The Implementation of Interoperable QR Codes to Collect Payments with Credit Cards Has Been Deferred for 45 Days

The implementation of the regulation establishing interoperable QR codes for shops that accept credit card payments has been deferred for 45 calendar days, at the request of one of the codes' providers.

The Board of the BCRA adopted this resolution today upon the request of one of the providers due to operational problems. The date originally provided for in Communication A 7769 was September 1, 2023.

Under this measure, the stores displaying a QR code to collect their credit card sales will accept payments with any interoperable e-wallet, regardless of the QR code brand. Acquirers and aggregators offering the service may not draw a distinction between stores in terms of fees charged or terms set for crediting funds depending on the e-wallet brand ordering the payment.

In the same sense, the measure establishes that when acquirers or aggregators accept payments by transfer, they must offer stores a single QR code that includes all payment instruments.

Thus, the payment experience will be more user-friendly since, until now, the interoperability of QR codes was limited to payments by transfer (pagos con transferencia, PCTs). As of the implementation of the new measure, the user will be able to choose whether to pay using a PCT or credit card after reading a QR code, without the need to change e-wallets to make the payment.

August 31, 2023