WeChat Pay may block under-18 payments for vaping devices and similar items

Recently, it has been circulating online that WeChat Pay has introduced age restrictions in certain scenarios, meaning users under 18 may be unable to complete payment in some cases. The situation is as follows:
  According to Mobile Payment Network, this occurred on a redirect page that appeared after scanning a WeChat Pay code on an offline self-service vending machine. The product was a vaping device, and because the buyer was under 18, the payment could not be completed.

It is understood that on the afternoon of November 1, the State Tobacco Monopoly Administration and the State Administration for Market Regulation issued the "Notice on Further Protecting Minors from E-cigarettes" (hereinafter referred to as the "Notice"), urging e-cigarette manufacturers, sellers, companies, or individuals to promptly shut down online sales websites or apps for e-cigarettes; urging e-commerce platforms to promptly close e-cigarette shops and remove e-cigarette products from their listings; and urging e-cigarette manufacturers, sellers, companies, or individuals to withdraw e-cigarette advertisements published online.

Under the requirements of the Notice, minors under the age of 18 are prohibited from purchasing e-cigarettes, and e-cigarettes may not be sold online. Offline sales have therefore become the compliant sales channel for e-cigarettes. In addition, age verification has become an important issue. In the past, restrictions on underage buyers in offline tobacco sales mainly relied on the store owner's subjective judgment, making detailed supervision difficult.

The age verification feature introduced by WeChat Pay for special scenarios provides a very effective solution to the problem of minors purchasing "inappropriate" products through electronic payment methods.

Mobile Payment Network learned from sources close to WeChat Pay that this type of solution is based on an official interface provided by WeChat Pay, with secondary development carried out by merchants.