Clarification on Timing for Critical Alerts Approval in iOS

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Created Jul ’25

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We are currently planning the development of an iOS healthcare application that will require the use of Critical Alerts. I understand that these notifications bypass Do Not Disturb and Silent mode, and therefore require special entitlement from Apple.

We understand that Critical Alerts require a special entitlement from Apple. Could you please clarify: Do we need to request and obtain Apple’s approval for Critical Alerts before we begin development of the app? Or can we apply for this entitlement after we have a working build or prototype ready? We want to ensure compliance and streamline our development process, so any guidance on the appropriate timing for the entitlement request would be greatly appreciated.

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Answer 1

Engineer OP

Apple

Jul ’25

The development process and flow is your business decision and depends on your management of risk of wasted time and management of resources if the entitlement does not come through.

You can start development with regular notifications. The coding for those is identical to critical alerts save for a single property you will add (and a special sound file if you want to play a specific sound). And if you get the entitlement, you can then just turn them into critical alerts very simply.

Alternatively, if you want to develop your app only if you get the entitlement, then you can apply for it and wait, before committing resources to development.

This is a business decision we can't make for you.

You don't need a prototype to apply for the entitlement.

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