An ITMS-91061: Missing privacy manifest rejection email looks as follows: ITMS-91061: Missing privacy manifest- Your app includes "<path/to/SDK>", which includes , an SDK that was identified in the documentation as a privacy-impacting third-party SDK. Starting February 12, 2025, if a new app includes a privacy-impacting SDK, or an app update adds a new privacy-impacting SDK, the SDK must include a privacy manifest file. Please contact the provider of the SDK that includes this file to get an updated SDK version with a privacy manifest. For more details about this policy, including a list of SDKs that are required to include signatures and manifests, visit: https://developer.apple.com/support/third-party-SDK-requirements. Glossary ITMS-91061: Missing privacy manifest: An email that includes the name and path of privacy-impacting SDK(s) with no privacy manifest files in your app bundle. For more information, see https://developer.apple.com/support/third-party-SDK-requirements. : The specified privacy-impacting SDK that doesn't include a privacy manifest file. If you are the developer of the rejected app, gather the name of the SDK from the email you received from Apple, then contact the SDK's provider for an updated version that includes a valid privacy manifest. After receiving an updated version of the SDK, verify the SDK includes a valid privacy manifest file at the expected location. For more information, see Adding a privacy manifest to your app or third-party SDK. If your app includes a privacy manifest file, make sure the file only describes the privacy practices of your app. Do not add the privacy practices of the SDK to your app's privacy manifest. If the email lists multiple SDKs, repeat the above process for all of them. If you are the developer of an SDK listed in the email, publish an updated version of your SDK that includes a privacy manifest file with valid keys and values. Every privacy-impacting SDK must contain a privacy manifest file that only describes its privacy practices. To learn how to add a valid privacy manifest to your SDK, see the Additional resources section below. Additional resources Privacy manifest files Describing data use in privacy manifests Describing use of required reason API Adding a privacy manifest to your app or third-party SDK TN3182: Adding privacy tracking keys to your privacy manifest TN3183: Adding required reason API entries to your privacy manifest TN3184: Adding data collection details to your privacy manifest TN3181: Debugging an invalid privacy manifest

In this post, we'll share tips to help you submit apps that deliver original ideas to your users. When working on your app, focus on creating interesting, unique experiences that aren't already available. Apps that actively try to copy other apps won't pass review, and accounts that repeatedly submit copycat apps or attempt to impersonate a service will be closed. The rules that prevent copycat and impersonator apps from being distributed on the App Store are described in App Review Guideline 4.1: 4.1 Copycats (a) Come up with your own ideas. We know you have them, so make yours come to life. Don’t simply copy the latest popular app on the App Store, or make some minor changes to another app’s name or UI and pass it off as your own. In addition to risking an intellectual property infringement claim, it makes the App Store harder to navigate and just isn’t fair to your fellow developers. (b) Submitting apps which impersonate other apps or services is considered a violation of the Developer Code of Conduct and may result in removal from the Apple Developer Program.(c) You cannot use another developer’s icon, brand, or product name in your app’s icon or name, without approval from the developer. These requirements help make the App Store both a safe place for people to discover apps and a platform for all developers to be successful. Best Practices Here are three best practices that will help you submit apps that follow App Review Guideline 4.1: 1. Submit apps with unique content and features. People want apps that provide unique experiences. Find areas that aren't currently being served and build compelling apps for those audiences. Do: Create apps that provide a new experience or a unique spin on an existing concept. Design original, delightful interfaces that elegantly meet your user's needs. Don't: Don’t imitate the features and functionality of other apps. Don’t copy the look and feel of other apps, such as using an identical user interface design. 2. Make sure App Store metadata only contains relevant information and content you either own or have permission to use. The metadata provided in App Store Connect is used to populate your app's product page on the App Store. People rely on this metadata to learn about your app and what it has to offer. Leveraging the popularity of another brand or app, either by including irrelevant references or protected content, is misleading and won't help your app succeed. Do: Use engaging, descriptive language to describe your unique app. Create original content that best represents your app, such as screenshots showing the actual app in use. Don't: Don't use protected material you do not have the necessary permission to use, such as app icons that are similar to icons of a popular app. Don’t include irrelevant references, such as popular app names or trademarked terms, in any metadata fields. 3. Provide information that is authentic and verifiable. People want to know the developers behind their favorite apps are who they say they are. It's important to continually review and provide up-to-date information, including the developer or company name listed on your Apple Developer Program account, the Support URL listed on your app's product page, and other helpful information. This will enable your users to contact you when they need help and it will also hinder people who may try to impersonate you, your app, or your service. Do: Make sure all information, resources, and documentation related to your account and apps are current and accurate. Don't: Don’t provide inaccurate information or resources, such as directing people to outdated support pages. Don’t provide fraudulent documentation. Accounts that submit fraudulent documentation will be removed from the Apple Developer Program. Support Incorporating these best practices into your app's development will help you submit apps that follow App Review Guideline 4.1. If you need additional assistance, consider taking advantage of one of the following support options available from App Review: If your submission has been rejected, reply to the message from App Review in App Store Connect and request clarification. Request an App Review Appointment to discuss the results of our review. Appointments are subject to availability, and take place during local business hours in your region on Tuesdays and Thursdays. If you believe your app follows the App Review Guidelines, consider submitting an appeal to the App Review Board. Resources Learn about foundational design principles from Apple designers and the developer community. Learn how to create engaging App Store product pages. Note that apps that violate intellectual property rights are subject to removal through the App Store Content Dispute process. If you believe an app on the App Store violates your intellectual property rights, you can submit a claim.

应用ID(id6754838125), A week has passed since I added in-app purchases to the already listed application, but it's still under review and I haven't received any result. I sent an email to inquire and asked me to keep waiting We used Contacts Us There is no result. 2. The call has been made for expedited review. It was submitted on December 11th and is still under review Previously, the result of the app review was available within 48 hours Now, I don't know what solutions can be made to this problem. The company is in a hurry and needs to use the App to release a new movie

I would like to ask for clarification regarding my app submission with Submission ID: d293828f-8f9a-4a6d-b138-9650258ab3f3, which has been in “Waiting for Review” status for more than 7 days. I understand that review times may vary depending on queue volume and other factors. However, this extended waiting period is impacting our release timeline, and there have been no status updates or requests for additional information. Could you please help check the status of this submission or let us know if any further action is required from our side? Thank you for your time and support. I look forward to your response.

My app's Custom Product Page (CPP) submission has been stuck in "Waiting for Review" since its initial submission on Decemberr 28th, for over two weeks now. Key Timeline and Troubleshooting: Initial Wait and Self-Check: Initially thought it was a normal queue, but there was no progress after several days. Comprehensive Troubleshooting: I have confirmed: Developer account agreements and tax status are normal/valid. This CPP is associated only with the live, published version of the app and is not linked to any pending new version. There are no "Issues to Resolve" prompts in the App Store Connect backend. Attempted Standard Solutions: I have tried "Withdraw and Resubmit" multiple times. The operation completes successfully, but the status always reverts to "Waiting for Review" and never progresses to "In Review". Contacted Official Support: I have reported this issue multiple times through the App Store Connect "Contact Us" form and via email, explaining the suspected technical fault. However, I have not received any substantive feedback. My Core Question: Could this possibly indicate that my account or this specific CPP submission has encountered some rare "lock" or data synchronization failure within the backend system? APP INFORMATIONS APP NAME:Phàm Nhân Ngự Linh Truyện OEG APP ID:com.oeg.bgyn.ios CPP SUBMISSION ID:8e5813d2-c823-4168-a2c3-7030230f11c7 I'm reaching out in desperation because this review delay has already forced us to postpone a critical marketing campaign by nearly 20 days. I'm at my wit's end and genuinely don't know what else to do. Any guidance or insight from the community would be a lifesaver—this situation is putting my job at serious risk. Please, if anyone can help, I would be immensely grateful

Dear Apple Support Team, I am adding new subscriptions to my app and tried to submit them for review. However, I received the following error message: "Your subscription could not be submitted for review. Please provide a privacy URL in App Privacy." I have already provided the privacy URL and changed nothing in the past.. Could you please advise how to resolve this issue so I can submit my new subscriptions for review? Thank you for your assistance. Best regards :)

Hi, at first I submitted an app where you asked for a way to review everything while you mentioned a demo mode would be fine. I added a demo mode and submitted the app together with in-app purchases. Now you are asking for an actual API token for an external service which I cannot provide. I responded with the info about the demo mode. The next review was rejected because the in-app purchases are kind of lost. I cannot map them. Next re-submit was rejected because the in-app purchases are missing. The in-app purchases are stuck in a waiting status. Please do whatever you need to do to either release the in-app and let me map them again or map them yourself. Regards, Vitali

Hi, I am in need of your help with publishing my game. I got the following explanation for the negative review of my app/game. Issue Description One or more purpose strings in the app do not sufficiently explain the use of protected resources. Purpose strings must clearly and completely describe the app's use of data and, in most cases, provide an example of how the data will be used. Next Steps Update the local network information purpose string to explain how the app will use the requested information and provide a specific example of how the data will be used. See the attached screenshot. Resources Purpose strings must clearly describe how an app uses the ability, data, or resource. The following are hypothetical examples of unclear purpose strings that would not pass review: "App would like to access your Contacts" "App needs microphone access" See examples of helpful, informative purpose strings. The problem is that they say my app asks to allow my app to find devices on local networks. And that this needs more explanation in the purpose strings. Totally valid to ask, but the problem is my app doesn't need local access to devices, and there shouldn't be code that asks this?? FYI the game is build with Unity. Would love some help on how to turn this off so that my app can get published.

Hello everyone, I’ll be honest with you, the kind of honesty that comes when you’ve run out of places to turn. My name is Donovan, I’m a French student, and I’m writing here because at this point, I truly don’t know what else to do Two years ago, I started a small project to learn mobile development. Nothing ambitious at first just a personal exercise, a way to grow. But after countless late nights, weekends sacrificed, and lines of code no one will ever see… that small project became a real application. I finished it. Refined it. Carried it like something that genuinely mattered. And for the past two months, I’ve been fighting with App Review. Always for the same reason: Guideline 4.3(b) – Design – Spam. Each time, I respond. Each time, I explain. But each time, the door closes with the same cold, impersonal message: “We encourage you to reconsider your app concept and submit a new app that provides a unique experience not already found on the App Store.” Unique. Such an easy word to use… especially when no one seems willing to look closely at what’s actually in front of them. My application is a dating app, yes. I know there are many on the App Store. But I implemented a feature that no other dating app currently provides, and more importantly: the app is 100% free, no paywallsno mandatory subscription. As far as I know, there is no completely free dating application on the App Store. I even added features that were never planned, just to avoid being dismissed as “spam.” But nothing has changed. Two years of work. Two years of progressing 4–5 hours per week, between classes, exams, and everything else life throws your way. And now, it feels like all of that can be wiped away by a single generic sentence. So here I am, turning to you, the developer community, the only people who truly understand what it means to run into an invisible wall. I need your help. Your advice, your experiences, your strategies. How can I get Apple to finally accept my app? How can I avoid throwing away two year of work because of a vague, unexplained guideline? Thank you in advance to anyone who takes the time to reply

It's been a week waiting for the review Despite requesting a quick review and contacting technical support via email, there has been no change so far. What can I do? Apple ID: 6756184295

Hello, I submitted an app update (submission ID: 3bbbd08f-6ca9-40a2-bdc1-a2f33061f647) that was rejected for Guideline 4.0 - Design (about ad frequency issues). The rejection message included this option: "The issues we've identified below are eligible to be resolved on your next update. If this submission includes bug fixes and you'd like to have it approved at this time, reply to this message and let us know." I replied on December 11 at 10:21 PM asking to approve the current version as a bug fix, and that I would address the ad frequency in my next update. It's now been over 35 hours with no response. Should I resubmit my binary for review? Typically, when I reply to the App Review message in such a scenario, my app gets approved in a few hours.

Guideline 3.2.1 - Business - Other Business Model Issues - Acceptable The seller and company names associated with your app do not reflect the financial institute name "Payments" in the app or its metadata, as required by Guideline 3.2.1(viii) of the App Store Review Guidelines. How can I solve this issue? Where will I find Seller Name and Company Name? Do I required to provide same company/organization name as app name? Can anybody provide me steps about how to solve this issue? For now I am using individual account. Do I need to change it to organization account?

Hello, I recently was rejected for the following reason: However, your app does not comply with: Legal 5.1.1 We noticed that your app requires users to register with personal information to access the app’s content and purchase in-app purchase products that are not account based. Apps cannot require user registration prior to allowing access to app content and features that are not associated specifically to the user. User registration that requires the sharing of personal information must be optional or tied to account-specific functionality. To resolve this issue, please revise your app to not require users to register before purchasing in-app purchase products that are not account based. You may explain to the user that registering will enable them to access the purchased content from any of their iOS devices and provide them a way to register at any time, if they wish to later extend access to additional devices. Resources See guideline 5.1.1(v) - Account Sign-In to learn more about our requirements for apps with account-based content and features. I replied: We require the user to login/sign up because it relates directly to the core functionality of our App. If the user deletes the App and chooses to reinstall it, his data will be saved on our server because the sign up system allows their data to be saved. This allows the User to restore all his in-app purchases and for our database to always keep track of the User’ in-app purchased consumable items. Apple requires a restore feature for in app purchases and we allow the user to restore his in app purchases by tying their account to an email or social media login. The login is required to prevent users from hacking the app. The diamond and coin systems are stored on our back end database servers. Once a user logins in, the back end stores how much coins and diamonds are associated with that account. This prevents users from manually altering how many coins or diamonds they have. It preserves the integrity of the app and the Apple App Store itself. Our servers store all user progression and data. Without the login / sign up system, we cannot sync the back end database. The login / sign up feature is crucial to the functionality of the app to prevent hacking and to keep track of the users database and more importantly, keep account and restore capabilities available for any in app purchases. To which the review board responded with: Although requesting that users register to for tracking users’ purchases and game progresses is acceptable, requiring users to fully register for an account before entering the game is not. Users should be allowed to access none account-based features before registration and login. You may also choose to alert users that accessing game without binding an account may result in losing game progress or in-app purchase items. To resolve this issue, please revise your app to let users freely access your app’s non account-based features, such as accessing the game, prior to registration or login. Once the user decides to use account-based features, the app may present the registration or login feature at that time. My understanding is this... I need to implement a "play as guest" mode where Users do not need to register. This will automatically generate an account for that User. However, am I allowed to require the user to register before conducting any in-app purchases, or other activities on the app?? What is this asking for? Do I need to allow the guest user to be able to purchase and do all the things a registered user can?

Hi there. I work for a company that develops a SaaS service. Users have to register before using the SaaS as all the data they save in the application must be linked to their account. Why that? Because it is a multi-platform SaaS currently running on web and Android, so, the user must have access to his/her contents on every platform he/she intends to use. Also, some features depend on our back-end system to process the data and return an analysis based on them. That said, Apple is rejecting our app claiming that we should not require the user to register an account before purchasing a subscription. The problem is: how can the user store their data in our servers without an account? We do offer a free tier account, but the users must be logged in to have access to their data and have the analysis performed by the back-end service. Does anybody have gone through a similar issue? I need clarifications on how to solve this. Thanks in advance.

Hi Apple Staff / App Review Team, We’re following up because we haven’t received a substantive reply to our previous forum post or our messages in App Store Connect. Context (unchanged): Our last update focused on performance/stability, bug fixes, and numeric balance tuning (difficulty/rewards). We also added a small, user-initiated News panel (globe icon in the main menu) that displays one static announcement image and can be closed at any time. There are no links, no navigation, no login/UGC/ads, and no executable content in that panel. We don’t collect personal data (no IDFA/ATT). Safeguards already in place: Post-release changes are restricted to numeric balance values only (no feature toggles, no navigation changes). The announcement is strictly read-only (one static asset from our own domain) with an offline fallback. Internal release policy forbids any post-review feature switches or concept changes. What we’re asking for: Specific guidance on what observation(s) led to the 3.2(f) determination. Whether a resubmission under the constraints above is acceptable (we can tighten further if preferred). We’re ready to provide any materials immediately and submit a new build as soon as we receive direction. Thank you for your help—could you please escalate or advise on next steps?

My app updates are repeatedly rejected under Guideline 2.3.6 – Accurate Metadata, with a request to remove “Age Assurance” unless the feature can be located. However, the app does include age assurance. During onboarding, users must enter their date of birth, and users under 16 are blocked from completing registration and using the app. The app contains a women’s health blog and a community Q&A feature (similar to Reddit), where users can ask and answer health-related questions. For this reason, I am considering restricting access to users 18 and older. Each time I explain this to the review team and provide a screenshot of the DOB screen, the app is approved. What is the correct way to document or surface this in App Store Connect so reviewers can easily find it and avoid repeated rejections? Is a DOB gate sufficient for Apple’s definition of Age Assurance?

I am submitting an app to the App Store and want to understand the best way to handle keywords that include special characters. If a keyword has accents like coração and users may search for coracao without accents, should I include both versions or rely on Apple to match them automatically?

Hello, We have completed the Age Rating confirmation form and submitted it successfully. Additionally, we increased the app version, rebuilt, and uploaded a new build as recommended. However, we still received the email stating that “Your app requires additional information”. Could you please confirm whether any further action is required on our side, or if this is a known issue on App Store Connect? Thank you.

Hi everyone, We just received another App Store rejection under Guideline 3.1.3 - Business - Payments - Other Purchase Methods, stating that we are using in-app purchases to sell physical goods — specifically, a physical QR code sent to the user. However, in our latest build, this issue was already addressed: All physical QR code purchases are now handled entirely through Stripe Checkout, outside of the app. No consumable IAPs are used for physical goods. The purchase flow is completely optional - users can tap “Continue” to skip it and still use the app without ever engaging with Stripe or purchasing anything physical. We’re a small team trying to launch and are stuck in a loop where it seems like the rejection feedback might not reflect the latest build with not clear feedback from Apple. Has anyone experienced something similar? Would really appreciate any guidance or insight — or if anyone from Apple is here, we’re happy to jump on a call to clarify. Thanks in advance!

Hello, I’m preparing a macOS app for App Store submission, and I have a question regarding whether including an extra executable inside the app bundle is permitted under the App Store Review Guidelines. My app would include a command-line tool placed inside the bundle, such as: MyApp.app/Contents/MacOS/ or MyApp.app/Contents/Resources/ The purpose of this tool is to help users collect hardware/system information for troubleshooting or error reporting. Importantly: The app never launches this executable automatically. It never runs in the background. It is intended to run only when the user chooses to run it manually. The intended workflow is: The executable is shipped inside the app bundle. When needed, the app simply informs the user where the tool is located. The user manually executes it—either by double-clicking in Finder or by running it from Terminal. The executable runs independently, and the app does not trigger, spawn, or control the process. My questions are: Is this approach allowed under the macOS App Store Review Guidelines? Could this be considered “executing external code,” a sandbox violation, or otherwise lead to rejection during App Review? Does App Review allow a tool that is bundled with the app but executed manually by the user outside of the app itself? Additionally, if there is any official documentation or guideline from Apple that specifically addresses this scenario—or similar restrictions around including executables inside a macOS App Store app bundle—I would greatly appreciate a link. If anyone has experience with this or knows how App Review typically handles this type of setup, I’d be grateful for any insight. Thank you!

I have a watch only app that display an open/close park status and the current temperature with a current condition icon. That's it. On second submission the watch app was rejected due to no WeatherKit attribution. I have a lack of clarity of what's needed. With my single view that display my content I don't want WeatherKit attribution to overwhelm what's being presented to the user. I've tried looking for watch apps in the store that provide attribution and I'm not finding any. Looking for advice on how to meet this requirement without attribution overpowering my content.

A month ago, a company filed a false complaint against one of my apps. I contacted Apple and informed them that this was untrue, uploading videos and screenshots proving that my account and apps comply with Apple's policies and that the complaint was baseless. Despite this, I was surprised to find all my apps deleted and my account flagged for deletion in the following days. What should I do? I've been wronged, and I've submitted numerous complaints and contacted technical support by phone and email, but so far, I haven't received any response or attention.