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isApp

If the payment is initiated in a native app, it is possible to explicitly force a vipps:// URL by sending the optional isApp parameter in the initiate call:

  • "isApp": false (or not sent at all): The URL is https://, which handles everything automatically for you. The phone's operating system will know, through "universal linking", that the https://api.vipps.no URL should open the Vipps app, and not the default web browser. Please note: In some cases, this requires the user to approve that Vipps is opened, but this is usually only the first time.
  • "isApp": true: The URL is for a deeplink, for forced app-switch to Vipps, with vipps://. Please note: In our test environment (MT), the scheme is vippsMT://

If the user does not have Vipps installed:

  • "isApp":false (or not sent at all): The landing page will be shown, and the user can enter a phone number and pay on a device with Vipps installed.
  • "isApp": true: The user will get an error message saying that the link can not be opened. Or, depending on the native app, nothing will happen.

This is applicable to:

Example responses​

Example: Response body for "isApp":false (or not sent at all):

{
  "orderId": "acme-shop-123-order123abc",
  "url": "https://api.vipps.no/dwo-api-application/v1/deeplink/vippsgateway?v=2&token=eyJraWQiOiJqd3RrZXkiLC <truncated>"
}

Example: Response body for "isApp":true, with a forced app-switch to Vipps:

{
  "orderId": "acme-shop-123-order123abc",
  "url": "vipps://?token=eyJraWQiOiJqd3RrZXkiLCJhbGciOiJSUzI1NiJ9.eyJzdWIiO <truncated>"
}

Important information when using isApp​

Important: Using isApp comes with some extra responsibility:

  • The merchant's native app must be sure that the user's phone can open the vipps:// deeplink, as the landing page will not be shown to the user, and it will therefore not be possible to enter a phone number and pay with Vipps on another device.
  • If your customers use a native app: Remember that some iOS users may install the app on an iPad where they don't have Vipps installed. If you initiate payments with "isApp": true the app will try to open vipps:// on the iPad, but since Vipps installed "nothing will happen", and the user will not be able to pay. When you don't send isApp, the built-in logic will fix things for you, and display the landing page instead.
  • Vipps requires a minimum version of the phone's operating system. At the time of writing this is iOS 12 (from 2018) or Android 6 (from 2015). If the user has an older version of the operating system, Vipps cannot be used. The merchant must keep track of this by checking the Apple App Store and Google Play.
  • If "isApp":true is used in an embedded web browser, such as Instagram or Facebook, the vipps:// URL will not work, since the embedded browser does not know what to do with it. The user will get an error from the embedded browser, or "nothing will happen".

isApp flow​

The information below is valid for the eCom API and Recurring API. The PSP API works differently, please see the API's documentation.

If you do want to use isApp, instead of benefitting from the automatic handling, the flow is as follows:

  1. The merchant initiates the payment with isApp: true parameter: POST:/ecomm/v2/payments.
  2. Vipps returns a deeplink URL on the vipps:// format as response to initiate payment.
  3. The merchant uses the vipps:// URL to invoke Vipps (never change the URL, use it exactly as sent from Vipps)
  4. Vipps is automatically opened, without the user having to click "OK" or accept.
  5. The user accepts (or rejects) the payment request in Vipps.
  6. The Vipps backend makes a call to the merchant's callbackPrefix with information about the payment.
  7. When the payment process is completed, Vipps redirects to the merchant using the fallBack URL.

Please note: The user must always be sent directly to the deeplink. Rewriting the deeplink URL in any way may break the payment process. If not today, it may break if Vipps changes some details later.

The deeplink URL is only valid for five minutes. Attempts at using it after that will result in a timeout and an error.

See: