If your Stripe payouts just stopped, the money is usually still there, it is held while Stripe reviews the account, or parked in a reserve. That does not make it less painful when your cashflow is tied up. Here is why it happens, what the statuses mean, what to do this week, and an honest look at the kind of setup where it is less likely.
Stripe holds funds or applies a reserve when its risk review decides an account is elevated risk. Common triggers are a sudden spike in sales, a chargeback, a verification request, or a dispute rate above roughly 0.75% of transactions. It underwrites thousands of merchants with models, so it acts on patterns, not people.
New charges still process, but payouts are paused, Stripe can hold some or all payouts until the review resolves. Complete documentation can clear it in days; risk-team escalation takes longer, and funds usually release 1 to 3 business days after it is resolved.
A standard rolling reserve typically runs 90 to 180 days from each transaction date. A review-based hold lasts until it is resolved. Send documents quickly, and ask in writing for the exact reserve terms and whether it releases incrementally.
No honest provider can promise it never happens. But risk is lower when you are underwritten as an individual merchant rather than pooled, and when funds sit in regulated safeguarded accounts. paas.build runs on UniPaaS, an FCA-authorised Payment Institution, with per-merchant underwriting and safeguarded funds, and you stay the merchant. UK, EU and US.