iOS 27, due in September, turns Apple Wallet into a scanner for physical loyalty and membership cards — no issuer opt-in required.
Apple outlined six additions to Wallet at WWDC 2026. The most notable: iOS 27 lets users point an iPhone camera at any barcoded card and save a digital pass on the spot, ready to present as a QR code. A bill-splitting tool uses Apple Intelligence to read receipts through the same camera interface, calculates each person's share including tax and tip, and sends payment through Apple Cash. The update also adds richer hotel key displays with trip details and activity updates, expands supported barcode formats to include EAN-13, Code 39, Codabar, and ITF, and makes order tracking available in Australia and Canada for the first time.
The card-scanning feature is the one worth watching. Until now, getting a loyalty or membership card into Apple Wallet required the issuer to build native support — locking out most small businesses and independent gyms by default. Scanning any physical barcode changes that calculus and puts Apple on similar footing to what Google Wallet has offered for years. The bill-splitting tool, while tidy, is U.S.-only and requires Apple Cash, positioning it squarely against Venmo, Cash App, and Zelle — services with far larger user bases.
Apple described enhanced hotel keys as coming to "participating hotels and resorts" without naming a single brand — which is typically how you announce a feature before the partners are signed.