Not every booking goes straight to the calendar. A page that uses Request approval, a service with Manual confirmation, or a service that takes payment first all create a request that waits for something: your decision, or the client's payment. The Booking Queue is where you see those requests and act on them.
Where requests appear
Open Settings → Scheduling & Tasks → Calendar Settings → Booking Pages and scroll to the Booking Queue at the bottom of the screen.
Each request shows the service, the booking page it came through, the client's name and contact details, the assigned host, the requested time, and, for paid services, what is due now. Because the queue lives on the Booking Pages screen, it is visible to the workspace owner and admins.
Request statuses
| Status | Meaning | What happens next |
|---|---|---|
| Needs acceptance | The page uses Request approval and nobody has decided yet. When the page's Hold pending slots option is on, the slot stays reserved while you decide | Accept or decline |
| Needs confirmation | The service uses Manual confirmation; the calendar event exists but is tentative | Confirm or decline |
| Waiting for payment | The client is paying a deposit or the full price; the slot is held | Wait; the request moves on when the payment completes, or is marked expired when the hold lapses |
Once a request is confirmed, declined, or its hold expires, it leaves the queue. Confirmed bookings live on the calendar; the queue keeps no history.
Accept or decline a request
For a request that needs acceptance, choose Accept and add. The booking is added to the calendar, assigned to the host, and the client receives a "Booking accepted" email that includes the Google Meet link when the service uses Google Meet. For a request that needs confirmation, the calendar event already exists, so the button reads Confirm and the tentative event becomes confirmed.
Choose Decline to turn a request down. You can add a reason, and the client receives a "Booking declined" email that includes it.
A request that is waiting for payment cannot be accepted; the button reads Waiting for payment until the client pays or the hold expires. You can still decline it.
Understand payment holds
When a service requires a deposit or full payment, the client's slot is held for 30 minutes while they pay. The request shows Waiting for payment together with the time the hold ends, and no other client can take the slot in the meantime.
Once the payment completes, the request takes one of three paths: it is confirmed, it waits for your acceptance on a page with Request approval, or it lands in Needs confirmation when the service uses Manual confirmation. If the hold expires first, the request is marked expired, the time is released to other clients, and the request leaves the queue; the client can start a new booking.
What clients receive
- A confirmation email with a manage link once the booking is made.
- A "Booking accepted" or "Booking declined" email when your team decides on a request.
- Reminder emails at the times set on the service, 24 hours and 1 hour before by default.
- The ability to cancel or reschedule through the manage link, within the notice window set in the service's client policy. A cancellation made through the link updates the calendar event and sends the client a "Booking cancelled" email.
Client emails and reminder times are configured on the service; see Configure a service for online booking.
Change a booking from the calendar
An accepted booking is an ordinary calendar event. Open it on the calendar to move it, change the host, add notes, or cancel it, exactly as you would any other event.
Edits made from the calendar do not email the client, so tell the client yourself if you move or cancel their booking there.
Troubleshooting
| Symptom | Check |
|---|---|
| No times are offered | Eligible hosts have working hours on those days, the page does not mark them Unavailable here, the dates are not blackout dates, and the minimum notice and booking window leave a bookable window |
| Times are offset by hours | Availability is calculated in the workspace timezone set in Business Details; confirm it, then check the timezone the client selected on the page |
| A request never appears | The page may use Instant booking, which sends bookings straight to the calendar; only approval, confirmation, and payment steps create queue entries |
| The client did not get an email | Email clients may be turned off on the service, or the address was mistyped on the booking form |
Return to Online booking overview.
Bookings you move or cancel from the calendar do not notify the client. Only changes made through the client's manage link send an email.