terms
A short glossary for hafilat recharge and bus card recharge
Plain-language definitions of terms you may see across the site — nothing more technical than needed.
| Term | What it means here |
|---|---|
| Hafilat card | The contactless smart card used to pay fares on public buses in Abu Dhabi. 10-digit number printed on the front. |
| Bus card recharge | Adding money (AED value) to a hafilat card so the balance is enough to cover future fares. |
| Top up bus card | Same as bus card recharge — the more colloquial version. |
| Nolcard topup | Recharging a nol transit card. On this site the term appears because we help with related inquiries. |
| Nol card recharge | Same as nolcard topup — a top-up for a nol transit card, handled on request. |
| Card category | Standard (Silver), Personal, Senior or Student — determines fare and any registration requirement. |
| Reader tap | Touching the card to a reader on a bus or at a station. Confirms the fare and updates the balance shown. |
| Balance | The AED value stored on the card that is available for the next tap. |
| Payment reference | Unique code returned with each payment. Used to trace a bus card recharge if support is ever needed. |
| Encrypted payment page | The separate page on the payment subdomain where card details are entered — never on the main site. |
| CVV | The 3-digit code on the back of a Visa or Mastercard, requested only on the payment page. |
| Receipt | The email confirmation sent after a successful top-up when an address is provided on the form. |