iPhone NFC problem.

[bugged on the right]

I have dealings with the Belgian government and have used one of their websites to access services. They have just announced that in February they will cease allowing user name and pin to access the website.
As I am not an EU citizen, my only option is an app called Itsme. Setting up involves entering phone number and email address, then photographing the photo page of your passport.
Next comes holding the phone near the passport to acquire the digital information via NFC. The passport is chipped.
My IPhone is an SE 2nd generation. I have had no success at all, despite many attempts and much research at getting connected. An NFC checking app reveals that there is no problem and the phone is compatible with all NFC functions.
in frustration I took the phone down to the local big network phone shop and had one of their boffins try. He had no success either, having spent 2 hours on it. He suggested the nearest Apple boffins. Anyone here any idea?

[Jhieminga]

You don't mention which iOS version you're running on that phone. The compatibility page about the app mentions that you need:

minimum iOS version 15.0 (Face ID available from iPhone X)
Note: iOS beta versions are not supported.

If you've got an old version or a beta version, you may encounter problems I guess. Although another option is that the NFC reader in your phone is somehow not working well. Have you tried restarting the phone? Switch it off (completely) and restart. Sometimes that helps to get misbehaving bits of hardware working again. The NFC function should always be on for an iPhone. I do not know how to test it other than with another NFC tag I'm afraid.

[bugged on the right]

Thanks Jhieminga, tried all that. Ios is 26, upgraded from 18.4 yesterday so no joy with the update. I removed the app and reinstalled it a couple of times. I have never used the facility before so have associated a credit card with Apple Pay and will see if that works. The old system of login was always satisfactory, why do they have to fix things that are not broken?

[Jhieminga]

It's a security thing. For years we've relied on usernames and passwords but as these are not very secure, newer means of authenticating are being rolled out. If you can use your credit card on your phone to pay, I guess the NFC system on your phone works. If so, it should also enable you to read the passport chip, unless there's something wrong with the chip, but a newer passport in a not too damaged state should be readable.
I hope you can get it to work!

[bugged on the right]

Thanks again, I had never used the credit card business before this. Went around various businesses buying a couple of pounds worth of goods and having 3 or 4 goes at it. Unsuccessfully. I've booked a session at the nearest Apple Store on Thursday morning so all should be revealed. I have a basic understanding but am falling behind. If you're not up to speed you will become more and more isolated and doomed. Life is not getting easier.

[Jhieminga]

Sounds like that is the best next step. Better to have Apple have a look at the phone and determine if everything works as advertised. From the experiences you describe, it sounds like the NFC reader is not doing its job.

I have used a similar app on my phone and on my partner's phone to scan ID documents for a couple of identification purposes, in my experience it is actually a very easy to use system. Once set up, you will not need to scan your passport again. A shame that you are running into all of these issues!

[bugged on the right]

I'm reasonably computer literate Jhieminga but this has confirmed that there is a technological war going on against me. Started when I tried to load Dos onto a computer which I had installed a Cyrix CPU on the motherboard way back in the early 90s. Implement of the devil.

I will let you know the outcome of the NFC problem on Thursday afternoon.

[bugged on the right]

Back from the Apple shop. A full diagnostic was carried out on the phone and everything was ok. One of the guy's colleagues suggested that since I had bought the phone in Australia, there might be some government limitations. Looks like another phone.

[Bug]

bugged on right

I just looked at the Itsme app. A reviewer said the app doesn't work outside Belgium. I see you are in UK, so maybe it doesn't work in UK.
The developer says it works in Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg, and France, and other countries in future.

Screenshot

[bugged on the right]

Thanks Bug, I have already ordered another phone. You are asked during setup for phone number. It knew I was +44 and I just filled in the number. When asked to photograph the identification document it only allowed me UK passport so I think they may have progressed a tiny bit but the damned phone won't pick up the passport chip. Apple forums all say different things about different models. It's a shoitfight.
Looks like I will be writing to the Belgian government and declaring myself non techno and please send any messages by letter.

[Jhieminga]

I have had a look at the Itsme website and they do claim on one page that the application should work with a UK passport. That is positive news. Looking at another page, it says that for use with several Belgian government services, you will need an itsme account linked to a Belgian form of ID. There is something called a 'rijksregisternummer' which is a number only stored on Belgian forms of ID and linked to your identity. If the Belgian authorities set up the app to look for that particular number, it won't find it in a UK passport, even though the app developers state that a UK passport should work.

The additional puzzle is why you could not get your credit card to work on your phone, as that points more towards a NFC chip reader/reading function failure. But your visit to the Apple store appears to have answered that question.

Just to be sure, you could get in touch with the support department for the itsme app using the form on this site: Submit a request – itsme Customer Support Unfortunately, they do not appear to offer any other form of contact.

I would also consider contacting the Belgian government department that you are trying to deal with. If the app has been set up to look for the Belgian registration number on your ID document, this is something they should know about (hopefully). Do they have a phone number you can ring?

[bugged on the right]

Hi Jhieminga, thanks again for your response. I have contacted the support group at It's me and they don't have any answers that I have not tried. I have a national number for my pension but the app doesn't ask for that. I'm at wit's end with this.and will see what happens when the new refurbished phone arrives. Can't afford a new one. Failing that I will request correspondence by paper. You should see the process for paying tax. The forms are a nightmare and all in Flemish. Occasionally I feel like telling them to cancel the pension and save the stress but the 7 years I worked there gets me almost as much as my British one.

[bugged on the right]

To all who assisted, thank you. I have had a definite answer to all this. You can only get an Itsme account if you have an eID card. This gem doesn't appear anywhere I have seen and the setup process even takes users up to the point of UK passport chip acquisition. Looks like I am now known as 2 phones bugged. I will now write to the Belgian pension people and inform them that I am back on paper.

[bugged on the right]

The new IPhone arrived yesterday and I have just finished setting it up. Downloaded It'sme and had the whole thing set up in 30 seconds. I will give it a try on the Belgian website later. Must have either been the Australian government disallowing NFC facilities or the various websites don't actually know what facilities are in which IPhones. The Ishop maintained NFC functional in the SE2.

Update: Despite the app appearing to function, i thought it would generate a QR code for me to log in with the Ipad. No such luck, The login must be on the same device as the app. No NFC on the Ipad so it looked like I would have to conduct business squinting at a tiny screen.
I then attempted to log on via the tiny screen but then the response was a message to say that I had to have a Belgian Itsme app.

You sometimes lose the will to live.

[Jhieminga]

You can set the app store region to Belgium so that you can get hold of the Belgian version of the app, but it does require you to have an address and payment method that allow you to use that Belgian app store. The instructions are here: https://support.apple.com/en-us/118283 (Don't forget to remove the current version of the app before switching).

If you don't have a Belgian bank account, have a look at Wise. It is an online bank that allows you to have multiple currencies linked to the same account. It may allow you to use a Belgian (or EUR capable) account that you can set as a payment method in the App store. You can try and see how far you can get without a payment method in your Belgian app store, that is not something I have tried. It may work that way as well if the app is free.

That leaves the issue of a Belgian address. Do you have a friend or family who wouldn't mind you using their address? You can argue the legality of doing it this way, but once you have the Belgian version of the app installed and working, you should be able to switch back to the UK version of the app store and continue to use the app.

All a bit of a faff.... but if it enables you to keep your pension it may be worth it.

[bugged on the right]

Thanks again Jhieminga, you have delved admirably. When I left the Belgian company I closed down my bank account, mobile phone and moved from a shared house. I am fed up with the whole business and will write to the pension people to tell them that I am only contactable by mail. I receive a mailed certificate of life annually and will just have to find out what affects my pension as it happens. The whole business is one step forward and two back.
Now that Brexit has occurred, I have to complete a tax return, all in Flemish. I declare everything but they only tax Belgian sources of income.
i am about to write to them asking if they will tax it at source, just as they did with my salary because the fortnight it takes to complete the return is just too much.
I appreciate your efforts, thank you.