Developed by our Member Community, the NFC Forum Specifications form a technology standard that harmonizes and extends existing contactless standards across a variety of operating modes including card emulation, reader/writer, wireless charging, and peer-to-peer modes.
Overview
Specifications are available to the public for a nominal fee. Members at the Associate level and above may download the Specifications directly for free. Please note, the Technical Specifications are not physical handbooks, they are PDF documents. The Specification(s) will be sent directly to the email used at the time of purchase.
By becoming a Member, you can connect into our Special Interest Groups, Working Groups, or Committees to influence the direction and capabilities of the NFC Forum Specification and Use Cases.
Glossaries or abbreviations used by the NFC Forum, can be reviewed in the Technical Committee Glossary or the Compliance Committee Glossary.
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Specifications Architecture
Like other connection technologies the architecture of the NFC Forum Specification the conventions of the OSI Model. For NFC, the lower layers describe the connection and connection setup attributes of the system. Higher layers define the protocols for various communications while each mode of operation transcends the architecture
Specification Types
Core Specification
Logical Link Control Protocol Technical Specification
Defines an OSI layer-2 protocol to support peer-to-peer communication between two NFC-enabled devices, which is essential for any NFC applications that involve bi-directional communications. The specification defines two service types, connectionless and connection-oriented, organized into three link service classes: connectionless service only; connection-oriented service only; and both connectionless and connection-oriented service. The connectionless service offers minimal setup with no reliability or flow-control guarantees (deferring these issues to applications and to the reliability guarantees offered by ISO/IEC 18092 and ISO/IEC 14443 MAC layers). The connection-oriented service adds in-order, reliable delivery, flow-control, and session-based service layer multiplexing.
LLCP is a compact protocol, based on the industry standard IEEE 802.2, designed to support either small applications with limited data transport requirements, such as minor file transfers, or network protocols, such as OBEX and TCP/IP, which in turn provide a more robust service environment for applications. The NFC LLCP thus delivers a solid foundation for peer-to-peer applications, enhancing the basic functionality offered by ISO/IEC 18092, but without affecting the interoperability of legacy NFC applications or chipsets.
The LLCP 1.4 Candidate Technical Specification is the first specification that makes use of the NAP 1.0 specification for a secured data transfer, replacing the secure data transfer that was defined in the depreciated LLCP 1.3 specification.
The LLCP 1.4 Technical Specification was adopted in December 2022. There were no changes from the Candidate version.
Digital Protocol Technical Specification
This specification addresses the digital protocol for NFC-enabled device communication, providing an implementation specification on top of the ISO/IEC 18092 and ISO/IEC 14443 standards. It harmonizes the integrated technologies, specifies implementation options and limits the interpretation of the standards; in essence, showing developers how to use NFC, ISO/IEC 14443 and JIS X6319-4 standards together to ensure global interoperability between different NFC devices, and between NFC devices and existing contactless infrastructure.
The specification defines the common feature set that can be used consistently and without further modification for major NFC applications in areas such as financial services and public transport. The specification covers the digital interface and the half-duplex transmission protocol of the NFC-enabled device in its four roles as Initiator, Target, Reader/Writer and Card Emulator. It includes bit level coding, bit rates, frame formats, protocols, and command sets, which are used by NFC-enabled devices to exchange data and bind to the LLCP protocol.
Version 2.0 of the Digital Protocol technical specification also adds ACM for P2P communication and NFC-V technology. Additionally, updates have been included based on ongoing alignment efforts with other organizations and standards, such as EMVCo, ISO/IEC 14443 and ISO/IEC 18092.
Version 2.1 of the Digital Protocol technical specification adds support for larger RF frames for the contactless ISO-DEP protocol compliant with ISO/IEC 14443 was added to optimize the overall transaction time for ISO-DEP.
Version 2.2 of the Digital Protocol technical specification adds error recover for Type 2 and Type 5 Tags communication. This update improves the user experience by ensuring reliable NFC communication in difficult environments where NFC communications might be disturbed.
Version 2.3 of the Digital Protocol technical specification reflects the removal of NFC Forum Type 1 Tag features from Technical Specification Release 2021 to simplify the implementation of future NFC enabled devices without reducing the user experience.
Activity Technical Specification
The specification explains how the NFC Digital Protocol Specification can be used to set up the communication protocol with another NFC device or NFC Forum tag. It describes the building blocks, called Activities, for setting up the communication protocol. These Activities can be used as defined in this specification or can be modified to define other ways of setting up the communication protocol, covering the same or different use cases. Activities are combined in Profiles. From Version 2.1 onwards these profiles are described in a separate specification, the Profiles Technical Specification.
Version 2.2 of the Activity technical specification reflects the removal of NFC Forum Type 1 Tag features from Technical Specification Release 2021 to simplify the implementation of future NFC enabled devices without reducing the user experience.
Version 2.3 of the Activity technical specification includes updates performed on the NFC-A collision resolution, which are also backwards compatible.
Simple NDEF Exchange Protocol Technical Specification
The Simple NDEF Exchange Protocol (SNEP) allows an application on an NFC-enabled device to exchange NFC Data Exchange Format (NDEF) messages with another NFC Forum device when operating in NFC Forum peer-to-peer mode. The protocol makes use of the Logical Link Control Protocol (LLCP) connection-oriented transport mode to provide a reliable data exchange.
Analog Technical Specification
This specification addresses the analog characteristics of the RF interface of the NFC-enabled device. The purpose of the specification is to characterize and specify the externally observable signals for an NFC-Enabled Device without specifying the design of the antenna of an NFC-Enabled Device. This includes power requirements (determining operating volume), transmission requirements, receiver requirements, and signal forms (time/frequency/modulation characteristics).
This specification is intended for use by manufacturers wanting to implement an NFC-enabled device. Its scope covers the analog interface of the NFC-enabled device in its five roles (Peer Mode Initiator, Peer Mode Target, Reader/Writer Mode, Wireless charging, and Card Emulation Mode) for all three technologies (NFC-A, NFC-B, and NFC-F) and for all the different bit rates (106kbps, 212kbps, and 424kbps).
The Analog 2.0 Specification introduced Active Communication Mode for P2P data exchange and NFC-V technology in poll mode. Version 2.0 ensures full interoperability with devices conformant to ISO/IEC 14443 or ISO/IEC 18092 by harmonizing the analog parameter for the contactless communication. This interoperability is important to enable the reliable usage of NFC devices with existing infrastructure using ISO compatible RF readers and/or cards (e.g. for contactless public transport applications). The 2.1 Version introduces some alignments to EMVCo and the NFC-V Listen mode requirements.
Version 2.2 of the Analog technical specification reflects the removal of NFC Forum Type 1 Tag features from Technical Specification Release 2021 to simplify the implementation of future NFC enabled devices without reducing the user experience.
Version 2.3 of the Analog technical specification includes 8-Shaped Coil in the Glossary as well as a mandatory part of the Reference Equipment.
Controller Interface (NCI) Technical Specification
The NCI specification defines a standard interface within an NFC device between an NFC controller and the device’s main application processor. The NCI makes it easier for device manufacturers to integrate chipsets from different chip manufacturers, and it defines a common level of functionality and interoperability among the components within an NFC-enabled device. With the availability of the NCI, manufacturers have access to a standard interface they can use for whatever kind of NFC-enabled device they build – including mobile phones, PCs, tablets, printers, consumer electronics, and appliances. This will enable manufacturers to bring new NFC-enabled devices to market faster. The NCI provides users a logical interface that can be used with different physical transports, such as UART, SPI, and I2C.
NCI Version 2.0 introduces the concept of RF Interface Extensions to optimize for developers the data exchange for P2P and memory tag communications. The Listen Mode Routing mechanism has been extended to provide more flexibility for NFC devices with multiple secure elements. The new version also includes the option for NFC controllers to emulate NFC Forum tags autonomously, as well as a high-level RF interface to communicate with NFC Forum tags. NCI 2.0 supports Active Communication Mode (ACM) for P2P communication and Type V technology, allowing NFC devices to communicate with a broader range of devices and tags.
Version 2.1 of the NCI technical specification defines a standard interface within an NFC device between an NFC Controller and the device’s main application processor. This recent update to version 2.1 includes optimizations to improve performance.
Version 2.2 of the NCI technical specification reflects the removal of NFC Forum Type 1 Tag features from Technical Specification Release 2021 to simplify the implementation of future NFC enabled devices without reducing the user experience.
Version 2.3 of the NCI Technical specification includes the addition of the NFC WLC feature and removal detection.
Profiles Technical Specification
The Profiles section of Activity 2.0 is now described in version 1.0 of the Profiles Technical Specification. It adds a new Profile to discover all services eventually offered with different technologies. The specification explains how the Activities defined in Activity Technical Specification can be combined the serve a specific use case. Each Profile has specific Configuration Parameters and covers a particular use case. This document defines Profiles polling for an NFC device and establishment of Peer to Peer communication, polling for an NFC device and reading NFC Data Exchange Format (NDEF) data from an NFC Forum tag, and polling for a NFC tag or NFC device in combination.
Version 1.1 of the Profiles technical specification reflects the removal of NFC Forum Type 1 Tag features from Technical Specification Release 2021 to simplify the implementation of future NFC enabled devices without reducing the user experience.
Data Exchange Specifications
Data Exchange Format (NDEF) Technical Specification
Specifies a common data format for NFC Forum-compliant devices and NFC Forum-compliant tags.
The NFC Data Exchange Format Technical Specification provides a standard format for NFC application data and RTD specifications specify the format and rules for building standard record types used by NFC Forum application definitions and third parties that are based on the NDEF data format. Application level specifications are important for use cases that require an exchange of control information, such as smart posters and remote control, because message format is defined and issues that must be considered for implementation are addressed. The RTD specifications provide a way to efficiently define record formats for new applications and gives users the opportunity to create their own applications based on NFC Forum specifications.
Tag Type Technical Specifications
Type 1 Tag Specification
Defines how an NFC-enabled device in Reader/Writer Mode detects, reads and writes a NDEF Message on a NFC Forum Type 1 Tag. The communication with this NFC Forum Tag type is based on NFC-A Technology.
Type 2 Tag Specification
Defines how an NFC-enabled device in Reader/Writer Mode detects, reads and writes a NDEF Message on a NFC Forum Type 2 Tag. The communication with this Forum Tag type is based on NFC-A Technology.
Version 1.1 of the Type 2 Tag Specification includes updates to support time-optimized implementations to improve the performance for reading NFC Forum tags in support of the new TNEP protocol.
Version 1.2 of the Type 2 Tag technical specification reflects the removal of NFC Forum Type 1 Tag features from Technical Specification Release 2021 to simplify the implementation of future NFC enabled devices without reducing the user experience. The NDEF read procedure was also improved to update the length information if not directly preceded by an NDEF detection procedure.
Type 3 Tag Specification
Defines how an NFC-enabled device in Reader/Writer Mode detects, reads and writes a NDEF Message on a NFC Forum Type 3 Tag. The communication with this Forum Tag type is based on NFC-F Technology, which is compatible to the Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS) X 6319-4.
Version 1.1 of the Type 3 Tag Specification includes updates to support time-optimized implementations to improve the performance for reading NFC Forum tags in support of the new TNEP protocol.
Type 4 Tag Specification
Defines how an NFC-enabled device in Reader/Writer Mode detects, reads and writes a NDEF Message on a NFC Forum Type 4 Tag. The communication with this Forum Tag type is based on the ISO Data Exchange Protocol (ISO-DEP) which is fully compatible with the ISO/IEC 14443 standard series. This protocol is either based on NFC-A or NFC-B Technology.
Version 1.1 of the Type 4 Tag Specification includes updates to support time-optimized implementations to improve the performance for reading NFC Forum tags in support of the new TNEP protocol.
Version 1.2 of the Type 4 Tag technical specification reflects the removal of NFC Forum Type 1 Tag features from Technical Specification Release 2021 to simplify the implementation of future NFC enabled devices without reducing the user experience. The NDEF read procedure was also improved to update the length information if not directly preceded by an NDEF detection procedure.
Type 5 Tag Specification
Defines how an NFC-enabled device in Reader/Writer Mode detects, reads and writes a NDEF Message on a NFC Forum Type 5 Tag. The communication with this NFC Forum Tag type is based on NFC-V Technology.
Version 1.1 of the Type 5 Tag Specification includes updates to support time-optimized implementations to improve the performance for reading NFC Forum tags in support of the new TNEP protocol.
Version 1.2 of the Type 5 Tag technical specification reflects the removal of NFC Forum Type 1 Tag features from Technical Specification Release 2021 to simplify the implementation of future NFC enabled devices without reducing the user experience. The NDEF read procedure was also improved to update the length information if not directly preceded by an NDEF detection procedure.
Tag NDEF Exchange Protocol (TNEP) Technical Specification 1.0
The TNEP 1.0 Technical Specification supports the bi-directional exchange of NDEF messages based on the communication protocol used by the NFC Forum Tag devices of Type 2, 3, 4 and 5. The new TNEP protocol offers a simple protocol for NFC IoT devices to exchange data between an NFC enabled phone and the IoT Device. For example, this protocol can be used to configure and read smart meter devices, to control the thermostatic radiator valve or to configure the lightning device in your smart home.
Record Type Definition Technical Specifications
Record Type Definition (RTD) Technical Specification
Specifies the format and rules for building standard record types used by NFC Forum application definitions and third parties that are based on the NDEF data format. The RTD specification provides a way to efficiently define record formats for new applications and gives users the opportunity to create their own applications based on NFC Forum specifications.
Text RTD Technical Specification
Provides an efficient way to store text strings in multiple languages by using the RTD mechanism and NDEF format. An example of using this specification is included in the Smart Poster RTD.
URI RTD Technical Specification
Provides an efficient way to store Uniform Resource Identifiers (URI) by using the RTD mechanism and NDEF format. An example of using this specification is included in the Smart Poster RTD.
Smart Poster RTD Technical Specification
Defines an NFC Forum Well Known Type to put URLs, SMSs or phone numbers on an NFC tag, or to transport them between devices. The Smart Poster RTD builds on the RTD mechanism and NDEF format and uses the URI RTD and Text RTD as building blocks.
Signature Record Type Definition Technical Specification
Specifies the format used when signing single or multiple NDEF records. Defines the required and optional signature RTD fields, and also provides a list of suitable signature algorithms and certificate types that can be used to create the signature. Does not define or mandate a specific PKI or certification system, or define a new algorithm for use with the Signature RTD. Specification of the certificate verification and revocation process is out of scope.
Signature RTD Certificate Policy
Defines the procedural and operational requirements that the NFC Forum expects Certificate Authorities (CAs) to adhere to, when issuing and managing certificates to create signatures for NDEF messages. Provides users with the possibility of verifying the authenticity and integrity of data within the NDEF message, and specifies the format used when signing single or multiple NDEF records.
Device Information RTD Technical Specification
Defines the Device Information record type, which conveys fundamental model and identity identification information. The purpose of the Device Information record is to convey host information in a record format that can be used across different carrier types or service types.
Wireless Charging
Wireless Charging
Wireless Charging allows for wireless charging of small battery-powered devices like those found in many IoT devices, This approach can help avoid the need for a separate wireless charging unit for small devices if the device includes an NFC communication interface. For example, a mobile headset which includes NFC technology for pairing could also use the NFC interface for wireless charging. In this case, the NFC antenna is used to exchange the pairing information and to transfer power.
This NFC specification uses the 13.56 MHz base frequency and leverages the NFC communication link to control the power transfer. NFC technology is unique in that it allows the transfer of power to an NFC tag to enable communication by providing a constant carrier signal. The WLC specification extends this communication functionality of NFC technology to enable wireless charging. The WLC specification ensures a safe charging process between two NFC-enabled devices in either static or negotiated modes. Static mode uses standard radio frequency (RF) field strength and provides a consistent power level. Negotiated mode uses a higher RF field supporting four power transfer classes of 250, 500, 750 and 1000 milliwatts.
Version 2.0 of the Wireless Charging technical specification defines a new antenna class next to the antenna class already defined by the WLC 1.0 specification. This new antenna class with a smaller antenna size allows the implementation of tiny IOT devices which can be charged by NFC technology.
Reference Application Specifications
Connection Handover Technical Specification
Defines the structure and sequence of interactions that enable two NFC devices to establish a connection using other wireless communication technologies. The specification enables developers to choose the carrier for the information to be exchanged. If matching wireless capabilities are revealed during the negotiation process between two NFC-enabled devices, the connection can switch to the selected carrier. With this specification, other communication standards bodies can define information required for the connection setup to be carried in NFC Data Exchange Format (NDEF) messages. The specification also covers static handover, in which the connection handover information is stored on a simple NFC Forum Tag that can be read by NFC-enabled devices. Static mode is used in applications in which the negotiation mechanism or on-demand carrier activation is not required.
The updated version of the NFC Forum Connection Handover Technical Specification (CH 1.5) is the first NFC Forum specification to take advantage of TNEP. By defining the messaging structure for how negotiated handover operates with a reader/writer and an NFC tag device, CH 1.5 creates the possibility for the development of new solutions pairing NFC with technologies like Bluetooth® or Wi-Fi when the data to be transferred is large or streamed for a long time. Examples include Bluetooth audio streaming or transfer of a photo between a digital camera or a smartphone over Wi-Fi. Previously, negotiated handover was limited to a P2P connection. CH 1.5 can now use TNEP to allow an additional negotiated handover for a connection between a reader/writer and NFC tag device providing users more control over how they gather and share their information between devices, thereby increasing the security of paired connections. Negotiated Handover using the Reader/Writer mode will be for example used by the new ISO/IEC 18013-5 standard defining the sharing mechanism for mobile driving licensees.
Personal Health Device Communication Technical Specification
The Personal Health Device Communication (PHDC) Technical Specification addresses the need for an openly-defined standard for the exchange of personal health data between devices using Near Field Communication technology. The purpose of this specification is to provide an interoperable data transport for personal health devices conforming to the ISO/IEEE Std. 11073-20601 Optimized Exchange Protocol and NFC Forum specifications.
The earlier version of this specification described communication mechanisms for personal health devices based on the NFC Forum Type 2, 3 and 4 Tag protocols. Version 1.2 of the PHDC Technical Specification adds the communications mechanism for NFC Forum Type 5 Tag protocol broadening the implementation choices for service providers of future NFC-enabled Personal Health Devices.
NFC Authentication Protocol Technical Specification
The NFC Authentication Protocol Technical Specification describes the basic mechanism for applications needing an authentication and/or a secured data transfer.
The NFC Authentication Protocol 1.0 technical specification describes cryptographic mechanisms that can be used for different purposes. Next to the establishment of a secure channel and high speed authentication, these mechanisms can also be used, for example, to pair an NFC-enabled phone with an NFC-enabled door lock to allow secure access.
The NFC Authentication Protocol 1.0 technical specification was adopted in December 2022. There were no changes from the Candidate version.
Candidate Specifications
NFC Forum Candidate Technical Specifications are very mature technical specifications whose final adoption is delayed so as to allow verification of its quality, to progress on related test specifications, or the like. Candidate Technical Specifications have different licensing restrictions than adopted Technical Specifications. Companies that are not members of the NFC Forum can purchase candidate specs and offer feedback, and will be provided the final adopted spec at no charge.
Application Documents
NFC Forum Application Documents are informative technical documents designed to promote NFC solutions in vertical markets and to foster best practices, by describing proposed solutions based on NFC Forum specifications.
Bluetooth® Secure Simple Pairing
This Application Document describes the interaction of Bluetooth® technology and NFC during SSP in detail. It provides examples of both negotiated and static handover in the most feasible use cases involving the presence of both technologies. Developers will find the examples useful guides for their own work. The document has now been expanded (in June 2014) to include descriptions of how to use NFC for fast and easy Bluetooth Low Energy out-of-band (OOB) pairing, a key capability of Bluetooth.
Version 1.2 of the Application Document published in June 2019 supports also Bluetooth devices implemented according the Bluetooth Core Specification 5.1 and is extended for Bluetooth Low Energy.
Version 1.3 of the Application Document was published in December 2020. This new version which describes the Out Of Band Pairing process for Bluetooth devices by using NFC technology is now extended to offer solutions based on the new TNEP protocol. In the future, this extension will offer full functionality for pairing solutions even if the device is not offering the LLCP protocol.
Cross-platform NFC Tag UX 1.1
The Cross-platform NFC Tag UX provides a guideline to NFC service developers to optimize their NFC applications to achieve a similar user experience on different mobile operating systems when using NFC Forum Tags.
Version 1.1 of the Application Document was published in December 2022.