Danmarks Nationalbanks recommendations to maintain payments in stores and at other physical points of sale

6 October 2025

In most situations, the three most common forms of payment - payment cards, cash and bank transfers - operate independently of each other, which ensures that payments can generally be made as long as citizens and retailers are prepared.

"The Danish payment system is resilient and secure, but the Nets outage and extensive power failures in Spain, Portugal and parts of France earlier this year highlighted that citizens and shops need to be prepared and aware of alternative payment options, such as offline card payments, to be able to use them," says Ulrik Nødgaard, Governor of Danmarks Nationalbank.

Payment cards are the most common means of payment in Denmark. So-called offline card payments are an ideal backup if card systems are not working properly. However, paying offline with a payment card requires that merchants accept this kind of payment and that staff know how to switch payment terminals into offline mode. Customers typically need to carry a physical card with them and use the card's PIN code to pay offline.

Recommendations for businesses

Today, Danmarks Nationalbank publish an analysis of what citizens and retailers can do to expedite payments even when the most common forms of payment are not working.

Based on the conclusions of the analysis, Danmarks Nationalbank has updated its payment recommendations for citizens, while for the first time issuing guidance for retailers and shop owners on enabling Danes to continue paying for goods and services if common payment solutions are temporarily out of service. Danmarks Nationalbank recommends that shops, restaurants and other vendors:

prepare for situations where payments cannot be made normally, such as operational disruptions, internet outages or, potentially, crises, and decide whether to accept payments by payment card as well as bank transfer in addition to cash to ensure that alternatives are available if issues are encountered with one or more payment solutions.

prepare to accept offline card payments. If regular card payments are already accepted, offline card payments will allow customers to continue to pay almost seamlessly even if card payment systems are subject to disruptions. This includes considering the implementation of a solution that can handle offline wallet payments.

ensure that staff know what to do and have the information and instructions they need well ahead of any payment challenge arising.

"We have a good starting point. More than 80 per cent of Danes have a payment card that functions without an internet connection, provided they carry their physical card with them and know their PIN code with them. However, this requires shops to be prepared to handle offline payments. At the same time, wallet payments, such as Apple Pay and Google Pay are becoming increasingly common, and businesses could therefore benefit from implementing offline solutions that are also able to handle wallet payments," says Ulrik Nødgaard.

Recommendations for citizens

Danmarks Nationalbank's recommendations cover a variety of events where citizens and businesses could face challenges with facilitating and executing payments. The new recommendations address many more situations than those covered by Danmarks Nationalbank in 2024 as part of the government's overall guidance to citizens on crisis preparedness. The updated recommendations include a broad array of situations, such as internet outages, disruptions in payment systems and other incidents, as well as crises.

Danmarks Nationalbank recommends that citizens:

have access to multiple payment options, including payment cards, cash and a mobile phone app that facilitates instant payments, i.e. a mobile banking app or the MobilePay app.

ensure that each household has at least two actual payment cards provided by separate issuers and memorize the PIN codes. Offline card payment solutions generally require a PIN code to authorise payment.

hold a limited amount of cash as a reserve. A rule of thumb is to hold kr. 250 per adult in the household, but citizens should assess for themselves whether they may need more. Ideally, reserve cash holdings should be made up of coins and smaller notes. This will make it easier for stores to give correct change if a large number of people choose to pay in cash.

"We consider offline card payments as paramount for ensuring that citizens can continue to make payments should systems fail. That's why it's important that people are aware of the option, carry their physical payment card and remember their PIN code," says Ulrik Nødgaard, adding:

"Events in the Iberian Peninsula this summer showed that other payment methods, including cash, also play an important role. That's why we've become slightly more focused on cash in the updated recommendations, and why we're suggesting an actual benchmark amount. In addition, we've added the recommendation to have a phone solution, such as MobilePay. With a physical card, cash and a mobile payment solution, you're well equipped," he says.

Danmarks Nationalbank, through the Danish Payments Council, is working with the retail sector, banks and other stakeholders in the payments industry to ensure that later this year Danes will be able to make offline payments using all physical payment cards from Dankort, Mastercard and Visa, as well as mobile wallets, including Apple Pay and Google Pay, at all pharmacies and nationwide supermarket chains.

Danmarks Nationalbank today, Monday Oct. 6, published the analysis "Resilient payments in Denmark", which is available on www.nationalbanken.dk.

Enquiries can be directed to press advisor Peter Levring on tel. +45 2620 1809.