iOS 27 will bring a long-requested upgrade to the iPhone Apple Wallet application: the ability for users to create their own passes directly within the app, according to report published Monday.
If true, this would significantly expand how iPhone owners manage everyday cards and tickets with the app.
Create your own passes in Apple Wallet … eventually
To understand why this is a frequently requested feature, suppose that your gym gives you a plastic keycard with a barcode or QR code, but no digital Wallet option. Today, your choices are limited: Carry the card, take a screenshot or use a third-party application.
But Bloomberg reported Monday that Apple “is preparing a new ‘Create a Pass’ feature for its next major iPhone software update, allowing users to build and customize their own digital tickets and gift cards within the Wallet app.”
Let’s continue the example from above to see how this new feature might work. On your iPhone running iOS 27, you scan the barcode on the physical membership card your gym gave you using your handset.
The Wallet app recognizes it as something that can function like a pass. Wallet then creates a custom entry, maybe labeling it “Gym Membership.” From there, the pass behaves much like a pass created by a third-party app. When you walk into the gym, you open the Wallet app on your iPhone, then tap your custom pass so the gym’s scanner can read the barcode. It’s easier than using the plastic card.
That might sound simple, but it solves a surprisingly common problem. Many membership cards issued by smaller gyms, and even school and work IDs, don’t support Wallet integration. Building that system requires development resources that the small operators simply don’t have. Apple’s current approach puts the burden on those organizations, not the user.
iOS 27 might flip that model. Instead of waiting for your gym to create a Wallet pass, you could just make one yourself.
A few caveats
There are still some unknowns. Most obviously, this report is based on information leaking out of Apple — it has not been confirmed. And even if the company is working on the feature now, it might not make it into the final version.
Also, iOS 27 isn’t expected before September. Still, Apple will surely give a preview of the new features at WWDC 2026 in June.
Ed Hardy has been writing full-time about tech for 25 years, and using it for much longer than that. His intro to Apple was a Macintosh SE/30 (which he still has), but now he uses a 13-inch iPad Pro as his primary computer.
That’s because he’s a “tablet first” type of guy. Rather than use a Macbook, he connects a keyboard case to the iPad. And instead of a desktop Mac, he connects his tablet to a 27-inch display and full-size keyboard. (So don’t try to tell him that everyone has to use a Mac to be productive.)
Before coming to Cult of Mac, Ed wrote for NotebookReview, TabletPCReview and Brighthand, as well as other sites.
