UCP AP2 Mandates Extension#

Before writing code#

Fetch live spec:

• Web-search site:ucp.dev specification ap2-mandates for the extension schema
• Fetch https://ucp.dev/2026-01-23/documentation/ucp-and-ap2/ for the conceptual relationship
• Web-search site:ap2-protocol.org for the AP2 protocol specification

Conceptual Architecture#

What AP2 Enables#

AP2 (Agent Payments Protocol) enables fully autonomous agent commerce — the agent can authorize payments cryptographically without requiring real-time human approval for each transaction. The user pre-authorizes spending parameters, and the agent proves authorization via signed credentials.

Two Mandate Artifacts#

1. Checkout Mandate ( ap2.checkout_mandate): An SD-JWT+kb (Selective Disclosure JWT with Key Binding) credential that proves the user authorized the agent to complete this specific checkout at these specific terms.

2. Payment Mandate ( payment_data.token): A separate credential proving payment authorization, verified by the PSP (not the Business).

Merchant Authorization#

Before the Platform generates mandates, the Business must sign the checkout terms:

• Format: JWS Detached Content (RFC 7515 Appendix F) — <header>..<signature>
• Canonicalization: JSON Canonicalization Scheme (RFC 8785)
• Algorithms: ES256, ES384, ES512 (elliptic curve)

The Business returns this merchant_authorization in the checkout response.

7-Step Flow#

1. Discovery — Business publishes AP2 support in capabilities
2. Session Activation — Platform signals AP2 intent
3. Business Signing — Business returns checkout + merchant_authorization (JWS detached content)
4. Authorization Generation — Platform creates CheckoutMandate (SD-JWT-VC) + PaymentMandate
5. Submission — Platform sends both mandates in the complete_checkout call
6. Verification — Business verifies checkout mandate; PSP verifies payment mandate
7. Confirmation — Order confirmed

Security Lock#

Once AP2 is negotiated for a checkout session, a Security Lock is activated: neither party may revert to a standard (non-AP2) checkout flow for that session. This prevents downgrade attacks where a malicious actor could bypass the cryptographic mandate requirements by falling back to a simpler payment flow.

Error Codes#

AP2-specific errors:

• mandate_required — AP2 mandates needed but not provided
• agent_missing_key — Agent's signing key not found
• mandate_invalid_signature — Signature verification failed
• mandate_expired — Mandate past validity window
• mandate_scope_mismatch — Mandate doesn't match checkout terms
• merchant_authorization_invalid — Business signature invalid
• merchant_authorization_missing — Business didn't sign terms

Implementation Guidance#

This is the most complex UCP extension. Before implementing:

1. Understand SD-JWT-VC (Selective Disclosure JWT Verifiable Credentials) — this is the credential format
2. Understand JWS Detached Content (RFC 7515 Appendix F) — this is the merchant signing format
3. Understand JSON Canonicalization (RFC 8785) — deterministic JSON serialization for signing
4. Fetch the latest AP2 protocol spec from https://ap2-protocol.org for the full mandate lifecycle
5. Check the conformance test suite: https://github.com/Universal-Commerce-Protocol/conformance (ap2_test.py)

This extension is intended for advanced autonomous agent scenarios. Most initial implementations should start with standard payment handlers (Google Pay, Shop Pay) before adding AP2.