Does QR acceptance require a payment terminal?

Not necessarily. A small merchant can accept QR payments with a printed sticker, which is why the model spread to street stalls and taxis. Larger stores often scan the customer's dynamic code at the till instead. An operator serving both kinds of merchant needs to support both flows.

Two directions

In merchant-presented mode, the merchant shows a code, static or dynamic, and the customer scans it with the payment app. No terminal is needed; a printed sticker or a screen is enough. In customer-presented mode, the customer shows a code from the app, and the merchant scans it with a terminal, a POS scanner or a phone camera. Large stores often prefer this, since it fits the existing checkout flow.

What an operator needs to support

• Merchant-presented static codes for small merchants, with the merchant identifier registered with the scheme.
• Merchant-presented dynamic codes for stores with a POS, generated per transaction.
• Customer-presented codes scanned at the till, with the scan integrated into the terminal or POS.

Why it matters

The absence of a terminal requirement is what made QR payments reach merchants that card acceptance never did. An operator entering these markets with only terminal-based acceptance misses the long tail. Supporting both directions, through providers that participate in the national schemes, puts QR next to cards in the merchant's checkout and in the operator's reports.