>>AFAIK it's actually illegal to store credit card information unless you are a credit card company yourself.
>
>So, if you run a business, and issue a receipt for some credit card payment, don't you have the credit card data for your accounting dept.? What if you need to take a credit card for some booking / order, and you will charge it only upon issuing of some voucher or ticket...If you don't store the credit card data in this situation, what do you do? Call the customer again? How is this stuff done in all travel sites in the EU then?
>
>Jaime

Honestly, I am not sure about this. But my understanding is that you can store all the data until the transaction is confirmed, and for a short period after that so that you can settle any differences, like drinks taken from the minibar and so on. After that period you must erase some of it, namely the expiration date. The expiration date is necessary in order to charge the card/account, but not to credit it.

Some companies, like travel agents, are allowed to store all the data, but only after the card holder has approved it, we call this "signature on file".

But again, I may very well be wrong about this.