Retrieve Shopify Vaulted ID from ShopFront API later during checkout

Shopify Apps

Topic summary

Issue: An app on an offline selling stand (machine) uses a Shopify card reader and Storefront API (no POS app). After a customer taps their card, the developer assumes the card is immediately stored (vaulted) on Shopify’s servers. Minutes later, the customer selects products and the app creates a checkout via GraphQL, aiming to attach the previously vaulted payment method.

Key questions:

  • How to retrieve the vaulted card ID/token associated with the earlier tap using the Storefront API (or any other API)?
  • Is a separate custom payment app on Shopify’s servers required to access or link this vaulted token to the checkout?

Context/terms:

  • “Vaulted” = tokenized card stored securely for later use.
  • Storefront API = GraphQL API used to build custom storefronts and create checkouts.
  • No Shopify POS app is used; Shopify Payments is enabled.

Status: No answers yet; guidance on retrieving the vaulted token and integration approach remains open.

Summarized with AI on January 9. AI used: gpt-5.
1

Hi,
I have a question on how to retrieve a vaulted card Id using shopfront API.
I am using Shopify Payment system without using POS system.

I have an offline selling stand (machine) with a shopify card reader attached. I develop an app with shopfront api which is deployed in the stand without using a POS app. my use case is like this:
First, the customer tabs the credit card on the shopify card reader and I assume the credit card info is stored on shopify vault on the server (immediately) afterward.
Later (within a few seconds or minutes) the customer selects few products on the stand, I then create a checkout graphql query in my shopyfront API app and now I would like to link the payment method (ID) to the above vaulted credit card to complete the transaction.
My question is how I could query within shopfront API (or by any other means) to get this vaulted ID (token) to complete the checkout? Do I need to write a separate custom payment app stored on the shopify server to achieve this goal?
Thanks a lot for your help.

Steven