Hello community, I'm new here, so please excuse my blunt question. I'm trying to understand how everything works and the logic behind it. I have an idea for an app which requires the FamilyControl entitlement. Now I am not sure if the idea even works, so I wanted to test it on my own device. Am I correct, that I cannot even test an App with such entitlements without paying for the ADP? Not even on my own device? I completely understand I need to be a member in the ADP if I want to distribute my app, but I'm not there, yet, and I just want to do a proof-of-concept. I thought I can't be the first one with that question, but couldn't find a past topic on this, so I'm posting it. Regards, Niklas

I already waited 4 weeks to get family control entitlement for my bundle ID : com.company.my-cool-app While trying to distribute the app, Its forcing me to have provisioning profile for com.company.my-cool-app.ReportExtension and when I create the provisioning profile it says : doesn't include the com.apple.developer.family-controls entitlement.

I’m attempting to run Apple’s ScreenTime API while my app is in the background When debugging on a device my background restrictions functionality works, but on TestFlight it does not. This is the error message when analyzing the device in XCodes Console BackgroundTaskSuspended. Background entitlement: NO When the proper entitlements are added this error doesn't allow for the build to be uploaded to TestFlight. Provisioning profile "iOS Team Provisioning Profile: com.xxx.xxx" doesn't include the UIBackgroundModes entitlement. I have the proper entries in the “Signing and Capabilities” of the project, but my functionality will not run in the background when the app is not launched. I just need a function to run that calls Apple's ScreenTime API while my app is in the background. Other apps have achieved the functionality I’m looking for so I know it’s possible, but this is the roadblock I’m running into.

Hi Apple Developer Community, I'm experiencing an issue with Family Controls entitlements for my iOS app that I'd like to discuss and see if others have encountered similar problems. Background: My app (BrightStart) uses Family Controls to help users build healthy morning routines by temporarily blocking distracting apps until they complete a sunlight exposure session. The core functionality relies on automatic time-based blocking (e.g., block social media apps from 6-8am daily). The Problem: I have Family Controls working perfectly in development builds, but I'm blocked from distributing via TestFlight due to entitlement issues with my Device Activity Monitor extension. Technical Details: Main app bundle ID: app.brightstart.app ✅ Has both "Family Controls (Development)" and "Family Controls (Distribution)" options available Extension bundle ID: app.brightstart.app.BrightStartMonitorExtension ❌ Only shows "Family Controls (Development)" - no Distribution option Error when archiving for TestFlight: ❌ Provisioning profile failed qualification Profile doesn't support Family Controls (Development). Family Controls (Development) feature is for development only. Please use Family Controls (Distribution) for distribution. Impact: Cannot upload to TestFlight for beta testing Native FamilyActivityPicker falls back to mock UI in distributed builds Automatic scheduled app blocking (via DeviceActivityMonitor) doesn't function in production Questions for the community: Has anyone successfully gotten "Family Controls (Distribution)" enabled for a Device Activity Monitor extension? Is this a known limitation, or should I expect this option to be available? Are there alternative approaches for time-based automatic app blocking that work in distribution builds? Should I contact Apple Support directly about enabling this entitlement for the extension? Btw, Cursor wrote this summary above, so it could be just hallucinating the issue? Would really appreciate anyone's thoughts here.

Hello everyone, I'm hoping to find a solution for a critical issue that is blocking my app's submission to the App Store. My app uses the Screen Time API and therefore has a main app and a DeviceActivityMonitor extension. The main app has been successfully granted the Family Controls (Distribution) entitlement. However, the DeviceActivityMonitor extension is stuck with only the Family Controls (Development) entitlement. This mismatch causes my build to fail during the archive/distribution process with the error: "Provisioning profile failed qualification. Profile doesn't support Family Controls (Development)." This is a hard blocker, as the extension is a mandatory part of the API. I have already filled out the entitlement request form and also contacted Developer Support (Case #102666581576), who confirmed they could not assist and directed me here. My question is: What is the correct procedure to escalate or resolve the issue of a required extension not receiving the distribution-level Family Controls entitlement after the main app has already been approved? Has anyone else encountered this specific "Development" vs. "Distribution" mismatch and found a definitive way to resolve it? Any guidance would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!

I work at a school in NYC and have a software idea that could better support the new NYC phone ban law than current market options (i.e. Yondr pouches). Right now at my school, students and staff scan a QR code upon entering the building to indicate that they are in the building. They scan again on the way out to indicate they've left the building. This is super helpful for attendance, particularly in emergency situations (fire drills, etc). Imagine if when students scanned their QR code, it also activated an app similar to Opal or ScreenZen, but with an admin preset whitelisted apps. The idea is that this app would default deny access to all apps on students' phones except the admin preset whitelisted ones such as Phone, Calculator, etc. Depending on the age/needs of the student, other apps like Spotify, or medical apps could also be whitelisted. My question is -- is this idea possible to create? We would need admin preset controls to create the preset whitelist. We can't have students picking their own restrictions, as we know most would opt to not restrict at all. We would need an admin dashboard so teachers/admin can see which students have activated the app in the building, and which may be trying to sneakily avoid it. We would ideally need to be able to whitelist both system apps like Phone and Calculator, as well as non-system apps such as Spotify (and medical apps -- we have some students who manage/monitor their Diabetes with an app). I don't have a background in software. I'm a math and health teacher. I've experimented with trying to have friends who majored in CS to create this app for me, but they've all either struggled/lost interest. So I'm also looking for a business partner in this venture. If anyone has any guidance here, it would be so helpful! My boss (Head of School) is super interested in this idea and significantly prefers it to every other alternative that he has encountered. The problem is this idea does not exist yet! Note: I know this is a super similar idea to the app and product "Brick". Notably, though, Brick does not have the ability for admin preset controls, or the admin dashboard. We reached out to the company to see if they're create this for us and they said it's a back burner idea that they're aware of, but it's not a priority for them right now. Thank you for any guidance!

I'm stuck in an impossible situation with DeviceActivityReportExtension on iOS 18. THE ISSUE: Configuration that works on device (iOS 18.2): Info.plist has only NSExtensionPointIdentifier Swift code uses u/main attribute App installs and runs perfectly Extension works correctly App Store validation FAILS: "Missing NSExtensionPrincipalClass" Adding NSExtensionPrincipalClass (as validation requests): Device installation FAILS with Error 3002 Error says: "NSExtensionPrincipalClass key is not allowed for this extension point" Cannot test on device Validation would likely pass ENVIRONMENT: Xcode 16.2 iOS 18.2 Extension point: com.apple.deviceactivityui.report-extension EVIDENCE IT'S WIDESPREAD: Apple Forums (3 days ago): https://developer.apple.com/forums/thread/812380 Stack Overflow (1+ year): https://stackoverflow.com/questions/77866230/ ROOT CAUSE: iOS 18 changed this extension to use u/main pattern (no NSExtensionPrincipalClass needed). App Store validation hasn't been updated and still expects iOS 17 configuration. WHAT I'VE TRIED: ✅ All deployment targets set to iOS 18.3 ✅ Code follows Apple's WWDC 2022 guidance ✅ All entitlements correct ✅ Info.plist validated ✅ Clean builds ✅ Works perfectly on device No configuration satisfies both device runtime AND App Store validation. Has anyone successfully uploaded an app with DeviceActivityReportExtension to TestFlight on iOS 18? Any workarounds? This is blocking TestFlight deployment completely.

Hi, Submitted Family Controls entitlement requests yesterday for a digital wellness app (main app + 3 extensions). For those who've been through this: How long did approval take? Did Apple ask for more info? Any tips? Thanks!

Context: I am building an iOS productivity app using EAS Build. The project has 4 targets: the main app and 3 extensions (ShieldAction, ShieldConfiguration, ActivityMonitorExtension). The Issue: I have officially received approval from Apple for the Family Controls (Distribution) entitlement for my main Bundle ID. However, the build still fails during the Xcode phase. The Errors: Xcode reports that the generated provisioning profiles do not include the com.apple.developer.family-controls entitlement. For example: Provisioning profile "*[expo] com.*.** AdHoc 177247892...." doesn't support the Family Controls capability. All 3 extensions are failing with the exact same error. What I've done: Confirmed approval from Apple for com.*.**. Enabled Family Controls and App Groups on the Apple Developer Portal for all 4 Identifiers. Cleared EAS local and remote cache using eas build --clear-cache. Deleted existing profiles on both Expo.dev and Apple Portal to force regeneration. The Question: Even with official approval, why does EAS continue to generate "empty" profiles for my Ad-Hoc development build? Do I need separate approval for each extension's Bundle ID, or is there a way to force EAS to sync these "Managed Capabilities" correctly?

I can see the user’s real daily Screen Time perfectly inside a DeviceActivityReport extension on a physical device. It’s right there. But the moment I try to use that exact total inside my main app (for today’s log and a leaderboard), it dosnt work. I’ve tried, App Groups, Shared UserDefaults, Writing to a shared container file, CFPreferences Nothing makes it across. The report displays fine, but the containing app never receives the total. If this is sandboxed by design, I’d love confirmation. Thanks a lot

I'm building an app that uses the Family Controls / Screen Time APIs (FamilyControls, ManagedSettings). My app has three targets, each with a distinct Bundle ID: Main App Shield Configuration Extension ShieldAction Extension All three have com.apple.developer.family-controls in their entitlements files, and they share an App Group. My question is about the distribution entitlement request form at developer.apple.com/contact/request/family-controls-distribution: does the form need to be submitted once per Bundle ID, or is a single submission for the main app sufficient to then enable Family Controls (Distribution) for the extension Bundle IDs in the developer portal as well? I've seen conflicting reports in other forum threads — some developers say one submission covers all targets, others say separate submissions are needed per Bundle ID. I've already submitted the main app, but now I am wondering whether I should submit one for each Shield extension. Thanks!

I am building a simple iOS app that shows the total phone usage time for today using the Screen Time APIs. Architecture: Main app → requests authorization using AuthorizationCenter.shared.requestAuthorization(for: .individual) → displays a DeviceActivityReport Report extension → DeviceActivityReportExtension → calculates total usage using DeviceActivityResults<DeviceActivityData> → shows the number in a SwiftUI view The report works correctly. The extension successfully calculates the total usage and displays it on screen. Example logic inside the report extension: for await activityData in data { for await segment in activityData.activitySegments { totalSeconds += segment.totalActivityDuration } } let totalMinutes = Int(totalSeconds / 60) The problem: I need the main app to access that number so I can store it daily in my own database. I tried to send the value from the extension to the main app using: App Group + UserDefaults(suiteName:) App Group + shared file (FileManager.containerURL) writing inside makeConfiguration(...) Example: if let defaults = UserDefaults(suiteName: "group.myapp") { defaults.set(value, forKey: "savedTotalActivity") } But the main app cannot read the value. The report extension displays the number correctly, but the data never appears in shared storage. Questions: Is DeviceActivityReportExtension intentionally sandboxed so Screen Time data cannot be exported to the containing app? Is there any supported way for the main app to access the total usage value calculated in the report extension? If exporting the value is restricted, what is the recommended architecture for apps that want to store daily Screen Time totals for later analysis? Goal: I want a simple app that records something like: 2026-03-08 → 244 minutes 2026-03-09 → 198 minutes and stores it inside the app database. Any guidance on the correct architecture would help.

Hi everyone, I recently submitted the Family Controls request form and received the following request IDs: 429MKWT5VX
 KNL6T2DC7A
 N62KV78DKC However, I haven’t received any updates yet and I’m not sure how these requests are tracked or when we’ll know if they’re approved. Our app is almost ready to launch and this capability is critical for us. Both the main app and an extension depend on Family Controls, so we’re currently blocked from moving forward. I also raised a support ticket with Apple Developer Support (Case ID: 102838723073), but I haven’t received any response there either. To be honest, this is becoming really stressful. Months of work are stuck at the final step and we’re unable to move forward without this approval. This isn’t just a small personal project and we’re building a production app and were hoping to launch very soon. If anyone has been through this process or has any guidance on the approval timeline, or if someone from Apple could help look into these request IDs, it would genuinely mean a lot to us.

 Thank you

After transferring the App ownership to a different account, if you update the app on iOS, two identical apps will show up in Settings > Screen Time. Users can't control the blocking settings from before the update - the only fix is to restart the phone. After the next execution of manageStore.shield.applications, users still can't manually disable the restrictions - their only option is to uninstall and reinstall the app. I believe this is related to how Screen Time API's authentication works - it's not just tied to the app's bundle ID, but also linked to the developer account's organization ID. Any suggestions for a clean solution that would allow smooth app updates after the transfer without running into these issues?

I'm working with the Screen Time API (FamilyActivityPicker) in SwiftUI and need help with a specific scenario. I'm using the FamilyActivityPicker to let users select apps and categories to block. I save the previous selection (both applicationTokens and categoryTokens) locally. When the user updates their selection, I compare the new selection with the saved one to determine which apps or categories were removed. However, I’m trying to handle a specific case: when an individual app token is removed from the selection because its entire category was selected instead. In this situation, even though the app is no longer in applicationTokens, it's still blocked due to its category being included in categoryTokens. Since I need to show users which apps were actually removed, I want to avoid listing apps that are still indirectly blocked via a selected category. I’ve created a mapping between ApplicationToken and FamilyActivityCategoryToken to check whether a removed app is still covered by a selected category before displaying it. Is there any way to check this using the current Screen Time APIs, or does the system not give access to the relationship between apps and their categories? Any help or suggestions would mean a lot!

Hello, my app is frequently loosing / forgetting the Screen Time Permission that had been granted previously on iOS 26. I have experienced it myself, sysdiagnose is in this radar: FB18997699 But also also my App Store users who have updated to iOS 26 already have reported this bug. It would be great if Apple could ensure that this bug is addressed before iOS 26 is released to the public.

Hi all, I’m working on a Screen Time app using Managed Settings and ShieldConfiguration, and I’ve run into an issue where screen time is still being counted while the shield is shown — even when the user never interacts with the underlying app content. This happens both when I use the default shield and when I configure a custom ShieldConfiguration with a ShieldAction. As long as the shield is visible, the time appears to count toward the app’s usage. For example, if I leave the shield up for 20 minutes, Screen Time logs it as 20 minutes of app usage — even if no content is accessed behind the shield. Is this expected behavior? Is there a way to prevent Screen Time from counting time while the shield is shown? Any insights or workarounds would be greatly appreciated! Thanks, Connor

Hey there! So, I'm trying to see what I'm able to do with the Device Activity Report Extension, and I have a few questions about the following quote: To protect the user’s privacy, your extension runs in a sandbox. This sandbox prevents your extension from making network requests or moving sensitive content outside the extension’s address space. In particular, what constitutes the address space for this extension? Can I save data to a UserDefaults object that only the extension can access? (Apps like Opal allow the user to label apps as "distracting" and "non-distracting", and I'm wondering how they do that!) From what I've read, I believe it cannot write to a shared app group or model (and I just want to confirm this) It also seems that there's nothing preventing it from reading data from the main app, so I'm just wondering if it's able to read data from an app group or model with no problem. Thanks in advance!

Hello everyone, I’ve been stuck for weeks on an issue with Family Controls + Device Activity entitlements in my iOS app, and Apple Developer Support has not provided a solution so far. I’m hoping someone here who has successfully implemented Family Controls + Device Activity can point me in the right direction. About the App • The app is a Digital Wellbeing app called Breakloop. • It lets users select apps they want to block, requires them to complete a positive affirmation before opening those apps, and can re-block apps after a set time (e.g., 10 minutes). • This functionality exactly matches the purpose of Family Controls and Device Activity APIs. What Works So Far • Family Controls capability is enabled in the main app target in Xcode. • We have valid Apple Developer certificates (Apple Development) and a team account. • The main app builds and runs fine when using Family Controls alone. • We have App IDs for: • bl.Breakloop (main app) • bl.Breakloop.BreakloopMonitorExtension • bl.Breakloop.BreakloopShieldConfigurationExtension The Problem The provisioning profiles for the extension targets (BreakloopMonitorExtension and BreakloopShieldConfigurationExtension) do not include the com.apple.developer.device-activity entitlement even though: • The App IDs in the Developer Portal have Family Controls (Development) enabled. • The extensions have the correct entitlements file with both: com.apple.developer.family-controls com.apple.developer.device-activity • Xcode Signing & Capabilities points to the correct provisioning profile + certificate. Because the provisioning profiles don’t include the entitlement, the build fails with: Provisioning profile doesn't include the com.apple.developer.device-activity entitlement. What Apple Support Said Apple Support told me: • “Family Controls grants access to Device Activity.” • They cannot enable it manually or guarantee that profiles will include the entitlement. • They sent links to the documentation but no further assistance. What I Need Help With 1. Has anyone successfully built extensions using Family Controls + Device Activity? 2. Do I need to request any additional approval for Device Activity, or should it appear automatically once Family Controls is enabled? 3. Is there a known Xcode or Apple Developer Portal configuration issue that causes the entitlement to be missing in provisioning profiles? 4. Any working example of a project setup that uses Family Controls + Device Activity in extensions would be extremely helpful. Extra Info • We use the latest Xcode + iOS SDK. • Tried recreating certificates, profiles, and App IDs multiple times. • Followed Apple’s docs for Family Controls + Device Activity exactly. I would greatly appreciate any guidance, especially from someone who has this working with iOS app extensions. Thank you!

Hi - appreciate your help in advance! Building a simple habit tracking app. I got approval for FamilyControls distribution. After creating a new provisioning profile with those capabilities enabled, when I try and build in xcode (16.4) using that Profile I get an error stating: "Provisioning profile "CreateMoreFamilyControlsv2" doesn't include the com.apple.developer.deviceactivity and com.apple.developer.deviceactivity.reporting entitlements" I've confirmed bundle identifier matches, Team etc Similarly when i do automatic signing see 3rd screenshot. Not sure what to do at this point, I've heard deviceActivity is automatically applied when family controls is approved but still running into this issue.