Does `requestGeometryUpdate()` Override Orientation Lock by Design?

Hi everyone,

I've been testing the requestGeometryUpdate() API in iOS, and I noticed something unexpected: it allows orientation changes even when the device’s orientation lock is enabled.

Test Setup:

• Use requestGeometryUpdate() in a SwiftUI sample app to toggle between portrait and landscape (code below).
• Manually enable orientation lock in Control Center.
• Press a button to request an orientation change in sample app.
• Result: The orientation changes even when orientation lock is ON, which seems to override the expected system behavior.

Questions:

• Is this intended behavior?
• Is there official documentation confirming whether this is expected? I haven’t found anything in Apple’s Human Interface Guidelines (HIG) or UIKit documentation that explicitly states this.
• Since this behavior affects a system-wide user setting, could using requestGeometryUpdate() in this way lead to App Store rejection?

Since Apple has historically enforced respecting user settings, I want to clarify whether this approach is compliant.

Would love any official guidance or insights from Apple engineers.

Thanks!

struct ContentView: View {
  @State private var isLandscape = false // Track current orientation state

  var body: some View {
    VStack {
      Text("Orientation Test")
        .font(.title)
        .padding()

      Button(action: toggleOrientation) {
        Text(isLandscape ? "Switch to Portrait" : "Switch to Landscape")
          .bold()
          .padding()
          .background(Color.blue)
          .foregroundColor(.white)
          .cornerRadius(10)
      }
    }
  }

  private func toggleOrientation() {
    guard let scene = UIApplication.shared.connectedScenes.first as? UIWindowScene else {
      print("No valid window scene found")
      return
    }

    // Toggle between portrait and landscape
    let newOrientation: UIInterfaceOrientationMask = isLandscape ? .portrait : .landscapeRight

    let geometryPreferences = UIWindowScene.GeometryPreferences.iOS(interfaceOrientations: newOrientation)

    scene.requestGeometryUpdate(geometryPreferences) { error in
     print("Failed to change orientation: \(error.localizedDescription)")
    }
    self.isLandscape.toggle()
  }
}