Policy
Payments and escrow
Who holds your money between paying an advance and the day of your event — and what using BookitUp costs.
Last updated 29 August 2026
Pre-launch draft
BookitUp is not yet taking bookings. This page describes how the service is designed to work and is published so the terms are visible before anyone is asked to pay anything. It has not been through legal review and is not a contract. The binding version will be published before bookings open, and anyone on the waiting list will be told when it is.
Who holds your money
Not BookitUp. Under State Bank of Pakistan rules a payment system operator may not act as custodian of customer funds, so we do not. BookitUp is the merchant of record for its own platform fee and nothing else; the vendor is the merchant for the service itself.
The advance is designed to sit in an escrow account held by an SBP-authorised electronic money institution or bank with separate escrow approval — [ESCROW PARTNER — NOT YET CONTRACTED]. That partner is the escrow agent. We can initiate a refund; only they can execute one.
Being straight about the sequencing: card acquiring is the launch rail, and escrow is a pre-launch dependency. The escrow partner is in selection and not yet contracted, and the structure is still to be confirmed with Pakistani counsel. Nothing on this page is live yet, because BookitUp is not yet taking bookings.
How a payment is designed to move
- You pay the advance. Card at launch, with wallet and Raast to follow.
- It is collected on a licensed rail. Our payment gateway partner, Swich (a brand of Numbers Pvt Ltd, PCI DSS v4.0.1 certified), handles collection and payouts. Card details go to them and never reach BookitUp's systems — we do not store card numbers.
- It is held by the escrow partner. Not by us, and not in the vendor's account. The vendor can see the booking is funded and locks your date; they cannot draw on it.
- The vendor delivers, against the scope written into the booking record.
- They are paid on delivery confirmation, net of our fee. If it is not delivered, the money is still at the escrow partner and comes back to you.
What you pay
Searching, shortlisting and comparing is free. There is no commission on the contract value of a venue booking — a 10% commission on a Rs 1.2M hall is Rs 120,000 that both sides would go offline to avoid, so we do not charge it.
| Category | What is charged |
|---|---|
| Venues, farmhouses, marquees, large catering | A flat booking fee of Rs 3,500–12,000, plus a payment-protection fee of 2.5% of the escrowed advance. No commission on contract value. |
| Decor, lighting, photography, bakery, makeup | A commission of 12% of booking value, charged to the vendor rather than added to your price. |
Both are shown in full before you confirm. No fee appears after you have committed.
The platform price is contractually the lowest price the vendor offers anywhere. If you find the same vendor advertising the same package cheaper, that is a term they have broken and we want to hear about it.
What a vendor pays
Pricing is by leakage risk, not category size. Venues, farmhouses, marquees and large catering pay a subscription of Rs 7,500 or Rs 20,000 per month with no commission on contract value. Decor, lighting, photography, bakery and makeup pay the 12% commission instead.
Chargebacks, tax and invoicing
- Chargebacks sit with the acquirer under the merchant agreement; BookitUp holds a reserve against them.
- Invoicing is split: the vendor invoices you for the service, and BookitUp invoices its platform fee separately.
- Currency is Pakistani rupees. Prices include any tax the vendor must charge; a separately registered vendor will show sales tax on their invoice.
Questions
Payment questions go to info@bookitup.net. For refunds and cancellation windows, seecancellation and refunds.