How long does Amex take to process payment?

Just received a new American Express credit card? You’ll need to know how it works, including how long Amex typically takes to process payments.

This can be important to know, especially if you’re approaching your credit limit or are making large payments. Knowing which payments have cleared and what your remaining credit limit is can help you manage your spending.

Similarly, you’ll also want to know how long it’ll take for repayments to your Amex credit card balance to go through. We’re here to help, with an essential guide to how long Amex takes to process payments in the UK.

We’ll look at average UK credit card processing times with Amex, factors which can slow things down and how payment processing generally works.

Average processing times for Amex credit card payments in the UK

So how long does an Amex UK credit card payment take to process? On average, it’s between 2 to 3 working days, although on rare occasions it can take up to 30 days. However in some cases, it can happen almost immediately.¹

This is the time it takes to clear, and the payment to appear as confirmed or cleared on your credit card statement.

What can cause delays in processing Amex credit card payments?

There are a few reasons it might take a little while for an Amex credit card payment to show in your account. These include:

• Weekends and bank holidays - credit card payments are generally only processed on a working/business day. If you pay for something with your credit card on a weekend or bank holiday, this can add a day or two extra to the processing time.
• Provider cut-off times - some credit card companies have a cut-off time, after which payments will only start to be processed on the next working day. You’ll need to check with Amex whether this is the case and what the exact cut-off time is.
• Security or fraud prevention checks - if the payment is flagged by the American Express UK anti-fraud team as potentially suspicious, extra checks may need to be carried out, and this can slow down processing times.
• Incorrect details entered - if you accidentally enter the wrong credit card details when paying for something online, for example, this can cause a delay to processing or even prevent the payment going through altogether. These are usually small errors, such as a typo in your name or one number incorrect, but they can potentially void the payment.

How processing works for credit cards

When you pay for something using your credit card - either in person or online - a number of steps need to happen behind the scenes.

Only once these processes are complete will your payment show as ‘cleared’ or ‘complete’ in your account. Until then, they may show as ‘pending’.

Here are the steps typically involved in processing a credit card payment in the UK:

1. Authorisation - this is the real-time check that the merchant sends to the card issuer, ensuring that the card is valid, the transaction is genuine and that you have enough available credit to cover the purchase.
2. Authentication - sometimes (but not always), you’ll be asked to verify the payment using a banking app, text code or biometrics. This is part of Strong Customer Authentication (SCA) rules in the UK.
3. Capture - the merchant confirms they still want the funds, a step that happens immediately for most shops and when goods are shipped for online retailers.
4. Clearing and settlement - the payment is sent through the card network to your card issuer (i.e. your bank). The issuer sends the money to the merchant’s bank.

It can however work a little differently with American Express credit cards. This is because Amex is both the card issuer and the network, so it doesn’t have to complete extra steps involving a third party issuer (such as a bank). This can potentially speed things up.

Timescales for paying off your American Express credit card

Now, what about how long it takes for Amex credit card account payments to process? This is when you make a repayment from your bank or another source to pay down your Amex credit card balance.

American Express repayment processing times vary depending on how you make the payment.

If you use online banking to send a Faster Payments transfer, use a debit card or pay through the Amex app, the payment should show in your credit card account right away.²

Other kinds of bank transfers (including CHAPS payments) can take a little longer, although they are applied right away once received.

So if a repayment is due and you want to avoid unnecessary interest or charges, it’s best to schedule it in advance.

Get the Wise card for international spending and cash withdrawals

Looking for a non-bank alternative for holiday spending? Check out the Wise card. It isn’t a credit card, but is a great option for low-cost spending and cash withdrawals worldwide.

Open a Wise account online and you can order the Wise card for a one-time fee of £7 or get the virtual Wise card for £0. You can use this clever card in 160+ countries.

It automatically converts your pounds to local currency whenever you spend using the mid-market exchange rate, only adding a tiny, transparent conversion fee* – or it’s free if you already have the local currency in your Wise account.

Need cash? You also get two free ATM withdrawals for up to 200 GBP (or currency equivalent) each month. Wise will not charge you for these withdrawals, but additional charges may occur from independent ATM networks.

And if you need to send money overseas, such as to pay expenses on a holiday home or book a hotel, you can use your Wise account to do it in just a few clicks.

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Sources used:

Sources last checked: 29-Nov-2025