Android Pay may not be coming to the UK for a long time

Android Pay
Android Pay

Google just announced the latest update to Android Pay with a variety of new in-app payment features and the joyous news that the service will launch in Australia next year - but it seems the UK has been forgotten again.

The latest blog post from Google suggests it might not be coming to the UK until the latter half of 2016. It reads, "In the first half of 2016, Android Pay will arrive in Australia."

Later in the post, written by Pali Bhat, Director of Product Management on Android Pay, it continues, "And Australia is just the start. We'll be adding more countries throughout 2016. This was a big year for Android Pay, and we're excited about what's to come. "

The long game

The fact Australia gets a special mention suggests there's a reason we haven't had an update on the state of Android Pay in the UK. While we hope otherwise, the wording suggests we might not see the new feature in the UK until the second half of the year.

Google wouldn't give us any more information when we contacted it for comment.

A previous blog post on Android Pay from November revealed a variety of new details about the US system, but lots of voices in the comments section were left calling for an official update on the UK.

Comments at the end of the blog said, "Is this EVER coming to the UK?! I mean come on... Really?" and "Every other comment is about when the UK will see a release! Get your act together, Google."

James Peckham

James is Managing Editor for Android Police. Previously, he was Senior Phones Editor for TechRadar, and he has covered smartphones and the mobile space for the best part of a decade bringing you news on all the big announcements from top manufacturers making mobile phones and other portable gadgets. James is often testing out and reviewing the latest and greatest mobile phones, smartwatches, tablets, virtual reality headsets, fitness trackers and more. He once fell over.