Wallet Disappeared from Apple Watch

I have been having an issue with wallet on my apple watch. It started when I got a new phone with the iPhone 16 launch. It continued when I got a new Apple watch for Christmas. I finally resolved it and wanted to share what worked for others who may be having the same issue.

Problem: After syncing watch to new phone, my watch would no longer allow me to double click to pay. It would not do anything at all when double clicking the side button (I’ve paid by watch for years). On the Watch App on the phone, all of my cards were added appropriately and showed in the app. On the watch, the wallet app was missing completely.

I paired and erased and re-paired my watch 5 times and this never worked. I played with settings for hours - no luck. When I went to the app store on the watch and searched for Wallet, it showed it was on my watch. It said Open but not Install, however it would not do anything at all when clicking Open.

I tried a combo of tips and this is what I think did it.

1 - force restart your watch by holding down both the side button and crown for about 5 seconds.

2 - once force restarted, go to app store on your watch and search for Wallet. Click on Open.

I did this and the open button actually worked, bringing up the wallet allowing me to pay. Once I went back to home screen, it once again allowed me to double click to pay!

I hope this helps.