Troubleshooting: in-person card payments

Use this guide to solve common issues with in-person card payments. Contact your support team if these steps don't help.

Terminal is temporarily unavailable

What's happening: A red banner at the top of your screen says "Terminal is temporarily unavailable." You can't start a new payment.

How to fix it

1. Check that your internet connection is stable.
2. Close and reopen the app.
3. Wait a few minutes and try again.
4. If the issue continues, check for app or phone operating system (OS) updates.

When the terminal is available again, you'll see a green banner that says "Terminal is back online." You can then accept payments as normal.

Card won't read or payment times out

What's happening: The customer taps their card or device, but nothing happens, or the payment screen stops responding.

How to fix it

1. Ask the customer to try again.
2. Check that the card or device is positioned correctly.
   • iPhone: The customer holds the card horizontally at the top of your iPhone, over the contactless symbol.
   • Android: The customer holds the card behind your phone, near the NFC sensor.
3. Make sure your phone is steady and the card stays close to it.
4. Check that your internet connection is stable.
5. If the payment still doesn't complete, try a different card or payment method.

If the payment times out without completing, the customer isn't charged. You can safely ask them to try again.

Customer's card doesn't support contactless

What's happening: The customer taps their card, but the phone doesn't detect it.

How to fix it

Not all debit and credit cards support contactless payments. If the customer's card doesn't have a contactless symbol (four curved lines), it won't work with Tap to Pay. Ask the customer to:

1. Try a different card that supports contactless.
2. Pay with a digital wallet (Apple Pay or Google Pay) if they have one set up on their phone.

Payment was declined

What's happening: The payment attempt fails, and you see a decline message.

How to fix it

1. The customer's bank rejected the payment. This isn't a problem with your setup.
2. Ask the customer to try a different card or payment method.
3. The customer can contact their bank to find out why the payment was declined.

Declined payments aren't charged to the customer.

Verification takes too long or gets stuck

What's happening: The customer's card needs verification, but nothing is happening.

How to fix it

1. Wait up to 60 seconds for verification to complete.
2. Don't cancel or close the payment screen. Let the verification process finish.
3. Ask the customer to check their banking app or card reader for a pending verification prompt.
4. If verification doesn't complete after 60 seconds, ask the customer to try the payment again.

Verification usually takes 5–30 seconds, but some banks take longer. PIN entry is more common for amounts above €50.

Connection lost during payment

What's happening: Your internet connection drops while the payment is processing.

How to fix it

1. Reconnect to the internet.
2. Check your payment history in the app to see if the payment has been completed.
3. If the payment appears in your history, it succeeded, and the customer was charged.
4. If the payment doesn't appear, it was cancelled, and the customer wasn't charged.

Tap to Pay doesn't work offline. You need a stable Wi-Fi or mobile data connection to accept payments.

NFC isn't enabled (Android only)

What's happening: In-person card payments aren't available on your Android phone.

How to fix it

1. Go to Settings on your phone.
2. Select Connection (or Wireless & Networks, depending on your device).
3. Toggle NFC to ON.
4. Open your partner app and try again.

Some Android devices have NFC disabled by default. If you can't find NFC in Settings, your device may not support it.

Still need help?

If you've tried these steps and the issue persists, contact your support team with:

• What you were trying to do.
• What happened (error message, banner text, etc.).
• Your phone model and OS version.
• Whether this happens with all customers or specific cards.

If you have further questions, submit a request to Swan Support.