Edgar Cervantes / Android Authority
TL;DR Google Wallet is getting ready to launch a new feature that’ll automatically scan and add eligible passes from your photos.
We have managed to get the feature working in the latest version of the app.
Wallet won’t just blindly add every pass or ticket in finds in your image gallery; it’ll let you review and approve the selected items.
In September last year, we spotted hints of a new Google Wallet feature that could make it much easier to find and store tickets, passes, and more. At the time, we found strings inside the app’s code suggesting that Wallet might be able to scan your photos for eligible passes and add them automatically. Now, after digging into the latest version of Google Wallet (25.32.792031365), we have finally managed to get the feature working, indicating that Google may be getting ready for a wider rollout.
The new option in Google Wallet is called “Automatically import passes,” and you can enable it in two ways:
While manually adding a pass:
If you try to add a pass using the “Everything else” option, you’ll see a card on the confirmation screen that reads: “Automatically add passes, tickets, and more from your device.” This is essentially a shortcut to enable the new feature.
If you try to add a pass using the “Everything else” option, you’ll see a card on the confirmation screen that reads: “Automatically add passes, tickets, and more from your device.” This is essentially a shortcut to enable the new feature. Through Google Wallet settings:
The feature also explicitly appears inside Google Wallet settings with the toggle “Automatically import passes.” Tapping it brings up a setup flow that asks for your explicit permission to enable the feature. The feature is optional and turned off by default.
Once you opt in, Wallet will request access to your photos and videos. This is required so it can scan your gallery in the background, looking for things like event tickets, boarding passes, or more. If Wallet finds any passes to add, you’ll get a notification prompting you to review them. It’s a good thing that the app doesn’t just add items without your knowledge; you’ll always be able to check details, make edits if needed, and then confirm adding passes found in your gallery to your Wallet. It’s just the finding bit that’s helpful and can cut down the time it takes to manually add a pass. Think of the feature like a smart assistant for your tickets and passes.
Don’t want to miss the best from Android Authority? Set us as a preferred source in Google Search to support us and make sure you never miss our latest exclusive reports, expert analysis, and much more.
This isn’t the first recent upgrade to Wallet’s pass handling. Just a couple of months ago, Google added the ability to add passes by simply sharing an image with the app. The new auto-import feature builds on that idea, saving you the pain of manually spotting and sending your passes to the app.
With the strings for the feature now live and the feature working in our testing, it looks like Google is preparing to roll this out more broadly. Once it does, Wallet could become a much more useful tool for managing your digital passes, especially for people who take screenshots instead of adding passes to the app manually.
⚠️ An APK teardown helps predict features that may arrive on a service in the future based on work-in-progress code. However, it is possible that such predicted features may not make it to a public release.
Follow