What Is a Contactless Limit?

The contactless limit in the UK changed from £45 to £100 on 15 October 2021. This was decided by the HM Treasury and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) after public consultations with the retail and banking sectors. 

But what does the new contactless payment limit mean for consumers and merchants alike? These are the questions we explore below. Keep reading to discover more.

What Are Contactless Payment Limits?

Contactless payment limits are placed on contactless card payments. Since the limit is now £100, it means that a consumer who sees the contactless symbol on a card payment machine will be able to tap or hover their card above the terminal for a payment that’s £100 or less without being required to perform a chip and PIN transaction.

If you want to make multiple or consecutive contactless transactions in a single day, this limit has also increased from £130 to £300. 

Once the £300 limit has been reached, you will be required to use a PIN to verify that you’re the one making the transaction. After using the chip and PIN, the limit will be reset and you will again be able to make contactless payments.

The Purpose of Contactless Limits

The purpose of the nationwide contactless limit in the UK is to boost speed, convenience, and security when making a single contactless card transaction for both merchants and consumers.

With a higher daily contactless limit, consumers enjoy a faster checkout experience whether shopping for groceries, filling up their car with fuel or eating at their favourite pub or restaurant.

Meanwhile, once the contactless limit per day has been reached, consumers will be prompted to enter their card and a PIN number on a card machine to add an extra layer of verification and security. This procedure ensures the cardholder is the legitimate owner of the card with PIN information only known by them.

Benefits of Contactless Limits

As already mentioned, the contactless payments limit serves to enhance security and speed. Using a contactless card for making purchases can help significantly reduce payment-related fraud. Paying by card is more efficient also because you don’t have to look for the right amount of change to hand over to the sales assistant at the point of sale or checkout. 

Another key advantage is that you can use your contactless debit card to spend on other services apart from groceries and fuel, including paying for the London Underground. 

One caveat here is that when you pay for public transportation in London and elsewhere in the UK, you should use the same card when entering the premises as you do when leaving. This will avoid incurring additional charges.

How to Set Contactless Limits

Setting contactless limits is important for consumers and merchants alike. Let’s explore what needs to be done to ensure you don’t face any payment challenges.

Determine default limits

As a first step, you need to determine what your contactless payment limit is. In the UK, this is £100 with a maximum of £300 before you’re required to enter your PIN. 

Since the change in contactless limits took place almost three years ago, it’s now likely that most merchants have adapted to the situation by updating the contactless limits on their point-of-sale (POS)devices or card machines. 

Regional variations in limits

While the UK’s contactless limit is set at one amount, there are important regional variations in contactless payment limits. 

Below is a quick exploration of some of the key regions and their country-specific limits:

• Asia-Pacific:
  • Australia: AU $200
  • China: CNY1,000
  • Hong Kong: HKD $1,000
  • India: INR 5,000
  • New Zealand: NZD $200

• Western Europe:
  • France: 50€
  • Germany: 50€
  • Italy: 50€
  • Spain: 50€

• Eastern Europe:
  • Czech Republic: 500 CZK
  • Hungary: 15,000 HUF
  • Slovakia: 50€

• Latin America:
  • Brazil: BRL 200
  • Chile: 15,000 CLP
  • Colombia: 100,000 COP
  • Mexico: 500 MXN

• North America:
  • Canada: CA $250 (for Mastercard, Visa and American Express)
  • US: $100-$250, varying by financial institution and payment card provider

While this is not an exhaustive list, it does offer some insights into the contactless payment limits in different regions of the world, which can be useful for those travelling.

How to adjust contactless limits

In order to adjust your contactless limit, you need to contact your banking institution. 

Alternatively, you may be able to change and adjust it within your banking app on your mobile device.

Security and Safety

Security and safety in contactless payments are serious concerns. It is essential to inform yourself – whether you’re a merchant or a consumer – of potential causes of card fraud and how to address it.

Recognise security features of contactless payments

For a contactless payment to be made, the consumer or cardholder’s card must have the contactless symbol on it. 

Merchants must be sure that their POS device or card machine is capable of accepting contactless payments, whether from a contactless card or from a digital wallet.

Concerns about contactless fraud

Many consumers are worried about whether they will be charged twice if they have two contactless cards in their purse or wallet and present it to the POS terminal. Luckily, neither card will be charged and there’s no need for concern.

Another frequently encountered concern is whether fraudsters will be able to get money from a cardholder by merely standing close to them or walking past with a payment device. This is not possible as merchants go through important and strict means of verification before they can acquire and implement a payment device. 

Implement best practices for secure contactless transactions

To ensure that you enjoy a seamless contactless payment experience, make sure that you notify your bank immediately if your card is lost or stolen. Also, ensure that you have enough money in your account to avoid transactions being declined. 

The new limit for contactless payments is valid for a variety of retailers, including using it to pay for public transport, alongside a number of other retailers you can spend at.

Contactless Payments Usage and Trends

Now, let’s explore how contactless payments are used and what type of growth the industry is seeing.

Tracking the growth of contactless payments

Sources indicate a significant shift from cash to contactless payments in the UK over the past few years. 

According to the “UK Payment Markets 2024” report by UK Finance, there were 18.3 billion contactless payments made in 2023. This represents a 7% increase on 2022, when the volume of transactions was 17.0 billion. 

As for the contactless payment representation in terms of all other payments made, they account for 38% of all payments made in the UK.

The future of contactless payment limits

The future of contactless payment limits is bright. That’s because there are stringent security measures in place to protect cardholders and merchants from card payment fraud. 

Saving merchants and customers time, these touchless payments all about ensuring that retailers immediately cater to consumers’ needs and that consumers have a safe way to pay. 

The contactless payments represent speed and convenience, thus creating a more seamless checkout experience, which customers are increasingly searching for.

Contactless payment limits by service provider

It’s important to note that contactless cards are not the only way in which consumers can pay. 

Besides allowing for making online payments, digital wallets such as Apple Pay, Google Pay or Samsung Pay primarily allow for contactless payments in brick-and-mortar stores through a mobile phone, smart watch, key fob, wristband or other means. However, the contactless payment limits differ for these providers. 

In short, neither Apple Pay nor Google Pay have an upper limit for contactless payments. That’s because these payments are typically authenticated through biometric technologies like fingerprint or facial recognition.

However, it must be noted that some retailers themselves may cap the spend to £100, especially with Apple Pay. In addition, the maximum amount you can pay in a single transaction with a digital wallet is £250,000.

Conclusion

If you’ve just received your new contactless card that’s linked to your bank account, you are ready to spend. However, make sure that the retailer you’re shopping at can accommodate contactless payments.

Once you’re sure of this, you’re free to shop up to £100 without needing to enter a chip and PIN for one transaction. However, bear in mind that once the limit of £300 is reached, you’ll need to enter a PIN before being allowed to pay contactlessly once again. These restrictions differ for digital wallet applications and devices like an Apple watch or Samsung Pay where the contactless limit doesn’t apply. 

It is clear that these touch-free payments are here to stay as a convenient and reliable option for purchases. As their security and regulatory aspects are continuously being improved, the usage of contactless payments is on track to keep on increasing in the future. 

Frequently Asked Questions

Can someone steal the details from my contactless card?

Even if a thief is extremely close to you, they would only be able to see your card number and expiry date. However, they will not be able to see your CVV code on the back of your card. Therefore, you can rest assured that there’s little chance a fraudster will be able to make an online transaction with these details.

What is the Apple Pay contactless limit and the Google Pay contactless limit?

Paying with an Apple Pay or Google Pay digital wallet has no contactless limit because each transaction must be authenticated through a second step, such as fingerprint or biometric authentication.

Will I be charged twice if I have two cards in my purse or wallet?

Contactless cards issued and presented at the point of sale terminal must be held very close to the card reader to be read. If you have two cards when making a purchase, simply select the right card and present it at the terminal. If two cards are presented, the transaction will not be processed.