Message from the Chair of the EMVCo Board of Managers

With momentum for agentic commerce growing across the globe, EMVCo has been working with Associates, Subscribers and industry partners to help promote secure, interoperable and scalable card-based agentic payments.

As a first step on the journey, EMVCo has published the draft EMV® Agentic Payments – Framework for Specifications to provide a foundation for further industry engagement and potential specification development.

The framework introduces the concept of ‘Intent Services’, which provide a shared, interoperable layer that enables payment participants to register, reference, retrieve and manage consumer-authorised intent before, during and after a transaction.

By providing a common foundation for card-based agentic payments, the framework will also help identify potential future enhancements to other EMV technologies. Looking ahead, EMVCo may consider capabilities related to Know Your Agent (KYA) and Agentic Transaction Indicators to help enable the consistent identification of agentic transactions across the payments ecosystem.

EMVCo has also been working to enhance the EMV 3-D Secure (3DS) Specifications, moving towards a specification structure and delivery process that helps to simplify solution development and deployment, while optimising testing. The draft EMV® 3-D Secure (3DS) Protocol and Core Functions Specification Version 2.4 has been published for Associate and Subscriber review.

Our upcoming EMVCo Board of Advisors Meeting in Hanoi, Vietnam, will provide a platform to explore the strategic considerations shaping these initiatives, as well as developments across the EMV Digital Payment Credential (DPC), EMV Secure Remote Commerce (SRC) and EMV Chip. This will be followed by our Technical Meeting in Vancouver, Canada. Registration for both events is still open here.

Our participation in various industry conferences also provides opportunities to exchange ideas across ecosystems. In September, EMVCo was a co-organiser of the Global Digital Collaboration Conference in Geneva, Switzerland, where we convened sessions with industry partners including the FIDO Alliance and WE BUILD Consortium. EMVCo also participated at the PCI SSC North America Community Meeting, Infineon Banking Day, and the MAG Payments Conference, and we look forward to attending FIDO Authenticate, W3C TPAC and the U.S. Payment Forum throughout the remainder of the year.

The below summarises key EMVCo news, technical updates and activities from the third quarter of 2026, outlining the latest educational resources available to support understanding of EMVCo’s work. We encourage you to share this newsletter with your colleagues and industry peers.

Matt Crothers

Chair of the EMVCo Board of Managers

Upcoming Meetings

Register for the following sessions via the EMVCo website.

  • Board of Advisors Meeting, 13-14 October 2026, Hanoi, Vietnam
  • Technical Meeting, 10-12 November 2026, Vancouver, Canada
  • Board of Advisors Meeting, 2-3 March 2027, Miami, USA
  • Technical Meeting, 12-15 April 2027, Budapest, Hungary

These meetings are open to EMVCo Associates. Not yet an EMVCo Associate? Learn more about EMVCo participation opportunities here.

News

EMV® Agentic Payments – Framework for Specifications

A key focus across the agentic commerce ecosystem is how to establish intent and determine that a consumer delegated authority to an AI agent to make a purchase on their behalf.  Following industry input, EMVCo has focused on card-based agentic payment scenarios where intent needs to be managed over time, such as recurring purchases, cumulative budgets and post-transaction activities. These scenarios may require access to a shared intent ‘state’ that persists across multiple participants and their interactions.

Learn more here.

EMVCo White Paper on Payment Account Reference

The white paper provides an overview of Payment Account Reference (PAR) and gives examples of PAR usage in a variety of use cases, illustrating how it can be used to solve a number of real-world problems. This includes differentiating between cardholders who share the same PAN, but who need to be treated separately in cases such as transit and merchant loyalty.

Learn more here.

Security Position Statement: Update on Quantum Computing and EMV Chip Cryptography

EMVCo has published a second position paper authored by the EMVCo Security Working Group on the threat posed by quantum computing to the cryptography used for EMV Chip. The paper contextualises the quantum computer threat to EMV payments and provides an assessment of the timeline and challenges for achieving a cryptographically relevant quantum computer (CRQC)

Learn more here.

Events

EMVCo connects with payment stakeholders at industry events across the globe. Below are the events EMVCo attended in July, August and September 2026:

Global Digital Collaboration, Geneva, Switzerland, 1-3 September

Arman Aygen, EMVCo Director of Technology, and Sami Tikkala, Chair of the EMVCo Digital Identity and Payments Task Force, explored how EMVCo is working collaboratively to develop global specifications for card-based agentic payments and define an EMV Digital Payment Credential.

PCI SSC Community Meeting US, Vancouver, Canada, 16-18 September

EMVCo’s Director of Engagement and Operations, Oliver Manahan, delivered a presentation exploring how EMVCo is addressing advances in agentic commerce and digital identity in payments.

Infineon Banking Day, Munich, Germany, 23-24 September

EMVCo Director of Technology, Arman Aygen, delivered a presentation on
evolving the EMV Specifications for seamless and secure card-based payments, covering agentic payments, verifiable digital credentials and emerging in-store payment experiences.

MAG Payments Conference, Nashville, USA, 27-30 September

EMVCo’s Director of Engagement and Operations, Oliver Manahan, took part in an industry panel alongside Itai Sela at Secure Technology Alliance and Lauren Robitaille at 99Fintech discussing agentic commerce and shaping the next era of retail by establishing standards, trust and interoperability.

Don’t miss EMVCo at these upcoming industry events this year:

  • Authenticate, Carlsbad, USA, 19-21 October
  • W3C TPAC, Dublin, Ireland, 26-30 October
  • U.S Payments Forum Fall Member Meeting, Minneapolis, USA, 17-18 November

Key Technical Updates

All the latest EMV® Specifications and Technical Resources can be viewed via the Document Search on EMVCo.com. EMVCo Associates and Subscribers can also add documents to their ‘Watch List’ to easily monitor for updates.    

Available to Public:

Book A: Architecture and General Requirements

Outlines the updates made to Book A since the publication of the EMV Contactless Specifications for Payment Systems, Book A Architecture and General Requirements, Version 2.11.

Book B: Entry Point

Outlines the updates that have been made to Book B since the publication of the EMV Contactless Specifications for Payment Systems, Book B Entry Point Specification, Version 2.11.

Books C-2 to C-7 Kernel Specifications

Outlines the updates made since the publication of Version 2.11 of the EMV Contactless Specifications for Payment Systems, Kernels 2-7 Specifications. This includes incorporating the various Specification Bulletins that have been published, as well as editorial and other changes to add clarity.

Book C-8 Kernel Specification

Outlines the updates that have been made to Book C-8 since the publication of the EMV Contactless Specifications for Payment Systems, Book C-8 Kernel 8 Specification Version 1.1, incorporating previously released Specification Bulletins (SB) No. 302, 310, 314 and 325.

EMV® Level 3 (L3) Technical Bulletin n°321

Provides details of updates, clarifications and corrections required to the L3 EMV® Level 3 Testing Framework Implementation Guidelines – Version 1.3.r and L3 EMV® Level 3 Testing Framework Pseudo-Function Definitions for Test Card Images – Version 1.6.

KL Bulletin n°30: EMVCo Annual Public Key Lengths Assessment

Annual review of the Certification Authority Public Key lengths and expiry dates for chip-based payments and recommendations to EMV-based payment systems.

SB n°329: ECC ODC Key Derivation

Corrects an omission in the specification of ECC ODE in section 13 of Book 2 that when decrypting encrypted data the card should not re-derive ODE keys if they have already been derived for the transaction.

TTA Bulletin n°294: Contactless Product Tech Release 2.11d

Announces the availability of the Contactless Product Test Release 2.11d, applying to all contactless product type approval sessions.

3DSA Bulletin n°32: LOA Conditional Extension for Products Migrating to Version 2.4.0.0

Announces that EMVCo has decided to grant a conditional LOA extension to product providers that have a 3DS product expiring from the publication date of the 3DS Specification 2.4.0.0 until the end of year 2027 and that intend to migrate to 3DS specification v2.4.0.0.

TTA Bulletin n°295: Contactless Terminal Level 1 Type Approval – PCD Timing Measurement Accuracy Evaluation Version 1.0a

Announces the availability and activation of PCD Timing Measurement Accuracy Evaluation Version 1.0a.

EMV® Terminal Level 1 Type Approval – PCD Timing Measurement Accuracy Evaluation Test Cases

Describes the detailed organization and requirements of the executable tests that will permit EMVCo to evaluate the accuracy of timing measurements by the PCD during Contactless Terminal Level 1 Type Approval Testing.

EMV® Terminal Level 1 Type Approval PCD Timing Measurement Accuracy Evaluation Device Test Environment

Describes the requirements the Device Test Environment developed by the Vendor has to comply with, in order to allow PCD Timing Measurement Accuracy Evaluation.

TA Bulletin n°199 Contact Terminal Level 2 Type Approval Specific Approval and Restricted Renewal Rules

Outlines the rules applicable to all contact Terminal Level 2 Type Approval and update of date management requirements.

TTA Bulletin n°285: Book C-8 Test Package Release Version 1.2a

Announces the availability of Book C-8 Test Package Release version 1.2a.

EMV® Terminal Type Approval – Book C-8 – Testing Environment Requirements

Provides image and editorial updates, and clarification on System tests.

EMV® Terminal Type Approval – Book C-8 – Test Cases

Provides updates to the test cases, including removing of outdated subcases, and adding new subcases.

PICC Analogue Test Bench and Test Case Requirements

Introduces EMV® – TEST PCD 2, including description and verification procedure, new set-up values, new acceptance criteria values and new test cases.

EMV® Card and Mobile Type Approval Bulletin No. 43

Announces the availability of Contactless Card Level 1 (PICC) Type Approval Test Plan Version 4.0a draft documents.

CTA Bulletin nº 44: Update of the CCD/CPA Renewal Process

Describes the updates made to the EMV® CCD and CPA Renewal Process.

EMV® 3-D Secure Approval – Test Platform Requirements

Updates to remove ISO 17025 compliance, introduce statistics on the most frequent product failures, allow test client agent and middleware to be provided by either the product or test platform providers and to clarify regression testing.

EMV® 3-D Secure Approval – Test Platform Provider Recognition and Test Platform Qualification Process

Updates to remove ISO 17025 compliance, update on the LoQ and website updating process, as well as added conditions and steps for interim proficiency audit.

EMV Payment Tokenisation Specification – Technical Framework Version 2.4

Provides an update to incorporate changes made since the publication of Version 2.3, including updates to the references to PAR and additional PAR use cases.

EMV® Payment Tokenisation Specification – Technical Framework Version 2.4 Full FAQ

Provides a detailed overview of the EMV Payment Tokenisation Technical Framework, including general FAQ, Payment Account Reference FAQ and Technical FAQ.

EMVCo White Paper on Payment Account Reference

Provides an overview of PAR and gives examples of PAR usage in a variety of use cases, illustrating how PAR can be used to solve a number of real-world problems.

EMV® Payment Tokenisation – A Guide to Use Cases Version 2.3

Outlines the changes since the publication of Version 2.2.1, modifying token issuance and token provisioning relationships to allow for PAN or EMV Payment Token to be provided, and addition of new use case examples and variations.

EMV® Agentic Payments – Framework for Specifications Version 1.0 (Draft)

Framework to help promote secure, interoperable and scalable card-based agentic payments, which introduces the concept of ‘Intent Services’.

Available to Associates and Subscribers:

EMV® Secure Remote Commerce Specifications – API Version 1.6 (Draft)

Provides a revised update of the document since Version 1.5, including the addition of new complex data objects and use case specific attributes for the tolling use case.

EMV® Secure Remote Commerce Specifications – JavaScript SDK Version 1.6 (Draft)

Provides a revised updated of the document since Version 1.5, including additions to request parameters.

EMV Biometric Card Specifications for Payment Systems – Biometric Card Provider Requirements (Draft)

Describes the performance requirements for biometric verification.

View the latest EMV Specifications and Technical Resources on the EMVCo website.

Educational Resources and Updates from EMVCo

Do you have colleagues, partners or customers who would benefit from greater EMV understanding? Check out and share these latest educational resources for insights and information on the role and value of EMVCo and EMV Specifications.

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