I received a Pending Termination Notice on October 26, 2026, and I’m trying to understand how the reason given by Apple matches the actual review history of my account.
I have been an independent iOS developer for more than 9 years. I released my first app in August 2017 and have been maintaining and updating my apps ever since. This is not a temporary hobby for me — it is my main work and how I support myself and my family.
The notice says that app submissions from my account have “repeatedly violated the App Review Guidelines in an attempt to evade the review process,” and that after multiple resubmissions the violations remained unresolved.
This notice appeared only in one of my apps. My other apps have not received the same notice.
The initial version 1.0 was submitted in April 2025 and went through several rejections before approval. Unfortunately, I can no longer see the full details of those older review messages in App Store Connect, so I am reconstructing this from what I remember.
The rejections were mainly related to App Store screenshots and metadata. For example, one review indicated that my screenshots did not show enough of the actual app experience and were too focused on marketing-style content, so I changed them to show more of the real app interface.
Another issue involved content shown inside one of the screenshots. One screenshot initially included an image of a man and woman kissing. I replaced it with a different image showing a marriage proposal, but that was also rejected. I then changed the screenshot/text again, submitted a new build, and the app was eventually approved.
During this process I was not repeatedly submitting the same unchanged version. I was making changes based on App Review feedback, including changes to the screenshots, metadata, and app binary, until version 1.0 passed review.
After that, I released:
• v1.0.1 — approved April 28, 2025
• v1.0.2 — approved May 5, 2025
• v1.0.3 — approved May 27, 2025
• v1.0.4 — approved August 7, 2025
All four updates passed review without rejection.
I did not submit another update to this app after August 2025. More than one year later, I suddenly received the termination notice.
This is the part I cannot understand: if the violations remained unresolved and I was repeatedly attempting to evade review, why was the original app approved after the requested changes, followed by four additional approved versions?
I have never intentionally hidden functionality from App Review, used a special reviewer-only paywall, or tried to bypass the review process. I have always tried to follow App Review feedback and correct issues when they were raised.
I received the notice late at night and submitted an appeal as quickly as I could because of how serious the situation was for me. I am currently waiting for a response. After reviewing the full history more carefully the next day, I realized there was additional context and timeline information that I was not able to explain clearly in the initial appeal, which is why I am including it here.
After more than 9 years of maintaining my developer account in good standing, the possibility of losing all of my apps and years of work is extremely serious for me.
I’m posting here in case anyone has experienced a similar situation, or if someone from Apple can help ensure that the account and its actual review history receive a careful manual review.