Microsoft plans to introduce NFC Tap to Pay on Windows 10 Mobile with its Wallet 2.0 app, which is now in internal testing. Even though it's not been announced or teased, we still managed to successfully use it to make purchases — this feature is nearly complete and ready for the comprehensive Anniversary Update due this summer. Since Microsoft has not formerly announced NFC Tap to Pay and Wallet 2.0 for Windows 10 Mobile, it's up to us to piece together how this works. New evidence suggests that only certain phones may get the feature due to certification standards required by credit card companies like MasterCard. Microsoft Wallet 2.0 and Host Card Emulation Back in 2015 at the WinHEC conference in China, Microsoft announced that Host Card Emulation (HCE) was coming to Windows 10 Mobile, so there is a very strong reason to believe that is what is being used in Microsoft Wallet 2.0. Best VPN providers 2020: Learn about ExpressVPN, NordVPN & more HCE works by having mobile payment providers securing the credit card information on their servers instead of on the device itself. This system relies on your bank generating a new "virtual" credit card number that is associated with mobile payments and your credit card. Each new payment has a generated, one-time use card number, and this process is often referred to as "tokenization". This system adds a layer of protection between your real account and your temporary mobile payment one. Wallet 2.0 also uses your location data with each transaction to help prevent fraud.

While HCE relies on an encrypted connection to the cloud to generate the one-time use number, users can have a limited number of "off-line" generated codes on their device in case there is no internet connection immediately available. HCE is the preferred payment method by banks and vendors as there are no proprietary elements involved. Since HCE is the basis of Android Pay (since Android 4.4) it has been in use for some time and it is one reason why Windows 10 Mobile users should be able to use NFC Tap to Pay at all the same locations as Android Pay and Apple Pay. MasterCard, Visa, and AMEX all support HCE, but not all individual banks do as of yet, which is why some of my credit cards were not accepted (As I note in the original article, those same cards are also not accepted by Apple Pay, which uses a Secure Element-based system). In other words, while Visa may support HCE, the bank that issued your card may not. Phone models might matter Adding a twist to the Microsoft Wallet and NFC Tap to Pay puzzle, not all current Windows phones may support the feature. It is not so much that Microsoft may not allow it, but rather HCE devices need to be approved and certified by credit card companies like MasterCard. In a real world test, friend of the site Jeremy Sinclair ("snickler" on XDA Forums) installed the Wallet 2.0 app on his Lumia 1520 running Windows 10 Mobile build 14361. While the app installed correctly on the Lumia 1520, it did not offer up the Tap to Pay feature. Instead, it just gave the option for Loyalty Cards. Coincidently, Microsoft MVP Stanislav Z. pointed out to me MasterCard's approved list of HCE-enabled devices. Microsoft Lumias are listed, but only some Lumias are approved, those include: Lumia 640 XL (non-LTE)

Lumia 650

Lumia 650 Dual SIM

Lumia 950

Lumia 950 Dual SIM

Lumia 950 XL

Lumia 950 XL Dual SIM All other Lumias are not approved, and it seems to involve those devices' NFC firmware and overall age. Phones with NFC firmware 08.01.22 will work, while those with the older NFC firmware 1.xx will not. So it's not a surprise that when Jeremy tested Wallet 2.0 on a Lumia 1520 Tap to Pay was not enabled — that phone is also not on the approved MasterCard HCE list.