Getting started with Web Distribution in the EU
Web Distribution, available in iOS 17.5 beta 2, lets authorized developers distribute their iOS apps to users in the European Union (EU) directly from a website owned by the developer. Apple will provide access to APIs that facilitate the distribution of developers’ apps from the web, integrate with system functionality, back up and restore users’ apps, and more. Apps offered through Web Distribution must meet Notarization requirements to protect platform integrity, like all iOS apps, and can only be installed from a website domain that the developer has registered in App Store Connect.
Using App Store Connect, developers can easily download signed binary assets and host them on their website for distribution. To install apps from a developer’s website, users will first need to approve the developer to install apps in Settings on their iPhone. When installing an app, a system sheet will display information that developers have submitted to Apple for review, like the app name, developer name, app description, screenshots, and system age rating.
Eligibility and requirements
Distributing apps directly from a website requires responsibility for and oversight of the user experience, including the ability to manage apps and provide customer support and refunds. Apple will authorize developers after meeting specific criteria and committing to ongoing requirements that help protect users.
If you’re interested in using Web Distribution, the Account Holder of your Apple Developer Program membership will first need to agree to the Alternative Terms Addendum for Apps in the EU. Once they’ve agreed, they can submit a request for access. To be eligible for Web Distribution, you must:
- Be enrolled in the Apple Developer Program as an organization incorporated, domiciled, and/or registered in the EU (or have a subsidiary legal entity incorporated, domiciled, and or registered in the EU that’s listed in App Store Connect). The location associated with your legal entity is listed in your Apple Developer account.
- Be a member in good standing of the Apple Developer Program for two continuous years or more, and have an app that had more than one million first annual installs on iOS in the EU in the prior calendar year.
- Agree to, among other things,
- Only offer apps from your developer account.
- Be responsive to communications from Apple regarding your apps distributed through Web Distribution, particularly regarding any fraudulent, malicious, or illegal behavior, or anything else that Apple believes impacts the safety, security, or privacy of users.
- Publish transparent data collection policies and offer users control over how their data is collected and used.
- Follow applicable laws of the jurisdictions where you operate (for example, the Digital Services Act, the General Data Protection Regulation, and consumer protection laws).
- Be responsible for handling governmental and other requests regarding your apps.
Payments, fees, and taxes
Core Technology Fee
The Core Technology Fee (CTF) is an element of the business terms in the EU that reflects the value Apple provides developers through ongoing investments in the tools, technologies, and services that enable them to build and share innovative apps with users around the world.
- Membership in the Apple Developer Program includes one million first annual installs per year for free for apps distributed from the App Store, alternative marketplaces, and/or Web Distribution.
- Developers will pay a CTF of €0.50 for each first annual install over one million in the past 12 months.
Learn more about the Core Technology Fee
Fee waiver
Nonprofit organizations, accredited educational institutions, or government entities based in the EU that have been approved for a fee waiver are exempt from the Apple Developer Program annual membership fee and the Core Technology Fee.
Learn more about the fee waiver
Taxes
It will be your responsibility to collect, report, and remit any required tax to the appropriate tax authorities for transactions that take place using Web Distribution.