Apple extends Tap to Pay on iPhone to 8 more European countries. Which ones?

Apple has extended the availability of its Tap to Pay payment service on iPhone to eight more European countries.

In a press release on 27 May, the company said iPhone users in the included countries only need their phones and a partner-enabled iOS app to make seamless payments with no additional hardware required.

Secure payment technology

The internet is a risky place to share information on, as such information can be easily misused. With this in mind, Apple designed Tap to Pay with security in mind to ensure that users are protected.

When using this service, customers’ information is securely protected because all payments using the technology are encrypted and processed using the Secure Element, which ensures that Apple doesn’t know what is being purchased or who is buying it.

The contactless credit and debit card payment is facilitated by top payment companies  including American Express, Discover, Mastercard, and Visa.

Countries included in the new coverage are Belgium, Croatia, Cyprus, Denmark, Greece, Iceland, Luxembourg. However, the service only works with iPhone XS or later running the latest iOS version.

All merchants have to do is prompt the customer to hold their contactless credit or debit card, iPhone, Apple Watch, or other digital wallet near the merchant’s iPhone at checkout, and the payment will be securely completed using NFC technology.

Tap to Pay well received

So far, Apple Tap to Pay on iPhone has seen great reception in European countries where it has been available for a while, such as France, UK, and Italy.

One user wrote on Reddit:

“I used this the other day in the Apple Store. Was super painless and in my case used an iPhone to “tap” the other iPhone to pay. People shit on Apple a lot, but the experience was almost entirely seamless. (The only part that didn’t quite do it was the need to change my region since I was buying in a different country, so they could pull my details in their app via the QR code).”

Many iPhone users who have hoped for the service in the newly covered countries can now seamlessly make payments at their favorite stores.