Advance payment – within the area of Business Law, this term details a valid payment made up in front before delivery of the other party’s obligation. Usually, the role of the advance payment is to convince the opposite party that the payor intends to fulfill the contract. And that he has interest in the performance of their obligations. In practice, earnest deposit applies in real estate sales. Somewhere called also “deposit payment”.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earnest_payment