Mobile

The growth of mobile technologies has increased demand for electronic payments. Today, consumers want to be able to easily make payments via mobile devices. From creating one of the first general-purpose credit cards more than 50 years ago to introducing the first network standard for cloud-based payments, Visa continues to innovate in ways that improve the everyday lives of people across the globe.

Through its digital solutions Visa is enabling financial institutions and technology partners to offer innovative mobile products, so that consumers can use their mobile devices to make payments and merchants can accept Visa payments using mobile devices. The convergence of mobile holds the promise of democratizing financial services for billions of people worldwide, putting secure, reliable and convenient mobile payments in the palm of their hands.

This section contains information about Visa's global mobile technology partner programs. It includes program descriptions, requirements and specifications to help you build and implement your mobile products and services.

Mobile Licensing Program

Visa provides royalty free licenses to all specifications, documentation, and software development kits (SDKs) required by third-party partners to develop products and services supporting Visa payment products.

To access Visa's confidential and proprietary materials, your company must register and download, sign and return the applicable Visa license agreement(s).

To register, except where noted, select the Visa Technology Registration option on the online Registration Form. You will need to indicate the mobile tools and resources (as described below) necessary for your program/product in the Product & Service Overview field when registering.

IMPORTANT: If your company already has an active Technology Registration, please send an email to [email protected] with your request for the additional licenses or access. You do NOT have to re-register.

Please see the Registration and Licensing page for more information.

Mobile Tools and Resources

Visa payWave for Mobile (Secure Element) Specifications

Visa payWave for mobile specifications define NFC requirements for supporting contactless transactions where the Visa account credential is stored in a secure element. These specifications are necessary for those looking to develop secure element products supporting Visa payWave for mobile and those partners supporting issuers in the provisioning and lifecycle management of Visa account credentials stored in a secure element. The specifications allow a partner to develop proprietary implementations of Visa payWave and to have that applet approved on a compliant secure element. The specifications also enable Trusted Service Managers (TSMs) to develop services to provision and manage Visa payWave accounts on secure elements.

Visa Mobile Payment Application (VMPA) – Software Applet

The Visa Mobile Payment Application (VMPA) is Visa’s implementation of the Visa payWave Mobile (Secure Element) Specifications. VMPA is licensed under a separate software agreement and is optional for partners looking to sell and distribute secure element products supporting VMPA. Licensing VMPA also enables TSMs to load and distribute VMPA and to support financial institutions in the provisioning and lifecycle management of Visa account credentials using VMPA.

Visa Cloud-based Payments Specification and Standards

The Visa cloud-based payments specifications and standards outline a set of product and program requirements that, if met, allow Visa financial institutions and partners to enable Visa payWave on mobile devices without a secure element; for example, devices supporting Host Card Emulation (HCE). These specifications are necessary for those looking to develop products and solutions supporting cloud-based payments (including HCE solutions) and partners supporting financial institutions in the provisioning and lifecycle management of Visa cloud enabled account credentials.

Visa payWave for Mobile Developers

Visa provides software development kits (SDKs) allowing faster development of native mobile applications that support both Visa payWave for mobile secure element and cloud-based payments. For cloud-based payments, the SDK will allow developers to use APIs that access Visa cloud-based payments services.

If your company already has an active Technology Registration, please send an email to [email protected] requesting Visa payWave for Mobile Developers licensing. You do not have to re-register.

If your company is not registered, complete and submit the online Registration Form. Please select the Technology Registration-->Visa payWave for Mobile Developers Program option.

Visa Ready Programs

Visa accelerating the introduction of innovative mobile payment solutions around the world. The Visa Ready Program makes it easier for nontraditional payment partners to navigate the complexities of the payments ecosystem.

For more information on the programs and registering, see the Visa Ready Programs page.