Tourists in focus as Paris starts phased introduction of bank card transport payments

FRANCE: Île-de-France Mobilités is deploying bank card validation across the Paris metro and RER network in phases until 2030. Orly airport is the first metro station where the payment option has been made available for exiting passengers.

According to Île-de-France Mobilités, the phased deployment will prioritise tourist-heavy routes. Metro Line 1 will be equipped during July 2027, with lines 4, 14, 15 and 18 to receive bank card validators by the end of 2027. Lines 7 and 12 will follow by the end of 2028, ahead of a full network rollout by 2030.

The system is designed primarily for tourists, 500 000 of whom use the Paris public transport network every day, equating to 5% of all ridership. Bank card validation will provide an alternative to the Navigo Easy pass and digital wallets. However, the extra convenience being offered to tourists comes with a catch: a surcharge is added for bank card transactions. For a bus or funicular trip, an additional €0.50 is charged (giving a €2.55 flat fare). Metro, main line rail or RER trips will be €0.80 more expensive via bank card, priced at €3.35. Fares to the airports are also charged €0.80 extra, costing €14.80 at 2026 prices.

Payment terminals at the Orly Airport station have been operational since June 30 2026 to ‘facilitate the exit of tourists’, and on the Montmartre Funicular since July 8.

Bankcard payment is already available on buses in Paris. © image: Île-de-France Mobilités Phasing out paper

The introduction of bank card payments forms part of a broader ticketing strategy. Paper tickets have not been accepted on trams and buses since May 1 2026. They can still be used on the metro and rail network, but this acceptance will cease later this year.

Contactless bank card payments are already available on Parisian bus routes. By late August, all 4 500 buses in the city centre and inner suburbs are due to have been equipped with bank card validators.

Currently, 99.9% of ticket validations on the Île-de-France Mobilités network are carried out digitally via a Navigo Easy card or a smartphone, with 600 million digital tickets sold annually. To support the shift, annual and senior Navigo passes became available on Android devices in July, with iOS integration scheduled for September.

99% of ticket validations of the Paris public transport network are already digital. © image: Île-de-France Mobilités / Sylvain Homo Financial investment

To make bank payments possible, Île-de-France Mobilités has allocated an estimated €140m for hardware and back-office systems. Additionally, the annual operating cost, including bank commissions and asset maintenance, is projected at €25m.

The transport authority has insisted that the roll-out of bank card transations will not create additional costs for local people. IdFM anticipates that selling approximately 60 million journeys via bank card annually, with the surcharge, will allow for a rapid return on investment.

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Tourists in focus as Paris starts phased introduction of bank card transport payments