Apple Pay launches in the UK

As of today, Apple Pay has officially come to the United Kingdom and are available for use in England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland.

Apple Pay works at participating retail stores and within apps that accept it. Because it requires NFC, it is only available for iPhone 6 and 6 Plus users, and Apple Watch users who have an iPhone 5, 5c, 5s, 6, or 6 Plus. In-app Apple Pay purchases can be made with an iPad Air 2, iPad mini 3, iPhone 6, or iPhone 6 Plus.

The banks and credit card companies that are participating in the Apple Pay launch currently include American Express, First Direct, HSBC, Nationwide, NatWest, Royal Bank of Scotland, Santander, and Ulster Bank. Additional banks like Barclays, MBNA, TSB, and more are expected to add support in the future. Customers who have cards from participating banks will be able to add them to Passbook and use the Apple Pay service later today.

More than 250,000 locations in the United Kingdom support Apple Pay as of today, ranging from fast food places like KFC and McDonald’s to shops like Boots, Marks & Spencer, and Waitrose. A full list of retail shops and apps that accept Apple Pay can be found on Apple’s website.

In addition to the Apple Pay UK launch, Apple is also rumored to be working on expanding the payments service to several other countries, including China and Canada.

If you’re over in the UK and have a chance to test this out today, please let us know about your experience in the comments.

Via MacRumors