What is paying by contactless?
Contactless uses NFC or Near Field Communication technology. This enables what you’re paying with to communicate with a payment terminal at short distances. That means there’s no need to insert your debit or credit card into the payment terminal. Instead, you simply hold your card close to it. Contactless is as secure as using your card and PIN to pay.
At KBC we have an extensive range of contactless payment methods with which you can always pay smoothly and safely.
How do you pay by contactless payment card?
Hold your debit or credit card close to the contactless payment symbol on the payment terminal for a few seconds (there’s no need to touch it).
- You don’t need to enter your PIN for payments of under 50 euros. You’ll need to enter it if what you’re buying costs over 50 euros
- If you make a number of consecutive, PINless contactless payments totalling over 150 euros (like 45 euros + 45 euros + 45 euros + 25 euros), you’ll have to insert your card into the payment terminal and enter your PIN to pay for the last purchase.
How do you know you can pay by contactless?
Contactless debit and credit cards let you pay without touching a payment terminal. If your card has the contactless logo on it (four radio waves), you’re good to go. If it doesn’t work, you may need to activate your card’s contactless feature. Check this in KBC Mobile or KBC Touch. You can also ask Kate, your digital assistant in KBC Mobile, to activate the contactless payment function.
Debit card
- Log in to KBC Mobile
- Tap ‘My KBC’
- Select your debit card under 'Means of payment'
- Switch on ‘Pay contactless’
Credit card
- Log in to KBC Mobile
- Tap ‘My KBC’
- Select your credit card under 'Means of payment'
- Tap the three dots at the top right
- Switch on ‘Pay contactless’
Watch this demo to see how to activate contactless payments on your debit card.
Ask Kate
- Log in to KBC Mobile
- Tap the Kate icon at the top right of your screen
- Type ‘activate contactless payments’
Kate will help you right away.
Debit card
- Log in to KBC Touch
- Open ...More at the top right under ‘Payments’
- Select ‘Debit cards’
- Choose your debit card
- Go to ‘Settings’
- Switch on ‘Pay contactless’
Credit card
- Log in to KBC Touch
- Go to ‘Credit cards’ under ‘Payments’ and select your credit card
- Go to ‘Manage card’
- Switch on ‘Pay contactless’
Not with us yet?
Then quickly open the current account of your choice and get your debit card by post in no time. Simply activate your account using KBC Touch or KBC Mobile to start paying conveniently by contactless.
If the front of your debit or credit card has the contactless symbol on it and you’re at a contactless payment terminal, you’re ready to go.
Briefly hold your card close to the terminal until you see that your payment has been accepted. You don’t even need to enter your PIN when buying things for 50 euros or less. If you’ve made consecutive payments that come to 150 euros in total, you’ll have to reinsert your card into the terminal and enter your PIN to be able to start paying again by contactless.
Yes! Contactless is as secure as using your card and PIN to pay. Rest assured: no payment will be made if you pass a contactless terminal with your phone or card. They need to be held right against the terminal for this to happen.
You can use contactless to pay for purchases of up to 50 euros or parking costing up to 50 euros without having to enter your PIN. However, you’ll always have to confirm payment with your PIN (or other smartphone security method) for higher amounts.
If you’ve made consecutive payments that come to 150 euros in total, you’ll have to unlock your phone and enter a PIN or reinsert your card into the terminal and enter your card’s PIN to be able to start paying again by contactless.
Yes, you can. Just hold your wallet or purse close to the payment terminal, but make sure there's one contactless (payment) card in it.
You are not charged anything extra. The contactless payments function is included in the price of your KBC payment card.
You can pay contactless in Belgium or when travelling abroad wherever the shop or merchant you're purchasing goods or services from displays the 'contactless payments' icon on their payment terminal.
Each time you pay, you yourself decide whether or not to pay contactless. The retailer will first ring up the total on their payment terminal or cash register. You then have a choice of either paying contactless or inserting your card into the terminal.
You need to enter your PIN for payments over 50 euros. In multi-storey car parks (and similar parking structures), the threshold is 50 euros. Outside Belgium, lower thresholds may apply.
Consecutive purchases can be made without entering your PIN until they reach 150 euros. When you reach that threshold you're asked to insert your payment card into the payment terminal and key in your PIN as a security check to prove the card is indeed yours.
For instance:
- You're buying some odds and ends in the supermarket and the price comes to 50 euros. You pay contactless without entering your PIN
- Next door, you see a scarf, which you snap up for 49 euros. You pay contactless without entering your PIN
- Next day, you purchase tickets for the movies costing 46 euros. You pay contactless
- The next time you want to pay contactless, you'll have to enter your PIN because your total consecutive contactless payments now exceed 150 euros
You can opt to switch the contactless function off and back on again in KBC Touch, KBC Mobile and KBC Business Dashboard.
You can also ask Kate to turn off the contactless payment function.
KBC payment cards that you can make contactless payments with have this symbol on the front.
Contactless payments work using NFC (near field communication). Incorporated into your KBC payment card is an antenna that makes a wireless connection with the retailers' payment terminal. The connection is used to exchange the information needed to carry out the purchase as long as the card's held in your hands close to the 'contactless payments' symbol on the payment terminal. Once the transaction's complete, an audible tone is emitted by the terminal. It's as simple as that.
Without question. The terminal automatically shuts down once payment is carried out. Even if the card stays close to the payment terminal, the charge for your purchase can't be debited a second time.
Be sure to check out our FAQs.
