This section explains how to generate an Apple pass certificate that you need to upload when designing the Apple Loyalty Pass for a business in the Punchh platform. This section also describes how to create non-NFC passes and NFC-enabled passes. The pass certificate serves the purpose of identifying the authority who created the loyalty pass. It also facilitates the process of sending ongoing updates to the pass. See Certificates on the Apple Developer portal.  Each pass certificate and each Apple pass for the loyalty program of the business references a “Pass Type Identifier” and “Team ID”. The Pass Type Identifier and Team ID uniquely identify the type of loyalty pass and the development team associated with it.  The configuration of the “Pass Type ID”, “Team ID”, and “pass certificate” can be done in the member center by an admin from the Apple Developer account.

Setting up the Apple Pass via the Apple Developer Portal

Setting up an Apple Pass involves registering a Pass Type Identifier, finding a Team ID, and generating a pass certificate through the Apple Developer portal.  

Registering a Pass Type ID

To register a Pass Type Identifier, an Apple Developer account admin user does the following:

1. Log in to the Apple Developer Portal.
2. Go to the Certificates, Identifiers & Profiles section and select the Identifiers option.
3. Under Identifiers, select Pass Type IDs.
4. Click the plus (+) button.
5. Enter the description for the Pass Type Identifier.
6. Enter the Pass Type Identifier, which is a unique string associated with the type of pass you are creating.
7. Click Submit to register the Pass Type Identifier with your Apple Developer account.

Generating a Pass Certificate

To generate a pass certificate, an Apple Developer account admin does the following: 

1. Log in to the Apple Developer Portal.
2. In Certificates, Identifiers & Profiles, select Certificates.
3. Click the plus (+) button.
4. Select the option for Pass Type ID Certificate under Production Certificates and continue. This indicates that the certificate will be used in a production environment for distributing passes to end-users.
5. From the drop-down list, select the Pass Type ID for which you want to generate the certificate. This associates the certificate with a particular type of pass.
6. Follow the remaining instructions to generate and download the certificate. This certificate is used to sign and authenticate Apple passes, such as loyalty cards created for distribution through the Apple Wallet.
7. After downloading, install the certificate on the development machine by double-clicking the certificate file, which will open it with Keychain Access and prompt you to install it. With the pass certificate installed, you can now use it to sign digital passes associated with the selected Pass Type ID. This signing process ensures the authenticity and security of the passes.

Finding the Team ID

To verify if the certificate you generated is associated with the correct Team ID, an Apple Developer account admin needs to perform the following steps:

1. Log in to the Apple Developer Portal.
2. Go to the developer account and click Membership details in the top navigation of the developer account.
3. Note down the value in theTeam ID field shown on the screen.
4. Open the Keychain Access application, and select the certificate associated with your Apple Developer account.
5. With the certificate selected, go to the top menu and choose File > Get Info.
6. Under Details, the Organizational Unit is the Team ID.
7. Verify that the Team ID is the same as the one displayed in the Membership details.
8. The Pass Type Identifier appears in the certificate under the User ID section.

Requirements for Near Field Communication (NFC) Capabilities for Apple Passes

Businesses seeking NFC capabilities for their digital passes must go through a request and approval process with Apple. This involves providing detailed information about their use case, customer experience, and the necessary hardware and software capabilities. Once the Apple Developer account is approved for the NFC Pass Type ID, the business can generate an Apple NFC Pass Type ID certificate. This certificate is specific to NFC-enabled passes.

Here is the list of requirements for NFC-enabled passes:

• An Apple Developer account that has been approved to issue NFC Pass Type Identifier Certificates. You can request NFC activation from the Apple Developer Portal (login required).
• The business needs to provide detailed information about its intended use case and customer experience. Use cases that Apple considers for NFC-enabled passes include loyalty cards, membership cards, coupons, event tickets, and boarding passes. Unattended access control or stored-value cards are not considered within the scope of NFC activation.
• An Apple NFC Pass Type Identifier Certificate. Once your account is approved for the NFC Pass Type Identifier, you can generate the NFC Type Certificate.
• A terminal capable of reading Apple VAS, together with a compatible point of sale to process the pass payload
• Evidence that you have the necessary hardware, software, and capabilities to develop or deploy an ecosystem that is going to deliver an experience consistent with Apple’s guidelines

A Loyalty Pass is used to identify the loyalty guest at the POS. Today, the loyalty pass provides the POS access to the guest's available rewards for redemption. ​Once a guest adds a Loyalty Pass to their digital wallet, it remains until the guest deletes it. It does not expire.​ Your brand can prompt a guest to join the loyalty program and add the pass when the guest taps to pay using their digital wallet at the POS.

Under Wallet and Passes > Passes, click Create Loyalty Pass under Apple Loyalty Pass. (Or Edit Loyalty Pass if the initial setup has been done.)

Front of Pass

Use the following fields to create the Design and Content of your Loyalty Pass. A preview of your changes is available on the right of the screen.

• Logo: Include your brand logo as an image file.
• Logo Text: Enter any text you want to appear next to your brand logo. For example, if your logo only contains the initials of your brand, you may want to include your brand's full name as text. 
  
• Background Color: Enter the hex code of the color for the full background of the pass.
• Text Color: Enter the hex code of the color for the text color. The text color appears as the variable values on the pass that appear under the static titles.
• Label Color: Enter the hex code of the color for the label color. The label color appears as the static titles on the pass, such as "Points", "Balance", "Name", or "Email". 
  
• Lockscreen icon: Enter as an image file. This icon appears when the pass is shown on the lock screen of a user's mobile device. 
  
• Strip image: Enter an image file for the center strip or primary field of the Apple Pass. 
  
• Barcode type: Select between a QR code or Barcode. This code will always appear on your pass details page and, if you do NOT have NFC capability, it will appear on the pass itself. 

• Show App Launch Link: Enable this to show your app icon at the bottom right corner of the pass, as well as the "Pass Details" section. When the guest clicks this icon, they will be taken to the App Store to download your brand's app.

• Primary field: Select this field to display information about the guest's loyalty account balance.

  • Primary field label: Enter the label for what information is shown in the primary field. For example, "Balance."
  • Primary field value: Click the Add placeholder drop-down menu to see the definitions for each dynamic tag option. Click the tag that corresponds with your loyalty program type.
    • Points Unlock Rewards → {{{current_account_balance}}}
    • Points Convert to Reward → {{{current_points_balance}}}
    • Points Convert to Currency → {{{banked_rewards}}}
      

• Secondary field: Select this field to display the guest's name. 

  • Secondary field label: Enter the label for what information is shown in the secondary field (just below the primary field, to the left). For example, "Name".
  • Secondary field value: You can use {{{email}}}, {{{first_name}}} and {{{last_name}}} as a dynamic tag(s) for this field.
    

• Auxiliary field: Select this field to show the guest's email address.

  • Auxiliary field label: Enter the label for what information is shown in the auxiliary field (just below the primary field, to the right.) For example, "Email".
  • Auxiliary field value: You can use {{{email}}}, {{{first_name}}} and {{{last_name}}} as a dynamic tag(s) for this field.
    

Click Next.

Pass Details

• Description: Enter a description of your Apple Pass that appears on the pass details page. Keep this short, under 25 characters. 
  
• Available rewards limit: Enter the number of rewards the pass details will display, with a maximum of 4.

• Phone: Enter in text or a dynamic tag as needed. If you leave this blank, this field will not appear on the details page.
• Address: Enter in text or a dynamic tag as needed. If you leave this blank, this field will not appear on the details page.
• Web URL: Enter in text or a dynamic tag as needed. If you leave this blank, this field will not appear on the details page. 
  
• Marketing label: Use this field to label or name your Loyalty Program. Enter in text or a dynamic tag as needed. If you leave this blank, your business name will be shown.
• Marketing description: Use this field to describe your Loyalty Program. Enter in text or a dynamic tag as needed. If you leave this blank, this field will not appear on the details page.

Click Next.

Settings

• Allow notifications and automatic pass updates: Enable this to allow notifications to be sent to the guest and automatic updates to your Apple Pass.
  • Primary field message: This message is displayed on the guest's lock screen when a change occurs to the primary field value (their balance). Enter the message you would like guests to see and use '%@' in place of the field value. For example "You now have %@ reward points."
  • Secondary field message: This message is displayed on the guest's lock screen when a change occurs to the secondary field value (their name). Enter the message you would like guests to see and use '%@' in place of the field value. For example "Your name has been changed to %@."
  • Auxiliary field message: This message is displayed on the guest's lock screen when a change occurs to the auxiliary field value (their email). Enter the message you would like guests to see and use '%@' in place of the field value. For example "Your email has been changed to %@."

• Reward Field Message: (Optional) Enter a message to display on the back of the Apple Loyalty Pass when a guest earns or is gifted a new qualifying reward. This message is delivered as part of the Apple Wallet pass update. Depending on Apple Wallet's visibility rules, it may also appear as a lock-screen notification for the guest. If you leave this field blank, the existing default message behavior is preserved.

• Near Field Communication (NFC) capability: Enable this for full NFC capability. If left off, a QR code or barcode will appear on your pass.  
  
• Allow personalize pass: Enable this to allow push notifications to be sent to the guest to prompt them to add your brand's Apple Pass to their Wallet, if not already done.
  • Personalize description: Enter the text that would appear in the push notification described above.
  • Personalize terms and conditions: Enter any links to the terms and conditions that would accompany the push notification described above. 
    
• User Identifier: Use the drop-down menu to select the user identifier (like User Code or phone number) that will then be used to generate the QR Code or Barcode on the pass. 
  
• Pass type identifier: Enter the Pass Type ID obtained in the Registering a Pass Type ID section above.
• IOS certificate: Upload the IOS Certificate obtained in the Generating a Pass Certificate section above.
• Public Key: Enter your Public Key code. This will be provided by your payment gateway provider. (If you have PAR Pay, please contact your Punchh representative.)
• Certificate password: Enter the certificate password that was created when the IOS Certificate was generated. See the Generating a Pass Certificate section above.

Click Next.

Review

The review page shows all the selections you made above. Review the content and the previews shown on the right. 

• Click Back to return to a specific page to make changes.
• Click Finish to complete your Apple Loyalty Pass.

An Offer Pass is a digital representation of a reward, redemption code, or coupon/promo. Once a guest adds it to their Apple Wallet, it can be applied during a transaction at the POS. ​ Offer Passes have an expiry that aligns with the redeemable's expiry setting or the Coupon/ Promo Campaign's end date. ​You can send Offer Passes to guests via email or SMS.​

Under Wallet and Passes > Passes, click Create Offer Pass under Apple Offer Pass. (Or Edit Offer Pass if the initial setup has been done.)

Front of Pass

Use the following fields to create the Design and Content of your Offer Pass. A preview of your changes is available on the right side of the screen.

• Logo: Include your brand logo as an image file.
• Logo Text: Enter any text you want to appear next to your brand logo. For example, if your logo only contains the initials of your brand, you may want to include your brand's full name as text. 
  
• Background Color: Enter the hex code of the color for the full background of the pass.
• Text Color: Enter the hex code of the color for the text color. The text color appears as the variable values on the pass that appear under the static titles.
• Label Color: Enter the hex code of the color for the label color. The label color appears as the static titles on the pass, such as "Name", "Status", or "Expires".
  
• Lockscreen icon: Enter as an image file. This icon appears when the pass is shown on the lock screen of a user's mobile device. 
  
• Strip image: Enter an image file for the center strip or primary field of the Apple Pass. 

• Barcode type: Select between a QR code or Barcode. This code will always appear on your pass details page and, if you do NOT have NFC capability, it will appear on the pass itself. NFC capabilities for Offer Passes are coming soon! 

• Show App Launch Link: Enable this to show your app icon at the bottom right corner of the pass. When the guest clicks this icon, they will be taken to the App Store to download your brand's app.

• Primary field: Select this field to display the offer name on the front of the pass. When a Display Name is configured on the associated Coupon or Promo Campaign, that name appears here. If no Display Name is set, the coupon or promo code appears in this field instead.

  • Primary field label: Enter the label for what information is shown in the primary field. For example, "Offer Name."
    

• Secondary field: Select this field to display the status of the reward.

  • Secondary field label: Enter the label for what information is shown in the secondary field (just below the primary field, to the left.) For example, "Status". 
    

• Auxiliary field: Select this field to show the guest's email address.

  • Auxiliary field label: Enter the label for what information is shown in the auxiliary field (just below the primary field, to the right.) For example, "Expires at". 
    

Click Next.

Pass Details

• Description: Enter a description of your Apple Pass that appears on the pass details page. Keep this short, under 25 characters.
• Web URL: Enter in text or a dynamic tag as needed. If you leave this blank, this field will not appear on the details page.
• Marketing label: Use this field to label or name your Loyalty Program. Enter in text or a dynamic tag as needed. If you leave this blank, your business name will be shown.
• Marketing description: Use this field to describe your Loyalty Program. Enter in text or a dynamic tag as needed. If you leave this blank, this field will not appear on the details page.

Click Next.

Settings

• Near Field Communication (NFC) capability: Enable this for full NFC capability. If left off, a QR code or barcode will appear on your pass.  Coming Soon! NFC is currently not available for Offer Passes.
  
• Pass type identifier: Enter the Pass Type ID obtained in the Registering a Pass Type ID section above.
• IOS certificate: Upload the IOS Certificate obtained in the Generating a Pass Certificate section above.
• Public Key: Enter your Public Key code. This will be provided by your payment gateway provider. (If you have PAR Pay, please contact your Punchh representative.)
• Certificate password: Enter the certificate password that was created when the IOS Certificate was generated. See the Generating a Pass Certificate section above.

Click Next.

Review

The review page shows all the selections you made above. Review the content and the previews shown on the right. 

• Click Back to return to a specific page to make changes.
• Click Finish to complete your Apple Offer Pass.