# TANQR

> Source: https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/standards/tanqr
> research date 2026-05-29 · extracted at 2026-10-06
> Publisher: Barcoder — encyclopedia of QR, barcode and payment-code standards

Specifications:
- [TANQR Code Standard 2022 — Bank of Tanzania](https://www.bot.go.tz/Publications/Acts,%20Regulations,%20Circulars,%20Guidelines/Guidelines/sw/2022081908570183.pdf)

## Overview

**TANQR** (Tanzania Quick Response Code) is **Tanzania's national QR-code payment standard**, introduced + mandated by the **Bank of Tanzania (BoT)** to streamline + unify merchant payments across **all financial service providers (FSPs), mobile money operators, and banks** <sup>[1][1], [2][2], [Tanzania, United Republic of report](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/payments/TZ)</sup>. The BoT officially established TANQR in **2022 through a circular** with **September 1, 2022 effective date** — giving FSPs defined timeline to **adopt and align all existing QR-based systems with the national standard**. TANQR follows the **EMV QRCPS specification published by EMVCo** providing **interoperability foundation**.

The structural significance: With TANQR, **businesses can accept payments from any customer regardless of mobile network or banking app by simply displaying a single, standardized QR code** — eliminating Tanzania's previously-fragmented QR-payment landscape. **BoT-mandated compliance** ensures universal participation. **Tanzania's mobile-money + bank-payment landscape** is exceptionally fragmented — multi-MNO mobile-money providers (Vodacom M-Pesa Tanzania, Tigo Pesa, Airtel Money Tanzania, Halotel Halopesa, TTCL T-Pesa) + traditional banks (CRDB, NMB, NBC, Stanbic, Exim, etc.) + emerging fintechs — making TANQR's unification structurally substantial. **TANQR pairs with [TIPS](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/standards/tips)** (Tanzania Instant Payment System, also BoT-operated) — TANQR providing QR-merchant-acceptance layer while TIPS provides instant-payment-rail. **Bank of Tanzania's September 2025 global award for financial inclusion innovation** specifically cites TANQR adoption + financial-inclusion impact.

## History

**Background — Tanzanian payment landscape** <sup>[Tanzania, United Republic of report](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/payments/TZ)</sup>:
- **Bank of Tanzania (BoT)** — central bank.
- **Tanzanian mobile-money landscape**: Vodacom M-Pesa Tanzania, Tigo Pesa, Airtel Money Tanzania, Halotel Halopesa, TTCL T-Pesa.
- Major Tanzanian banks: CRDB, NMB, NBC, Stanbic, Exim, others.
- Pre-TANQR: fragmented QR-payment landscape.

**August 12, 2022 — BoT circular** <sup>[3][3]</sup>:
- TANQR Code Standard 2022 published.
- Deadline established for FSPs.

**September 1, 2022 — TANQR effective date** <sup>[1][1]</sup>:
- All FSPs must comply.

**NMB Bank × Mastercard QR Pay by Link (QR PBL)** [[nmb]]:
- October 2024 launch — Tanzania's first QR PBL solution.

**BoT September 2025 global award** [[techafrica]]:
- TANQR adoption cited as financial-inclusion-innovation.

## Technical specification

TANQR is **BoT-mandated Tanzanian national EMV-based QR-payment standard** <sup>[1][1], [2][2]</sup>:

| Layer | Description |
|---|---|
| **Sponsor** | **Bank of Tanzania (BoT)** |
| **Standard name** | **TANQR / TAN-QR** (Tanzania Quick Response Code) |
| **Currency** | TZS (Tanzanian shilling) |
| **Effective date** | **September 1, 2022** |
| **Standard basis** | **EMV QRCPS (EMVCo)** |
| **Compliance** | Mandatory for all FSPs, mobile money operators, and banks |
| **Examination + monitoring** | Bank of Tanzania |
| **Companion rail** | **[TIPS](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/standards/tips)** (Tanzania Instant Payment System) |
| **Goal** | Universal merchant-acceptance via single standardised QR |

## Use cases

**Universal merchant QR-acceptance** <sup>[1][1]</sup>: Cardinal — single QR for all customer apps.

**Cross-MNO + cross-bank acceptance** <sup>[2][2]</sup>: Any customer app can pay.

**P2B (Person-to-Business) payments** <sup>[1][1]</sup>: Merchants accept.

**Financial-inclusion expansion** [[techafrica]]: BoT goal achieved.

**EMVCo international-standards alignment** <sup>[1][1]</sup>: Cross-border compatibility.

**NMB Bank × Mastercard QR PBL extension** [[nmb]]: Pay-by-link extension.

## Implementations & ecosystem

**Sponsor**: **Bank of Tanzania (BoT)**.

**FSP participants**: All Tanzanian banks + mobile-money operators + payment service providers.

**Companion rail**: **[TIPS](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/standards/tips)** (Tanzania Instant Payment System).

**Notable adopter**: NMB Bank (×Mastercard QR Pay by Link).

**Other adopters**: CRDB, NBC, Stanbic, Vodacom M-Pesa Tanzania, Tigo Pesa, Airtel Money Tanzania, Halotel Halopesa, TTCL T-Pesa.

## Fun facts

- **Mandated by BoT circular August 2022 (effective September 1, 2022)**: Regulatory-mandate model.
- **EMV QRCPS (EMVCo) basis**: International-standards alignment.
- **Single QR for all customer apps**: Eliminates fragmentation.
- **Bank of Tanzania September 2025 global financial-inclusion award**: TANQR cited.
- **Tanzania's exceptionally fragmented pre-TANQR landscape**: 5+ MNO mobile-money + multiple banks.
- **NMB Bank × Mastercard QR Pay by Link**: Tanzania's first QR PBL.
- **Pairs with TIPS for instant-payment-rail**: Comprehensive payment infrastructure.

## Comparison

| Feature | TANQR (TZ) | [QRIS](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/standards/qris) (ID) | [Thai QR](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/standards/thai-qr) / PromptPay (TH) | [KHQR](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/standards/khqr) (KH) | TANQR & TIPS pairing |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sponsor | BoT | BI + ASPI | BOT | NBC | BoT |
| Type | **National EMV QR standard** | National QR | National QR + ISO 20022 + EMVCo | National payment + QR | TANQR (QR merchant) + TIPS (instant rail) |
| Launch | **Sept 1, 2022** | Aug 2019 | 2016 | Oct 2020 | Both BoT-operated |
| Standard basis | **EMV QRCPS (EMVCo)** | EMVCo MPM/CPM | EMVCo + ISO 20022 | EMVCo + Iroha | EMVCo + interoperable |
| Mandate | **Yes (BoT circular)** | BI mandate | n/a | n/a | TANQR mandatory |

## Status

**Active, mandatory, award-recognised** <sup>[1][1], [2][2], [techafrica]</sup>:
- **BoT sponsor since Sept 1, 2022**.
- **EMV QRCPS basis**.
- **Mandatory FSP + MNO + bank compliance**.
- **Companion rail: TIPS**.
- **September 2025 global financial-inclusion award recognition**.

## Sources

[1]: https://www.bot.go.tz/Publications/Acts,%20Regulations,%20Circulars,%20Guidelines/Guidelines/sw/2022081908570183.pdf "TANQR Code Standard 2022 — BoT"
[2]: https://clickpesa.com/tan-qr-how-does-it-work-and-why-do-you-need-it/ "TAN-QR How It Works — ClickPesa"
[3]: https://www.bot.go.tz/Publications/Acts,%20Regulations,%20Circulars,%20Guidelines/Circulars/en/2022081908435357.pdf "BoT Circular — TANQR"
[nmb]: https://www.mastercard.com/news/eemea/en/newsroom/press-releases/en/2024/october/nmb-bank-plc-proudly-announces-the-launch-of-tanzania-s-first-qr-pay-by-link-qr-pbl-payment-solution-in-collaboration-with-mastercard/ "NMB Bank × Mastercard QR PBL — Mastercard"
[techafrica]: https://techafricanews.com/2025/09/08/bank-of-tanzania-wins-top-global-award-for-financial-inclusion-innovation/ "BoT wins global award — TechAfrica"

- [1] [TANQR Code Standard 2022 — BoT][1]
- [2] [TAN-QR How It Works — ClickPesa][2]
- [3] [BoT Circular — TANQR][3]
- [nmb] [NMB Bank × Mastercard QR PBL — Mastercard][nmb]
- [techafrica] [BoT wins global award — TechAfrica][techafrica]
- <sup>[Tanzania, United Republic of report](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/payments/TZ)</sup> `reports/countries/TZ-tanzania.md`

## Deployments

Found in the following country reports (grep across `reports/countries/`):

- **TZ** — [TZ-tanzania.md](https://docs.barcoder.ai/docs/payments/TZ)