From our archive. This article was published on 30 March 2020. Rules and amounts may have changed since.
Contactless payment is quick and easy: you hold your bank card, smartphone or smartwatch against the payment terminal and the payment is done.
For small amounts, up to a limit that depends on your country and your bank, you usually do not need to enter a PIN. After a number of consecutive contactless payments, or above a certain total amount, the terminal will still ask for your PIN as an extra security measure.
In your banking app you can usually switch contactless payment on or off, and sometimes adjust your limits too. If you lose your card or phone, have your bank or card issuer block your card immediately.