Apple announces iPhones will soon accept Tap to Pay payments using Apple Pay and contactless

Apple Tap Tp Pay (Image credit: Apple)

What you need to know

Apple has announced Tap to Pay support for iPhones.
Businesses will be able to accept payments using an iPhone.
Stripe will be the first payment platform to support Tap to Pay on iPhone.

Apple has today announced plans to support Tap to Pay on iPhone, allowing small and large businesses to accept payments without the need for additional hardware.

Announced via Newsroom post, the move will allow developers and payment platforms to integrate Tap to Pay into iPhone apps with payments accepted via Apple Pay. Apple says that Stripe will be the first to offer Tao to Pay payments for businesses. More platforms will be coming online later this year.

Apple today announced plans to introduce Tap to Pay on iPhone. The new capability will empower millions of merchants across the US, from small businesses to large retailers, to use their iPhone to seamlessly and securely accept Apple Pay, contactless credit and debit cards, and other digital wallets through a simple tap to their iPhone — no additional hardware or payment terminal needed. Tap to Pay on iPhone will be available for payment platforms and app developers to integrate into their iOS apps and offer as a payment option to their business customers. Stripe will be the first payment platform to offer Tap to Pay on iPhone to their business customers, including the Shopify Point of Sale app this spring.

Once Tap to Pay is available contactless payments will be accepted via any iPhone XS or newer device. At checkout, customers will be able to pay using Apple Pay on their own iPhone or Apple Watch. No additional accessories or dongles will be required — just an iPhone and associated app.

Apple says that Tap to Pay will work with cards from the likes of Mastercard, Visa, and others to allow contactless payments via debit and credit cards.

Apple will work closely with leading payment platforms and app developers across the payments and commerce industry to offer Tap to Pay on iPhone to millions of merchants in the US. Tap to Pay on iPhone complements and enhances the robust suite of payment and commerce tools that payment platforms and app developers provide to their merchant customers to help them run and grow their businesses. Tap to Pay on iPhone will work with contactless credit and debit cards from leading payment networks, including American Express, Discover, Mastercard, and Visa.

Apple hasn't yet given any hard timeframes for Tap to Pay to become available, but it does say that the feature will only be available in the United States at launch.

Oliver Haslam has written about Apple and the wider technology business for more than a decade with bylines on How-To Geek, PC Mag, iDownloadBlog, and many more. He has also been published in print for Macworld, including cover stories. At iMore, Oliver is involved in daily news coverage and, not being short of opinions, has been known to 'explain' those thoughts in more detail, too. Having grown up using PCs and spending far too much money on graphics card and flashy RAM, Oliver switched to the Mac with a G5 iMac and hasn't looked back. Since then he's seen the growth of the smartphone world, backed by iPhone, and new product categories come and go. Current expertise includes iOS, macOS, streaming services, and pretty much anything that has a battery or plugs into a wall. Oliver also covers mobile gaming for iMore, with Apple Arcade a particular focus. He's been gaming since the Atari 2600 days and still struggles to comprehend the fact he can play console quality titles on his pocket computer.