# Online payment methods by GCC country

> Each GCC country has a local card network or wallet next to Visa and Mastercard: Jaywan (UAE), mada (Saudi Arabia), KNET (Kuwait), NAPS with QPay (Qatar), BenefitPay (Bahrain) and OmanNet (Oman). Apple lists Apple Pay in all six. Your payment provider decides which ones your checkout takes.

URL: https://khaleejicod.com/guides/online-payment-methods-gcc/  
Updated: 2026-10-26  
Publisher: Trifid Media LLC

Gulf shoppers who want to pay online can use an international card (Visa or Mastercard), a card
or wallet on their country's own network, or Apple Pay. The local options are Jaywan in the UAE,
mada in Saudi Arabia, KNET in Kuwait, NAPS cards in Qatar, BenefitPay in Bahrain and OmanNet cards
in Oman. Apple lists all six countries for Apple Pay. None of this reaches your checkout
automatically: your payment provider has to support each method.

## What is a local card network?

A local (domestic) card network connects a country's banks, so a card issued there works at local
shops, ATMs and websites. Many Gulf debit cards run on these networks. A checkout that takes only
international credit cards can turn away a shopper whose everyday card is a local debit card, and
that shopper may pick COD instead.

## Which payment methods can shoppers use in each GCC country?

| Country | Local network or wallet | What it means online | Apple Pay |
|---|---|---|---|
| UAE | Jaywan (national card scheme) | Debit, prepaid and credit cards meant for online use too; banks began issuing them in July 2026 | Listed by Apple |
| Saudi Arabia | mada | Bank cards on the mada network, allowed for online payments since April 2018 | Listed by Apple |
| Kuwait | KNET | Debit cards from member banks, paid through the KNET payment gateway | Listed by Apple |
| Qatar | NAPS, with the QPay gateway | Local debit cards paid online through QPay | Listed by Apple |
| Bahrain | BenefitPay (run by BENEFIT) | The national e-wallet, with web and in-app checkout | Listed by Apple |
| Oman | OmanNet | Debit cards issued in Oman, through the central bank's e-commerce gateway | Listed by Apple |

Checked 26 October 2026.

## What should you know about each country?

### United Arab Emirates

Jaywan is the UAE's domestic card scheme, run by Al Etihad Payments, a subsidiary of the Central
Bank of the UAE. In a February 2025 press release published by the central bank, Al Etihad
Payments said Jaywan cards would come as debit, prepaid and credit cards and would work in all
payment channels, including e-commerce. The National
reported in July 2026 that banks had started issuing Jaywan cards in stages. It is new, so ask your
provider whether it accepts Jaywan yet.

Shopify Payments is available for UAE businesses. More on that in
[Shopify Payments in the GCC](/guides/shopify-payments-gcc/).

### Saudi Arabia

mada is Saudi Arabia's national payment network. In a 2018 circular, the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA)
allowed all banks to switch on mada cards for online payments from 1 April 2018. When you choose a
payment provider for Saudi shoppers, check that it takes mada. See
[cash on delivery in Saudi Arabia](/guides/cash-on-delivery-saudi-arabia/).

### Kuwait

KNET's payment gateway site says it "accepts all debit cards issued by its member banks in the
State of Kuwait." The site is run by The Shared Electronic Banking Services Company. If you sell to
Kuwait, choose a provider that supports KNET. See
[cash on delivery in Kuwait](/guides/cash-on-delivery-kuwait/).

### Qatar

NAPS is Qatar's national network for ATMs and point of sale, and QPay is its e-commerce payment
gateway for card payments. Qatar News Agency described both that way in April 2025, when Qatar
Central Bank connected the first fintech company to them. QNA also reported in March 2024 that
Qatar Central Bank's Himyan debit card runs on NAPS and can be used on local online shopping sites
through QPay. Ask your provider whether your checkout can take NAPS debit cards through QPay.

### Bahrain

BenefitPay is Bahrain's national electronic wallet, run by The BENEFIT Company. BENEFIT says
merchants can take BenefitPay on their own website or app through its web and in-app checkout, and
that merchants register through an acquiring bank. Whether it can appear at a Shopify checkout
depends on your payment provider.

### Oman

OmanNet is Oman's national switch for card payments. The Central Bank of Oman says it set up a
payment gateway in 2016 for online payments with debit cards issued in Oman, and that OmanNet
handles transactions from that gateway. Ask your provider whether your checkout takes these cards.
See [cash on delivery in Oman](/guides/cash-on-delivery-oman/) for more on Omani cards.

## Where does Apple Pay fit?

Apple's list of countries that support Apple Pay includes Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi
Arabia and the UAE (checked 26 October 2026). That list says shoppers there can use Apple Pay. It
doesn't mean your store shows it.

On Shopify, Apple Pay needs "a credit card payment provider that supports Apple Pay". Shopify
Payments supports it. If you use another provider, Shopify's help page tells you to search for
Apple Pay in the list of third-party payment providers under **Settings > Payments**.

## What about buy now, pay later?

Buy now, pay later (BNPL) providers decide for themselves which countries, currencies and order
amounts they accept. Check with each provider before you add it. For how BNPL works at a Shopify checkout and what it means for COD, read
[buy now, pay later in the Gulf](/guides/bnpl-gulf-cod/).

## Shopify Payments or a third-party provider?

Shopify's list of countries where Shopify Payments is available includes the UAE and no other GCC
country (checked 26 October 2026). Stores based in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain or Oman use
a third-party payment provider, and that provider decides which local networks your shoppers can
use.

## How do you check what your checkout takes?

1. List the countries you ship to.
2. For each one, ask your payment provider which of the methods in the table above it supports for
   your store.
3. In **Settings > Payments**, turn on what's available, including Apple Pay if your provider
   supports it.
4. Place a test order with an address in each country and look at the payment step, on a phone as
   well as a computer.

Do this before you hide COD for any group of shoppers. A rule that hides COD only helps when the
shopper still sees an online method they can use. Khaleeji COD only changes the Cash on Delivery
method, so the cards, wallets and local networks you set up stay as they are. To set a limit, see
[how to hide COD above a cart total](/guides/hide-cod-above-cart-total/).

## Sources

- [Central Bank of the UAE: Jaywan, the UAE's first domestic card scheme (press release, 27 February 2025)](https://centralbank.ae/media/2crjrusv/jaywan-the-uae-s-first-domestic-card-scheme-en.pdf)
- [The National: UAE banks and financial institutions start issuing Jaywan cards (20 July 2026)](https://www.thenationalnews.com/business/money/2026/07/20/uae-starts-issuing-jaywan-cards-to-banks-and-financial-institutions/)
- [SAMA Rulebook: Use mada bank cards for buying products through the internet (circular, March 2018)](https://rulebook.sama.gov.sa/en/node/4689)
- [KNET: Knet Payment Gateway (The Shared Electronic Banking Services Company)](https://kpay.com.kw)
- [Qatar News Agency: Qatar Central Bank enables first fintech direct integration with NAPS and QPay (April 2025)](https://qna.org.qa/en/News-Area/News/2025-4/14/qatar-central-bank-enables-first-fintech-direct-integration-with-naps-qpay)
- [Qatar News Agency: Qatar Central Bank launches Himyan debit card (March 2024)](https://www.qna.org.qa/en/News-Area/News/2024-03/30/0019-qatar-central-bank-launches-%27himyan%27-debit-card)
- [BENEFIT: BenefitPay for business](https://benefit.bh/business/benefitpay-business/)
- [Central Bank of Oman: Payment system evolution](https://cbo.gov.om/Pages/PaymentSystemReforms.aspx)
- [Apple Support: Countries and regions that support Apple Pay](https://support.apple.com/en-us/102775)
- [Shopify Help Center: Apple Pay](https://help.shopify.com/en/manual/payments/accelerated-checkouts/apple-pay)
- [Shopify Help Center: Shopify Payments supported countries](https://help.shopify.com/en/manual/payments/shopify-payments/supported-countries)