Accept contactless credit and debit cards, Apple Pay, Google Pay and other digital wallets right on your phone, with no card reader or extra hardware. On iPhone this is Tap to Pay on iPhone; on Android it’s Tap to Pay. Payments are processed by Stripe and recorded on the invoice automatically.
What You Need
| iPhone | Android | |
|---|---|---|
| Device | iPhone XS or later with iOS 17.6 or later | Android 13 or later with NFC |
| Payment account | A connected Stripe account (Business Settings → Payment Methods → Stripe Payments) | |
| Business address | Street, city and ZIP filled in on your business profile | |
| Location | Allowed “While Using the App” | “Allow only while using the app” |
| Other | A passcode set on the iPhone, and signed in with an Apple Account | NFC turned on; not available on rooted devices or with Developer options turned on |
Step 1: Connect Stripe
An administrator connects Stripe once per business. Go to profile avatar → Business Settings → Payment Methods → Stripe Payments, tap Connect with Stripe, and sign in to your existing Stripe account or create a new one. Full steps are in Configure Business Settings & Payment Methods.
If you open Tap to Pay before Stripe is connected, you’ll see “Connect Stripe to use Tap to Pay”. Team members who aren’t administrators see a message asking their administrator to connect it.
Step 2 (iPhone): Enable Tap to Pay on iPhone
- Go to Business Settings → Payment Methods → Tap to Pay on iPhone.
- Tap Enable Tap to Pay on iPhone.
- Review and accept Apple’s Tap to Pay on iPhone terms and conditions with your Apple Account. This is done once, by an administrator.
- When asked, allow location access While Using the App.
Tap Learn how to use Tap to Pay on iPhone on the same screen any time for a walkthrough. Until an administrator enables it, other team members see: “Tap to Pay on iPhone hasn’t been enabled for this business yet. Ask your administrator to enable it in Business Settings → Payment Methods → Tap to Pay on iPhone.”
On Android there’s no setup screen: the first time you use Tap to Pay, the app asks for location access and prepares the phone.
Step 3: Take a Payment
On iPhone
- Open a saved invoice that has a balance due and tap Tap to Pay on iPhone at the bottom of the screen.
- Check the Amount to charge. It starts at the balance due; lower it to take a partial payment.
- Tap Charge.
- Ask your customer to hold their contactless card, phone or watch near the top of your iPhone until they see a checkmark.
- If a PIN is requested, hand the iPhone to the customer so they can enter it on screen.
On Android
- Open a saved invoice that has a balance due, tap the three-dot menu and choose Tap to Pay.
- Check the Amount to charge (up to the balance due) and tap Charge.
- Ask your customer to tap their card or phone on the back of your device.
When it’s done you’ll see “Payment successful”. The payment is recorded on the invoice, and the invoice is marked Paid when the full balance is collected.
Step 4: Send a Receipt
After an approved payment, or a declined one, tap Send receipt → Email. The address is pre-filled from the invoice’s client and you can change it. Invoice Genie emails the receipt on behalf of your business, in your app language, so you don’t need a mail app set up on your phone. On iPhone you can also Share the receipt. Receipts are sent by email only.
Test Mode
If your Stripe connection uses the Sandbox environment, the payment screen shows “Test mode — no real money will be charged”. Switch Stripe to Production to take real payments.
Troubleshooting
| Message | What to do |
|---|---|
| The card was declined | Ask the customer to try another card. You can still send a receipt for the declined payment. |
| The card was charged, but the payment could not be saved to the invoice | Check your connection and tap Retry saving payment. Do not charge the customer again. |
| Add your business address (street, city, ZIP)… | Complete the address in your business profile, then try again. |
| Turn on Location services / Location access is turned off | Allow location for Invoice Genie (iPhone: While Using the App; Android: Allow only while using the app). |
| This iPhone doesn’t support Tap to Pay on iPhone | Use an iPhone XS or later with iOS 17.6 or later. |
| Set a passcode on this iPhone | Settings → Face ID & Passcode, then try again. |
| This iPhone has used Tap to Pay with more than 3 different Stripe accounts in the last 24 hours… | Apple has temporarily blocked the iPhone for this account. Wait up to 24 hours, or use another iPhone. |
| This device does not support Tap to Pay (Android) | Tap to Pay needs Android 13 or later with NFC. |
| NFC is turned off (Android) | Turn on NFC in Settings and try again. |
| Not available on development builds or while Developer options are enabled (Android) | Turn off Developer options in Settings. |
| Your role is not allowed to accept Stripe payments | Ask your administrator to change your role. |
Good to Know
- Card details are read securely by your phone and processed by Stripe. Invoice Genie never stores card numbers.
- Stripe’s standard processing fees apply. Payouts go to your Stripe account.
- Only one business’s Stripe account is used at a time: the one that owns the invoice.