A growing number of users are reporting a critical issue with contactless payments after the release of Google Play Services version 26.28. The problem specifically affects smartphones running Chinese firmware (China ROM) intended for the domestic Chinese market, including devices from Xiaomi, Vivo, Oppo, and OnePlus.
According to Notebookcheck, the disruption is isolated to phones with China-specific firmware; owners of global variants of the same models—even if purchased in China—have not encountered the same difficulties. Journalists at the outlet confirmed the bug using a Vivo X200 Ultra equipped with a China ROM: after the update, NFC-based payments stopped working despite the Google Wallet app continuing to display all linked bank cards normally, with no error messages or warnings.
Further investigation by a developer on the XDA Forums sheds light on the root cause. Analysis of Google Play Services logs revealed that the system identifies the device as a “CN SKU” (Chinese market variant) and subsequently disables the Tap-and-Pay service responsible for NFC transactions. This behavior suggests a possible intentional restriction, though Google has not yet provided an official explanation.
User reports indicate that the issue spans multiple models, including the Vivo X200 Ultra, X300 Pro, X300 Ultra, X100 Ultra, X Fold5, X Fold3 Pro, and X200 Pro mini; the Oppo Find N3 and Find X9 Pro; and the Xiaomi 17 Ultra, among others. Complaints are coming not only from China but also from users in Europe and Brazil.
As a temporary workaround, some owners suggest downgrading Google Play Services to an earlier version using ADB or switching to alternative payment solutions like Curve Pay. However, these fixes are not ideal for most users and require technical expertise, making them impractical for the broader consumer base.
Google has not yet commented on the situation. It remains unclear whether the disabled NFC functionality is the result of a bug in version 26.28 or a deliberate policy to restrict Google Wallet’s Tap-and-Pay feature on devices with Chinese firmware.
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