Outpayce and Hands In partner on multi‑card split payments

Airlines gain multi‑card split payments

Outpayce from Amadeus and Hands In announced a partnership on 21 May 2026 to bring multi‑card split payments to travel. The collaboration targets one of the most common reasons for failed bookings at checkout: insufficient funds spread across cards. The move aims to help airlines and other travel merchants recover sales that would otherwise be lost, without forcing customers to restart the booking journey.

More than 40% of payment declines in aviation are linked to insufficient funds and card limits, according to research by Ethoca. Through the tie‑up, merchants connected to Outpayce can let travellers split a single purchase across two or more cards directly at checkout. The approach is designed to lift conversion on high‑value baskets where single‑card limits or balances often block transactions.

The functionality is embedded in the Outpayce checkout flow. Travellers select to pay with multiple cards, enter the first card’s details, then repeat the process for each additional payment method. Each share of the total is authorised separately, with 3‑D Secure triggered where the merchant has enabled it. The booking is finalised only once all authorisations succeed, after which capture takes place and ticketing can proceed. For merchants, the order remains unified even when several payment instruments are used.

In air travel, premium fares, family bookings and group trips can quickly bump up against individual card limits. Multi‑card payments also unlock more flexible scenarios, such as mixing a corporate card with a personal one, using cards in different currencies, or topping up loyalty points with a card. The need becomes more acute as the industry moves to the Offer and Order model, which brings multiple travellers, products and payers into a single order.

“Outpayce sets the tone for how airlines design and evolve their payment strategy and we’re thrilled to contribute by focusing on split payments and decline recovery; capabilities we’ve pioneered in close collaboration with Air Europa over the past few years. Our partnership with Outpayce from Amadeus further strengthens our position as a global leader in split payments, bringing flexibility and reliability to travel merchants worldwide.”

Samuel Flynn, chief executive of Hands In, said the initial rollout will focus on airlines and other travel merchants already connected to Outpayce. Hands In provides the specialist split‑payments layer, while Outpayce distributes the capability across its travel‑payments ecosystem. Merchants are expected to see fewer abandonments and declines, while travellers — leisure and business alike — gain more room to manoeuvre at the point of payment.