Release a held deposit early, and the risk
Deposits under Steam Trade Protection wait for the hold to end. You can release them early, but a reversal takes the money back.
Steam keeps some traded items reversible for up to 7 days. While that lasts, the deposit shows On hold in your dashboard and nothing is credited yet.
Your two options
- Wait. When the hold ends, the deposit is credited automatically. No risk.
- Release now. Open the deposit and click Release funds now. The money is credited right away.
The risk of releasing early
If the customer reverses the trade during the hold, the items go back to them and the deposit becomes Returned. If you released it early, the credited amount is taken back from your balance. No fee is kept on a returned deposit.
How to decide
The deposit page shows what we know about the customer while the deposit is on hold, such as how many deposits they made on our network and how many trades they reversed. A long, clean history is a good sign. A new customer with past reversals is a reason to wait.
Only owners, admins and finance members can release deposits.