Apple Wallet to allow users to create digital passes directly from QR codes in iOS 27
iOS 27 introduces a native 'Create a Pass' feature expected to preview at WWDC in June and release later this year, empowering individuals to digitise loyalty cards and tickets without third-party tools.
Apple is set to fundamentally alter the Apple Wallet ecosystem with iOS 27 by introducing a 'Create a Pass' feature. This update removes the historical barrier of requiring an Apple Developer account and signing certificates, allowing any user to generate digital passes directly from QR codes or scratch-built layouts. The initiative aims to shift the Wallet app from a passive directory of brand-provided passes to a user-generated directory, enabling the native conversion of paper tickets and loyalty cards into digital formats.
Reporting from Bloomberg's Mark Gurman indicates that the new capability will be accessible via the existing "+" button in the Wallet app. The workflow allows users to scan QR codes from paper tickets or membership cards using the camera, or construct a pass from scratch using a layout editor. Apple is reportedly testing three specific starting templates tied to default colours to aid visual sorting within the app stack: orange for standard passes, blue for membership, and purple for events.
This development marks a significant shift in Apple's strategy, moving from waiting for developers to build passes to solving the supply-side problem by empowering end-users to create passes from existing paper assets. Historically, consistent adopters of PassKit have been large entities such as airlines, big-box retailers, and major ticketing platforms. Smaller businesses, including gyms, cafes, libraries, and local loyalty programs, rarely adopted the technology due to the high engineering overhead and cost, often preferring to print paper cards instead.
For third-party tools like WalletWallet, this feature is expected to reduce volume for the simplest one-barcode-to-Wallet conversions, as the native workflow will replace the need for external web-based generators for basic use cases. The Next The Web's framing suggests that Apple is no longer waiting on developers; with Create a Pass, the supply-side problem is finally being solved from the demand side. If a business will not build a Wallet pass, the user can now do it themselves from the QR code that business already printed.
The feature is currently in reporting stages with an expected preview at WWDC, with a public release scheduled for September 2026. While the current reports cover the user interface, the templates, and the high-level workflow, they remain silent on a number of technical details that may emerge once Apple previews iOS 27. The category needed this evolution, and the move represents a healthy outcome for the long tail of small businesses that previously found the bar for creating a pass too high.
