Adding travel and eMoney cards to Apple Wallet
In many global markets, users can add supported travel and eMoney cards to Apple Wallet on supported models of iPhone and Apple Watch. Depending on the operator, this may be done by transferring the value or commuter pass (or both) from a physical card into its digital Apple Wallet representation, or by provisioning a new travel or eMoney card from Apple Wallet or the card issuer’s app. After travel cards are added to Apple Wallet, users can access public transport simply by holding their iPhone or Apple Watch near the card reader. Some travel cards can also be used to make payments.
How travel and eMoney cards work
Added travel and eMoney cards are associated with a user’s iCloud account. If the user adds more than one card to Apple Wallet, Apple or the card issuer may be able to link the user’s personal information and associated account information between cards. Travel and eMoney cards and transactions are protected by a set of hierarchical cryptographic keys.
During the process of transferring the balance from a physical card to Apple Wallet, users are required to enter card-specific information. Users may also need to provide personal information for proof of card possession. When transferring passes from iPhone to Apple Watch, both devices must be online.
The balance can be recharged with funds from credit, debit and pre-paid cards through Apple Wallet or from the travel or eMoney card issuer’s app. To understand the security of reloading the balance when using Apple Pay, see Paying with cards within apps. To learn how the card is provisioned from within the card issuer’s app, see Adding credit or debit cards from a card issuer’s app.
If provisioning from a physical card is supported, the travel or eMoney card issuer has the cryptographic keys needed to authenticate the physical card and verify the user’s entered data. After the data is verified, the system can create a Device Account Number for the Secure Element and activate the newly added pass in Apple Wallet with the transferred balance. For some cards, after provisioning from the physical card is complete, the physical card is disabled.
At the end of either type of provisioning, if the card balance is stored on the device, it’s encrypted and stored to a designated applet in the Secure Element. The operator has the keys to perform cryptographic operations on the card data for balance transactions.
By default, travel card users benefit from the seamless Express Travel experience that allows them to pay and go without requiring Face ID, Touch ID or a passcode. Information such as recently visited stations, transaction history and additional tickets may be accessed by any nearby contactless card reader with Express Mode enabled. Users can turn on the Face ID, Touch ID or passcode authorisation requirement in the Wallet & Apple Pay settings by disabling Express Travel. Express Mode isn’t supported for eMoney cards.
As with other Apple Pay cards, users can suspend or remove eMoney cards by:
Erasing the device remotely with Find My
Enabling Lost Mode with Find My
Entering a mobile device management (MDM) remote wipe command
Removing all cards from their Apple ID account page
Removing all cards from iCloud.com
Removing all cards from Apple Wallet
Removing the card in the issuer’s app
Apple Pay servers notify the card operator to suspend or disable those cards. If a user removes a travel or eMoney card from an online device, the balance can be recovered by adding it back to a device signed in with the same Apple ID. If a device is offline, powered off or unusable, recovery may not be possible.
Adding travel and eMoney cards to a family member’s Apple Watch
In iOS 15 or later and watchOS 8 or later, the organiser of an iCloud family can add transit and eMoney cards to their family members’ Apple Watch devices through their iPhone’s Watch app. When provisioning one of these cards to a family member’s Apple Watch, the watch is required to be nearby and connected to the organiser’s iPhone using Wi-Fi or Bluetooth. Family members are required to have two-factor authentication enabled for their Apple ID for this to occur.
Family members can send a request to add money to a travel or eMoney card from their Apple Watch using iMessage. The content of the message is protected by end-to-end encryption, as described in iMessage security overview. Adding money to a card on a family member’s Apple Watch can be done remotely using a Wi-Fi or mobile data connection. Proximity isn’t required.
Note: This feature may not be available in all countries or regions.
Credit and debit cards
In some cities, card readers accept Chip and PIN (smart) cards to pay for public transport journeys. When users present an EMV credit or debit card to those readers, user authentication is required, just as with “Pay with credit and debit cards in shops”.
In iOS 12.3 or later, some existing EMV credit/debit cards in Apple Wallet can be enabled for Express Travel. Express Travel lets users pay for a trip at supported travel operators without requiring Face ID, Touch ID or a passcode. When a user provisions an EMV credit or debit card, the first card provisioned to Apple Wallet is enabled for Express Travel. The user can tap the More button on the front of the card in Apple Wallet and disable Express Travel for that card by setting Express Travel Settings to None. The user can also select a different credit or debit card as their Express Travel card using Apple Wallet. Face ID, Touch ID or a passcode is required to re-enable or select a different card for Express Travel.
Apple Card and Apple Cash are eligible for Express Travel.