MasterCard today announced it is establishing contactless acceptance as a standard by 2020 for merchants accepting MasterCard and Maestro in Europe to ensure consumers will be able to pay with their contactless cards and NFC enabled devices at all point-of-sale terminals in Europe by 2020.

The announcement comes a day after Apple announced Apple Pay, its NFC mobile payments system in which MasterCard is a partner.

"Europeans can already use contactless cards or NFC enabled mobile payments in 36 countries across Europe and their enthusiasm for this safe and simple way to pay is evident," Javier Perez, president of MasterCard Europe, said in a statement. "NFC-enabled cell phone shipments are to soar fourfold in the next five years according to IHS Technology. MasterCard wants to ensure that mobile and contactless payments are safe and simple wherever you are in Europe, making it easy to pay how you want when you want."

MasterCard is setting compliance dates with sufficient lead time to absorb the normal terminal lifecycle:

• Existing POS terminals can be replaced at end of lifecycle, but at the latest by Jan. 1 2020. 
• New POS terminals must adhere to the new standard upon deployment as from Jan. 1 2016.