Apple Pay Expected To Go Live in UK Next Week Enabling Contactless Payments By iPhone

Apple Pay is due to launch in the UK on 14 July, enabling iPhone and Apple Watch users to pay for goods without the need for cash or a credit or debit card.

The new payment system uses the same sort of technology as contactless cash cards and Oyster cards, allowing users to merely swipe their iPhone or Apple Watch on a reader at the till to pay.

While Apple has given no official UK release date, leaked memos and staff training documents from several retailers show that the service is due to go live in the UK next week, according to renowned Apple rumours site 9to5Mac.com.

Apple Pay users will be able to pay for goods up to £20 in value, while new technology due in the autumn will reportedly allow payments of up to £30. The new hardware will let retailers set their own upper limit for payments, pending Apple’s approval.

Apple Pay can be used in shops via the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus or the Apple Watch, with most major banks signed up. Barclays is not yet signed up to the service, having released its own contactless ‘bPay’ wristband last week.

Users simply register their debit and credit cards with the Passbook app and hold their phone to the payment reader at the till with their finger or thumb on the Touch ID home button. A subtle vibration and a beep let them know when their payment has been sent.

On the Apple Watch, payment is made by double-clicking the side button, and holding the display up to the reader.

Apple Pay is already live in the US, and has been previously unavailable in the UK.

It’s likely that not all participating shops will start using Apple Pay next week, but Apple Stores, M&S, Boots, Costa, McDonalds, Waitrose and Transport for London are all due to start using the system from launch.