Update on apps distributed in the European Union
- Introduction
- Alternative distribution
- Browser apps and alternative web browser engines
- Contactless transactions
- Default app controls and app deletion
- Interoperability requests
- Alternative payments on the App Store
- App analytics and user data portability
- Terms for alternative distribution and payments
- Developer Q&A
Introduction
Apple has provided changes to iOS, iPadOS, Safari, and the App Store that impact developers’ apps in the European Union (EU) to comply with the Digital Markets Act (DMA). They create additional options for developers, including how they can distribute apps on iOS and iPadOS, process payments, use web browser engines in iOS and iPadOS apps, request interoperability with hardware and software features, access data and analytics about their apps, and transfer App Store user data. The changes are available for developers who distribute apps in any of the 27 EU member countries and only apply to apps available and distributed to users in the EU.
iOS, iPadOS, Safari, and the App Store are part of an integrated, end-to-end system that Apple has designed to help protect the safety, security, and privacy of our users, and provide a simple and intuitive user experience. We strive to earn users’ trust by promptly resolving issues with apps, purchases, or web browsing through App Review, AppleCare customer support, and more.
The DMA requires changes to this system that bring greater risks to users and developers. This includes new avenues for malware, fraud and scams, illicit and harmful content, and other privacy and security threats. These changes also compromise Apple’s ability to detect, prevent, and take action against malicious apps on iOS and iPadOS, and to support users impacted by issues with apps downloaded outside of the App Store.
That’s why Apple introduced protections — including Notarization for iOS and iPadOS apps, an authorization for marketplace developers, and disclosures on alternative payments — to reduce risks and deliver the best, most secure experience possible for users in the EU. Even with these safeguards in place, many risks remain.
The user safeguards and developer tools and technologies we've built reflect our commitment to iPhone and iPad, ensure iOS and iPadOS remain the safest mobile platforms users can choose, and that Apple's app ecosystem continues to offer all developers the greatest opportunity.
What’s updated
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For iOS and iPadOS
- Options for distributing iOS and iPadOS apps on alternative app marketplaces and with Web Distribution - including APIs and controls that enable developers to offer their iOS and iPadOS apps for download from alternative app marketplaces and their websites and help protect their intellectual property.
- A framework and APIs for creating alternative app marketplaces on iOS and iPadOS — enable marketplace developers to install apps and manage updates on behalf of other developers from their dedicated marketplace app, and have their app notarized for security and system integrity.
- Frameworks and APIs for alternative browser engines — interoperability that enables authorized developers to use browser engines, other than WebKit, for browser apps and apps with in-app browsing experiences.
- APIs to enable contactless transactions in the EEA — lets authorized developers use NFC technology for certain use cases in iOS apps throughout the European Economic Area.
- Expanded default app controls — lets users select and manage an app marketplace and/or contactless transaction app as their default in Settings, and adds a way to choose a default web browser.
- Interoperability request form — lets developers submit requests for interoperability with iPhone, iPad, iOS, and/or iPadOS hardware and software features.
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For Safari on iOS and iPadOS
- User choice screen — provides users additional ways to choose a default web browser from a list of options.
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For the App Store
- Options for using alternative payment service providers (PSPs) — within a developer’s app to process payments for digital goods and services, as an alternative to the App Store’s In-App Purchase system on iOS, iPadOS, macOS, tvOS, and watchOS.
- Options for processing payments via link out to purchase — where users can complete a transaction for digital goods and services on the developer’s external webpage as an alternative to the App Store’s In-App Purchase system on iOS, iPadOS, macOS, tvOS, and watchOS. Developers can include information in their App Store apps to inform EU users of promotions, discounts, and other deals available outside of their app when presenting a link out.
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For developer app analytics and user data portability
- Expanded developer app analytics — provides developers with additional and enhanced metrics with more than 50 new reports from iOS, iPadOS, and the App Store worldwide, in areas like engagement, commerce, app usage, and more.
- User data portability API to request and transfer App Store account data — lets third-parties request user authorization to retrieve and import new data about their usage of the App Store.
Alternative business terms available for apps in the EU — to reflect the DMA’s requirements for alternative distribution and payment processing, Apple offers alternative business terms for apps in the EU. Developers have a choice to remain on Apple’s existing terms or adopt terms that reflect the additional capabilities for apps in the EU.
Alternative distribution on iOS and iPadOS in the EU
To reflect the DMA’s requirements, users in the EU can install apps from alternative app marketplaces and directly from an authorized developer’s website. After agreeing to the Alternative Terms Addendum for Apps in the EU, developers can access alternative app marketplace distribution in App Store Connect, as well as request access to APIs for Web Distribution and operating an alternative app marketplace.
If not properly managed, alternative distribution poses increased privacy, safety, and security risks for users and developers. This includes risks from installing software from unknown developers that are not subject to the Apple Developer Program requirements, installing software that compromises system integrity with malware or other malicious code, the distribution of pirated software, exposure to illicit, objectionable, and harmful content due to lower content and moderation standards, and increased risks of scams, fraud, and abuse. Apple has less ability to address these risks, and to support and refund customers regarding these issues. Even with safeguards, many of these risks remain.
While we’ve built new capabilities to continue supporting iOS and iPadOS features that users depend on in their apps, it’s important to understand that some features may not work as expected for apps using alternative distribution. Features like Screen Time, parental controls, and Spotlight will continue to function and maintain Apple’s security, privacy, and safety standards. Features like restrictions on In-App Purchase in Screen Time and Family Purchase Sharing, universal purchase, as well as Ask to Buy are not supported because the App Store and its private and secure commerce system won’t be facilitating these purchases. Apple won’t be able to assist users with refunds, purchase history, subscription cancellations and management, violations of user data privacy, abuse, or fraud and manipulation, in addition to issues that make the user experience less intuitive. Developers, or the alternative app marketplace from which their app was installed, will be responsible for addressing such issues with customers.
Distributing directly from your website
Web Distribution lets authorized developers distribute their iOS and iPadOS apps to EU users directly from a website owned by the developer. This option is available to EU users on devices running a minimum of iOS 17.5 or iPadOS 18.
Apple authorizes developers after meeting specific criteria and committing to ongoing requirements that help protect users. Authorized developers get access to APIs that facilitate the distribution of developer’s 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 and iPadOS 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 first need to approve the developer to install apps in Settings on their iPhone or iPad. When installing an app, a system sheet displays information that developers have submitted to Apple for review, like the app name, developer name, app description, screenshots, and system age rating.
Learn more about Web Distribution
Distributing on an alternative app marketplace
When considering distribution on an alternative app marketplace, developers should evaluate the marketplace’s offering and terms and conditions — including any financial obligations, approval processes and policies, and legal protections — before setting up alternative distribution in App Store Connect. Marketplace apps may only be installed from the marketplace developer’s website.
To authorize an app marketplace to distribute your app, you’ll need to contact the marketplace developer to receive a security token required for alternative distribution. You can add and remove marketplaces and select which apps you intend to distribute on each marketplace in App Store Connect.
Using new App Store Connect distribution tools, you can easily download your signed binary assets to transfer them directly to a marketplace for distribution. You can also take advantage of new support in the App Store Connect API to let a marketplace retrieve assets from Apple for your apps.
Operating an alternative app marketplace
Alternative app marketplaces can install and support software on iOS and iPadOS devices, access data across a catalog of apps, manage users’ purchases and subscriptions, and more. They are responsible for meeting Notarization requirements, like all iOS and iPadOS apps. Marketplace apps may only be installed from the marketplace developer’s website.
Operating an alternative app marketplace requires significant responsibility and oversight of the user experience, including content rules and moderation processes, anti-fraud measures to prevent scams, transparent data collection policies, and the ability to manage payment disputes and refunds.
Developers of alternative app marketplaces are responsible for meeting ongoing requirements that help protect users and developers. Apple will provide authorized marketplace developers access to new app marketplace frameworks and APIs that let them receive and retrieve notarized apps from Apple Developer Program members securely, let users download and install marketplace apps from their website with authorized browsers, integrate with system functionality, back up and restore users’ apps, and more. Using new App Store Connect distribution tools, developers can choose to notify you of any app updates, so you can offer users important functionality like automatic app updates.
- Learn about getting started as an alternative app marketplace
- Learn about the MarketplaceKit framework
Notarization for iOS and iPadOS apps
Notarization for iOS and iPadOS apps is a baseline review that applies to all apps, regardless of their distribution channel, focused on platform policies for security and privacy and to maintain device integrity. Through a combination of automated checks and human review, Notarization helps ensure apps are free of known malware, viruses, or other security threats, function as promised, and don’t expose users to egregious fraud.
Information from the Notarization process is also used for app installation sheets, which provide at-a-glance descriptions of apps and their functionality before users download, including the developer, screenshots, and other essential information. Apps distributed on the App Store will continue to be responsible for meeting Apple’s high standards for user safety, security, and privacy and undergo the standard App Review process, including Notarization and enforcement of content and commerce policies.
Developers can submit a single binary and choose alternative distribution options in App Store Connect. Notarization for iOS and iPadOS apps will check for:
- Accuracy — Apps must accurately represent the developer, capabilities, and costs to users.
- Functionality — Binaries must be reviewable, free of serious bugs or crashes, and compatible with the current version of iOS and iPadOS. They cannot manipulate software or hardware in ways that negatively impact the user experience.
- Safety — Apps cannot promote physical harm of the user or public.
- Security — Apps cannot enable distribution of malware or of suspicious or unwanted software. They cannot download executable code, read outside of the container, or direct users to lower the security on their system or device. Also, apps must provide transparency and allow user consent to enable any party to access the system or device, or reconfigure the system or other software.
- Privacy — Apps cannot collect or transmit private, sensitive data without a user’s knowledge or in a manner contrary to the stated purpose of the software.
Apple encrypts and signs all iOS and iPadOS apps intended for alternative distribution to help protect developers’ intellectual property and ensure that users get apps from known parties.
Notarized apps also undergo a series of checks during installation to ensure that they haven’t been tampered with and that the installation was initiated through an authorized web browser.
If Apple determines that an iOS or iPadOS app contains known malware after it’s been installed, it will be prevented from launching and new installations will be revoked.
Learn about submitting for Notarization
Alternative distribution user experience
iOS 17.4 and later, and iPadOS 18 and later, support an experience for app installation to help users authorize the installation of apps and alternative app marketplaces and understand more about apps before they download.
Users can install marketplace apps or apps from a website owned by the developer after approving them with the ‘Allow Marketplace from Developer’ control in Settings.
Before an app or marketplace app is installed, a system sheet will display information developers have submitted to Apple for review, like the app name, developer name, app description, screenshots, and system age rating.
Users can manage their list of allowed developers, app marketplace developers and their marketplace apps in Settings and remove them at any time. Removing an allowed developer prevents new apps and updates from the developer’s website from being installed. Deleting a marketplace app deletes all related data from the device and stops updates for apps from that marketplace, which may affect features and functionality for the apps installed from the marketplace.
Users can manage their default marketplace through a default setting. Certain platform features for finding and using apps like Spotlight are integrated with a user’s default marketplace. App installation sheets are automatically turned off for installations from a user’s default marketplace.
Browser apps and alternative web browser engines in the EU
Default web browser choice
To meet the DMA’s requriements, Apple provides a choice screen that provides users additional ways to choose a default web browser from a list of options. When users in the EU first open Safari on iOS 17.4 and later, they are prompted to choose their default browser and presented with a list of the main web browsers available in their market to select as their default browser. As of iOS 18.2 and iPadOS 18.2, additional changes to the choice screen will be included.
Learn about the browser choice screen in the EU
Use of alternative browser engines
To meet the DMA’s requirements, iOS and iPadOS developers can use alternative browser engines — other than WebKit — for dedicated browser apps and apps providing in-app browsing experiences in the EU.
As browser engines are constantly exposed to untrusted and potentially malicious content and have visibility into sensitive user data, they’re one of the most common attack vectors for malicious actors. To help keep users safe online, Apple will only authorize developers to implement alternative browser engines after meeting specific criteria and committing to a number of ongoing privacy and security requirements, including timely security updates to address emerging threats and vulnerabilities. Apple will provide authorized developers of dedicated browser apps access to security mitigations and capabilities to enable them to build secure browser engines, and access features like passkeys for secure user login, multiprocess system capabilities to improve security and stability, web content sandboxes that combat evolving security threats, and more.
Contactless transactions for iOS apps in the EEA
iOS 17.4 and later includes APIs that support contactless transactions for in-store payments, car keys, closed loop transit, corporate badges, home keys, hotel keys, merchant loyalty/rewards, and event tickets from within compatible iOS apps using host card emulation (HCE).
Users based in the European Economic Area (EEA) with an iPhone running iOS 17.4 and later can initiate in-person NFC transactions from iOS apps at compatible NFC terminals or mobile devices. They can manage their preferred default contactless app through a default setting and launch the app by double-clicking the side button or when iPhone detects an NFC field at compatible terminals.
To support contactless transactions, eligible iOS apps will need an HCE entitlement. The entitlement ensures that only authorized app developers who meet certain industry and regulatory requirements, and commit to ongoing security and privacy standards can access these APIs.
Expanded default app controls and app deletion for users in the EU
To reflect the DMA’s changes, Apple provides default controls for EU users in the following OS releases:
As of iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4, default app controls include setting defaults for navigation apps and translation apps.
As of iOS 18.2 and iPadOS 18.2, default app controls include the following:
- These releases include improvements to the Apps area in Settings first introduced in iOS 18 and iPadOS 18. Users will be able to manage their default apps via a Default Apps section at the top of the Apps area.
- In addition to setting their default browser, mail, app marketplace, and contactless apps, users will be able to set defaults for phone calls, messaging, password managers, keyboards, and call spam filters. To learn about enabling your app to be the system default, view Default apps updates.
iOS 18.2 and iPadOS 18.2 also provide the ability to delete the App Store, Messages, Camera, Photos, and Safari apps. Only Settings and Phone are not deletable.
As of iOS 17.4, default app controls include the following:
- App marketplace apps — Users can manage their preferred default app marketplace through a default setting for app marketplace apps. Platform features for finding and using apps like Spotlight are integrated with a user’s default app marketplace.
- Contactless apps — Users can manage their preferred default contactless app through a default setting, and can select any eligible app adopting the HCE Entitlement as the default.
- Default browsers — When opening Safari for the first time, users are prompted to choose their default browser from a browser choice screen. The screen displays a list of the main web browsers available in their market that can be selected as their default browser.
Interoperability requests in the EU
Apple’s interoperability efforts across software development kits and developer services, encompassing more than 250,000 APIs, enable developers to leverage many of the core technologies built into iOS and iPadOS (like HealthKit, Bluetooth, the camera, and the microphone) so users can access them right from developers’ apps.
Developers can ask questions or share feedback on Apple’s developer tools and services in a variety of ways — such as developer support, the Apple Developer Forums, and Feedback Assistant. To reflect the DMA’s requirements, Apple also provides a dedicated webform for developers to request additional interoperability with iOS, iPadOS, iPhone, and/or iPad features. Apple evaluates each request and informs the developer about the outcome. To the extent an effective interoperability solution is feasible and appropriate under the DMA, Apple will subsequently develop the solution for release in a future software update.
Alternative payments on the App Store in the EU
Update: We’re introducing updated capabilities and business terms for the StoreKit External Purchase Link Entitlement that will apply this fall.
To reflect the DMA’s changes, alternative payment service providers and link out to purchase are available to developers for their apps distributed on the App Store in the EU. For their EU apps available on the App Store across Apple’s operating systems, including iOS, iPadOS, macOS, tvOS, and watchOS, developers have additional payment options to offer digital goods and services:
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Payment Service Providers (PSPs) — where developers use an alternative payment processor that lets users complete transactions within their app.
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Linking out to purchase — where developers direct users to complete a transaction for digital goods and services on their external webpage. The presentation of the link out to purchase may communicate information for EU users about promotions, discounts, and other deals.
To use these payment options in an app, developers will need to use the StoreKit External Purchase Entitlement, the StoreKit External Purchase Link Entitlement, or both. Developers are not required to submit a separate binary to use alternative payment processing.
Due to the App Store’s tight integration with In-App Purchase, and to reduce confusion for users, developers may not offer both In-App Purchase and alternative PSPs and/or link out to purchase to users in their App Store app on the same storefront.
Using alternative PSPs and link out to purchase can create new threats to user security and privacy and may compromise the user experience. It’s important for developers considering use of alternative PSPs and link out to understand that some OS or App Store features may not work as users expect. Helpful App Store features — like Report a Problem, Family Sharing, and Ask to Buy — will also not reflect these transactions. Users may have to share their payment information with additional parties, creating more opportunities for bad actors to steal sensitive financial information. And on the App Store, users’ purchase history and subscription management will only reflect transactions made using the App Store’s In-App Purchase system. Apple will have less ability to support or refund customers encountering issues, scams, or fraud. Developers who use alternative payments are also responsible for managing payment or billing issues, taxes, and other features currently supported by the App Store’s system.
User experience for alternative payment service providers and link out to purchase
To help users understand whether an app contains an alternative payment option, the App Store will display an informational banner on the app’s product page to identify the developer’s enablement of this entitlement. When downloading an app, users are also informed if an app uses PSPs or links out on the purchase confirmation sheet. Apps that contain an alternative payment option are required to present users with a disclosure prior to each transaction or link out to purchase to help them understand that the purchase isn’t backed by Apple.
Commission and sales reporting
Developers who support PSPs and/or link out to purchase will be responsible for paying a commission to Apple on the sale of digital goods and services on the App Store. Developers are required to report transactions to Apple for invoicing purposes using APIs Apple will provide.
For apps on macOS, tvOS, and watchOS, developers who use alternative payment processing will get a 3% discount on the commission they owe to Apple.
Learn about using alternative payment options on the App Store in the EU
Expanded developer app analytics and user data portability
App analytics reports for the App Store, iOS, and iPadOS
To reflect the DMA’s changes, Apple has expanded the analytics available for developers’ apps both in the EU and around the world to help developers get even more insight into their businesses and their apps’ performance. Over 50 reports are available through the additional App Store Connect API to help developers analyze their app performance and find opportunities for improvement with more metrics in areas like:
- Engagement — with additional information on the number of users on the App Store interacting with a developer’s app or sharing it with others;
- Commerce — with additional information on downloads, sales and proceeds, pre-orders, and transactions made with the App Store’s secure In-App Purchase system;
- App usage — with additional information on crashes, active devices, installs, app deletions, and more.
- Frameworks usage — with additional information on an app’s interaction with OS capabilities such as PhotoPicker, Widgets, and CarPlay.
Apple provides an App Store Connect API called the Analytics Reports API to provide access to reports that include data from the App Store, iOS, and iPadOS. Developers will also have the ability to provide third-party access to their reports using this API.
To protect the privacy of Apple users, Apple is applying privacy measures to help ensure that users are not identifiable at an individual level.
Learn about the Analytics Reports API
User and app data portability tools for App Store account data
Apple is committed to giving users transparency and control over the data Apple collects and uses, and offers users tools for understanding and managing their personal data. This includes Apple’s Data & Privacy page, where users can get or transfer a copy of their data, delete their Apple account, and more. Apple’s Data & Privacy page has been enhanced to provide users with additional App Store data categories and the ability to consent to transferring their data. Third parties are responsible for meeting minimum eligibility requirements before they may access the Account Data Transfer API for requesting transfers of user data to their apps or services. Third party app developers can request the transfer of App Store information and app-install activity about their apps by using the App Data Transfer API.
Terms for alternative distribution and payments in the EU
Worldwide, the App Store’s single commission on digital goods and services fairly reflects Apple’s ongoing investments in a wide range of tools and technologies and services that enable developers to build high-quality apps, reach Apple users globally, and seamlessly sell their goods and services. To help developers build the best apps for our users, teams across Apple are always working to create and share new tools and resources, including programming languages and development tools that make it easy to build apps for Apple’s ecosystem, specialized software development kits with over 250,000 APIs, testing services and feedback programs, distribution and discovery, a world-class payments and commerce system, and so much more. This simple fee structure relies on tight integration between iOS, iPadOS, the App Store, and its commerce system, including In-App Purchase.
Apple provides alternative business terms available for developers’ apps in the EU. Developers can choose to adopt these business terms or stay on Apple’s existing terms. Developers must adopt the business terms for EU apps to use the capabilities for alternative distribution or payment processing.
The alternative business terms for apps in the EU are necessary to support the DMA’s requirements for alternative distribution and payment processing. That includes a fee structure that reflects the many ways Apple creates value for developers’ businesses — including App Store distribution and discovery, the App Store’s secure payment processing and related commerce services, Apple’s trusted and secure mobile platform, and all the tools and technology to build and share innovative apps with users around the world.
Developers operating under the alternative business terms for iOS and iPadOS apps in the EU will have the option to distribute their iOS and iPadOS apps from the App Store and/or alternative app marketplaces. These developers can also choose alternative payment processors in their apps on the App Store in the EU across Apple’s operating systems.
The alternative business terms for iOS and iPadOS apps in the EU have three primary elements:
- Reduced commission — iOS and iPadOS apps on the App Store will pay a reduced commission of either 10% (for the vast majority of developers, and for subscriptions after their first year) or 17% on transactions for digital goods and services, regardless of payment processing system selected;
- Payment processing fee — iOS and iPadOS apps on the App Store can use the App Store’s payment processing for an additional 3% fee. Developers can use a Payment Service Provider within their app or link users to a website to process payments for no additional fee from Apple;
- Core Technology Fee (CTF) — For very high volume iOS and iPadOS apps distributed from the App Store and/or alternative distribution, developers will pay €0.50 for each first annual install per year over a one million threshold. Under the alternative business terms for EU apps, Apple estimates that less than 1% of developers would pay a Core Technology Fee on their EU apps.
First annual install. The first time an app is installed by an account in the EU in a 12-month period. After each first annual install, the app may be installed any number of times by the same account for the next 12 months with no additional charge.
Apple provides many conditions where developers do not pay the CTF — developers whose apps do not surpass one million first annual installs per year; nonprofits, educational institutions, and governments with an Apple Developer Program fee waiver; and developers with a no revenue business that offer free apps without monetization do not pay the CTF. Small developers (earning less than €10 million in global business revenue) that have not previously exceeded one million first annual installs are provided with a 3-year free on-ramp to the CTF. Additionally, if a small developer grows to earn between €10 million and €50 million global annual business revenue within the on-ramp period, they’ll start to pay the CTF after one million first annual installs up to a cap of €1 million per year. After 3 years, they will pay for each first annual install after the initial one million first annual installs per year.
For developers on the alternative terms in the EU in the App Store Small Business Program and for subscriptions after their first year, Apple will offer a further reduced commission of 10%.
Developers of alternative app marketplaces will pay the CTF for every first annual install of their marketplace app, including installs that occur before the one million threshold is met.
Developers operating under these terms for iOS and iPadOS apps in the EU can choose to access the capabilities to distribute their iOS and iPadOS apps using alternative app distribution options and to offer alternative payment processing on the App Store across all supported platforms. Developers of macOS, tvOS, visionOS, and watchOS apps on the App Store that use alternative PSPs and/or link out to purchase will get a discounted commission of 3% based on the App Store’s standard worldwide commission rate. Developers who prefer the existing terms can choose to stay on the App Store’s current business terms, and no further action is needed.
The terms for iOS and iPadOS apps in the EU are in effect for developers that have already agreed to them. For developers that chose to agree to the alternative terms after March 2024, they apply to their iOS apps in the EU from the date they agreed onwards — and to iPadOS apps starting with iPadOS 18. Apple begins applying the App Store’s reduced commission and optional payment processing fee, and counting installs towards calculating the CTF when the terms are in effect for a developer’s iOS and iPadOS apps in the EU.
To help developers understand the impact of the alternative business terms on their app businesses, Apple has shared a fee calculator tool and reports to help developers estimate the potential of the new business terms on their app businesses. Under the alternative business terms for EU apps, Apple estimates that more than 99% of developers would reduce or maintain the fees they owe to Apple.
Providing a great business opportunity for all developers
We strive for iOS and iPadOS to remain the best app ecosystem and a great business opportunity for developers worldwide, and are committed to terms that remain fair to all developers and give them choices. The changes in the EU are being made with these goals in mind — whether a developer chooses to adopt the alternative terms for iOS and iPadOS apps in the EU, chooses to continue only distributing on the App Store, or chooses to use the App Storeʼs In-App Purchase system.
Since the introduction of the App Store, Apple has continued to support the vast majority of developers with no or low fees and commissions. Currently, 88% of developers on the App Store in the EU pay Apple no commission at all. The commission continues to only apply to sales of digital goods and services in apps on the App Store, including under the alternative terms. Developers who choose the alternative terms and distribute on the App Store pay a reduced commission of either 10% (for the vast majority of developers, and for subscriptions after their first year) or 17% on transactions for digital goods and services. Developers distributing on the App Store can choose to use the App Store’s payment processing for an additional 3% fee.
We also designed the changes so that all developers participating in the App Store Small Business Program and developers offering subscriptions will continue to benefit from reduced commissions to invest back in their businesses, no matter which terms they choose. Currently, 75% of developers with apps in the EU pay a reduced commission through programs like the App Store Small Business Program. For developers on the alternative terms in the EU, Apple will offer a further reduced commission of 10% for qualifying developers in the App Store Small Business Program and for subscriptions after their first year.
To fairly compensate Apple for the ongoing investments it makes in developer tools and technologies and align with developers’ choices under the DMA, Apple designed the Core Technology Fee to only impact a small fraction of developers that are on the alternative terms. Under the alternative business terms for EU apps, Apple estimates that less than 1% of developers would pay a Core Technology Fee on their EU apps. Only developers that have reached exceptional scale on iOS and iPadOS will be subject to the CTF.
As before, developers who are registered as an educational institution, government agency, or nonprofit on the alternative terms and have been approved for fee waiver don’t pay a membership fee for the Apple Developer Program or the CTF, subject to the Apple Developer Program’s rules. Developers with a no revenue business that offer free apps without monetization, including students, hobbyists and other non-commercial developers have the opportunity to create a popular app without paying the CTF. Also, small developers that have not previously reached exceptional scale are provided with a 3-year free on-ramp to the CTF, and as they grow into medium-sized businesses, they’ll start to pay the CTF after one million first annual installs up to a cap of €1 million during this 3-year period.
No matter which terms developers choose in the EU, both reflect the many ways Apple creates value for developers’ businesses — including distribution and discovery on the App Store, the App Store’s secure payment processing, Apple’s trusted and secure mobile platform, and all the tools and technology to build and share innovative apps with users around the world.
To adopt these alternative terms, the Account Holder of a membership in the Apple Developer Program will need to agree to the Alternative Terms Addendum for Apps in the EU.
Developer Q&A
Apple has provided a number of changes to comply with the Digital Markets Act’s (DMA) requirements for iOS, iPadOS, Safari, and the App Store in the European Union. Those include tools and capabilities that allow developers to take advantage of the these changes, and protections that help reduce — but don’t eliminate — the new complexity and emerging risks the DMA creates for our EU users.
We’re limiting these changes to the European Union because we’re concerned about their impacts on the privacy and security of our users’ experience — which remains our North Star. These changes comply with the DMA, and in the weeks and months ahead, we’ll continue to engage with the European Commission, the developer community, and our EU users about their impacts.
For their apps in the EU and around the world, developers can continue to use the App Store, its secure In-App Purchase system, and all the tools and resources they’re familiar with.
On this page, developers can find questions and answers about the changes Apple has made to comply with the DMA, affecting apps in the European Union. Developers can find additional information on support pages throughout the developer site.