → give them the release date and the payment reference from
guarantee_release_entry. - Forfeited → tell them the amount deducted and the reason, and what balance was returned.
- Pending with no amount → we may hold nothing at all, or the record was never filled in. Check with Finance before replying. Do not guess.
Release is Visa Supervisor plus Finance, per the SOP. The delay a customer feels is usually the confirmed-return step, not the payment.
"I cannot afford the guarantee"
A real request, and there are three legitimate answers. None of them is to drop the guarantee quietly.
- Partner blanket guarantee — if they are booking through an agency that holds a cheque with us, they are already covered. Set the instrument accordingly.
- A waiver — only for known customers, and only with Visa Supervisor approval recorded in
guarantee_waiver_approved_by. An unrecorded waiver is an unsecured exposure nobody agreed to. - Tier 2 consulting instead — we advise and help with the forms, they apply themselves. No EMD, no guarantee, no quota at risk. This is the honest answer for someone who simply cannot fund a deposit.
The guarantee must cover one abscond fine plus one extension. Check the current minimum with the Supervisor before accepting anything lower.
Related
- Visa Services SOP — policy, tiers, prices, escalation
- Visa Application — the full field reference
- Bank Guarantee — how a held cheque is recorded