Your app is ready for App Store submission, but Apple can still block it before review. Maybe you used an AI app builder or shipped it yourself in a weekend. Then you hit submit, and the App Store rejects it. Or Apple blocks your submission because you never accepted an agreement update you did not know existed.
The Apple Developer Program License Agreement (PLA) governs that launch path. It controls whether you can submit, how you can earn revenue, what privacy work you need to finish, and what can put your account at risk. Use it as a release checklist you revisit before each submission.
What the PLA is and why it controls your launch
The PLA decides whether you can legally ship at all, and its obligations bind you the moment you enroll. The PLA gives you a license grant to use Apple's tools. You accept it by checking a box or clicking "Agree," either personally or as a company representative.
The agreement has a main body plus schedules. The main body covers the license grant, restrictions, IP terms, and termination. Schedule 1 handles free apps. You must accept Schedule 2 before you sell paid apps or offer in-app purchases. Schedule 3 covers custom app distribution.
Solo builders should handle these obligations immediately:
- Account responsibility: You are responsible for everything in your account, even violations caused by a contractor or third-party SDK.
- Contractor work: Contractors can build your app, but you must submit it under your account, and you must own it.
- Access control: Do not share account credentials. Each team member needs their own Apple Account.
Apple will evaluate the app under your developer account, regardless of who helped build it, so treat contractor terms and account access as launch requirements.
How to choose the right Apple account type
The account type you pick determines the seller name buyers see and whether you can add team members. The Apple Developer Program costs $99 USD per year. Nonprofits, accredited educational institutions, and government entities may apply for a fee waiver.
Choose individual versus organization based on the seller name and team access you need:
- Individual: The seller name shown is your legal personal name. You cannot add team members. No D-U-N-S Number or website is required.
- Organization: The seller name shown is your legal entity name. You get role-based access for team members. A free D-U-N-S Number and a website are required.
Both options carry the same annual cost.
If you want a brand or company name shown, you must enroll as an organization with a registered legal entity. Apple does not accept DBAs or trade names for organization enrollment. Sole proprietorships registered in Dun & Bradstreet should enroll as individuals.
Choose this before you build launch assets. Changing the seller name later can force account cleanup you could have avoided.
How generated apps create extra review risk
If you used an AI app builder or commercial app generation service, you need to prove the app belongs to you and offers a distinct experience.
For generated apps, Guideline 4.2.6 creates the highest review risk. Under the App Review Guidelines, Apple says apps created from a commercialized template or app generation service "will be rejected unless they are submitted directly by the provider of the app's content." The platform cannot submit on your behalf.
The platform can create your code without violating the rule. You can submit the app yourself if you own the content and submit it under your own developer account.
Mass-submitting near-identical apps for many clients increases review risk. These practical rules follow:
- Submit under your own Apple Developer account. Do not let the platform submit for you.
- Build a unique, content-rich experience.
- Confirm in writing that your platform's terms give you sufficient IP rights to submit. Apple's PLA confirms your app stays yours, but the platform's own terms govern what the platform retains in the generated code.
Guideline 4.3 compounds that risk by rejecting apps that are "essentially the same" as others. A platform that produces similar code or UI across many apps raises your exposure.
Tools that export real code and let you ship under your own account help you stay on the right side of these rules. The responsibility to build something distinct is still yours.
A stale export toolchain can stop your submission. Since April 28, 2026, you must build uploaded apps with Xcode 26 or later using a current platform SDK. If your platform has not updated its export toolchain, Apple may block your submission. Confirm your provider is compliant before you commit to a launch date.
Which App Review rules catch indie apps
Several App Review guidelines affect functionality, completeness, originality, and technical compliance, and checking them before submission can prevent avoidable rejection cycles.
Guideline 4.2, minimum functionality, is a common rejection trigger. Apple may not approve an app that offers little functionality or content, or that serves a website with limited iOS interactions. Marketing-only app rejections fall under Guideline 4.2.2.
Under Guideline 2.1, app completeness catches preventable mistakes. Every app needs a working support link with current contact information and a privacy policy link. Images and text must be finalized, with no placeholder content. For paid apps, subscription screens must show available plans, and in-app purchase products must load successfully.
Also check copycat and technical-compliance rules:
- Guideline 4.1, copycats: Do not simply copy a popular app on the App Store, or make minor changes to another app's name or UI and pass it off as your own. Impersonating other apps may result in removal from the Apple Developer Program.
- Technical compliance, Guideline 2.5.5/2.5.6: Apps must work on IPv6-only networks, and apps that browse the web must use the WebKit framework.
Run this pre-submit pass before you upload a build. The App Review Guidelines are accepted as a bundle with the PLA because Apple links these obligations together.
Which privacy obligations apply before launch
Privacy compliance has separate ATT and App Store disclosure tracks, and both apply if your app tracks users. Do not assume one track covers the other, and remember that third-party code needs its own check.
App Tracking Transparency (ATT) requires user permission through the AppTrackingTransparency framework before you track users across other companies' apps and websites. You add an NSUserTrackingUsageDescription key with a specific reason. Vague text like "to provide a better experience" is insufficient.
If the user denies permission, the advertising identifier returns all zeros. You may not track by any other means, including hashed emails. Apple prohibits fingerprinting regardless of ATT status.
Privacy Nutrition Labels are the second track. Apple has made Privacy Nutrition Labels required for every app. You must disclose all data your app collects, including data from third-party SDKs, in App Store Connect. A privacy policy URL is required for all iOS apps.
Third-party code is your responsibility too. Since May 1, 2024, new or updated apps that add SDKs from Apple's commonly used list must include privacy manifests and valid signatures for newly added SDKs. If your app sends user data to a third-party AI service, you must disclose what data is sent, who receives it, and cover it in your privacy policy.
How commission and payment rules work now
Confirm your eligibility before you set up paid apps or in-app purchases, or you risk a pricing plan that assumes the wrong commission rate.
The standard commission is 30% on paid apps and in-app purchases. Small Business Program members pay 15%. Auto-renewable subscriptions also drop to 15% after the first year of paid service.
If you and any accounts you control earned up to $1,000,000 in App Store proceeds in the prior calendar year, you qualify for the Small Business Program. You must maintain eligibility during the current year. New developers qualify automatically.
To enroll, you accept the latest Paid Apps agreement in App Store Connect. You also list any associated accounts where you hold more than 50% ownership. Apple re-evaluates monthly within 15 days of the end of each fiscal calendar month. If you cross the threshold during a year, the standard rate applies for the rest of that year.
US developers should know about one major shift. A civil contempt ruling addressed external payment links. The court barred commission on purchases made through external links out of the app. An appeals ruling upheld the contempt finding but remanded the permissible rate. For now, Apple cannot charge commission on external link purchases, with the rate still pending.
How to set up tax and banking before you get paid
Before any money moves, you need an active Paid Apps Agreement in App Store Connect and completed tax forms. Apple will not process your banking information until you submit all required tax forms. Handle this early to avoid a payout delay.
US individuals and businesses submit a W-9 with an SSN, ITIN, or EIN. Non-US developers submit a W-8BEN or equivalent.
You cannot change tax information through the portal once you submit it; corrections require contacting Apple. Payments go to a single bank account whose holder name must match exactly. Apple pays within 45 days of the fiscal month a transaction completes.
Apple issues a 1099-K at $5,000 in unadjusted gross sales, though the IRS filing threshold reverts to $20,000 and 200 transactions. Either way, income is taxable, and Apple withholds 24% if you lack a valid taxpayer ID.
What gets accounts terminated and how to respond
Payment setup is recoverable. Account termination usually is not. Apple reserves the harshest consequences for a short list of violations, so know the list before you give contractors access or ship monetization changes.
Apple treats these as serious violations: hiding functionality from review, falsifying consumer reviews, payment fraud, and manipulating chart rankings or search. Under Guideline 2.3.1(a), you cannot include hidden, dormant, or undocumented features. Misleading marketing, including promoting content your app does not offer, is grounds for app removal and account termination.
The contractor clause matters here. The PLA states that actions by your contractors shall be deemed to have been taken by You, so account access control is genuine legal risk management. Small Business Program fraud, such as creating multiple accounts to keep the reduced rate, can lead to payment withholding and termination.
If Apple flags your account, you have paths forward:
- Respond promptly to any pre-termination warning with an internal investigation.
- Petition the App Review Board by completing the reinstatement form.
- Submit a written improvement plan. If Apple approves and confirms it, Apple may restore your account.
Treat the improvement plan as your chance to show what changed. Apple needs to see that the issue will not repeat under the same account.
How to stay current as the PLA changes
The PLA can change after your first launch, and an unaccepted update can silently block your submissions. Check your account and toolchain before each release to cover account readiness, App Review risk, privacy disclosures, payment setup, and build compatibility.
Apple's PLA is updated periodically, often alongside App Review Guideline revisions. Make accepting each update part of release prep to keep your account in good standing and your submissions unblocked. If you have not accepted, the App Store Connect API returns a 403 error and blocks submissions.
If you build with an AI app builder or AI platform, your compliance depends partly on the platform's own update cadence. Check developer.apple.com/news regularly and confirm your platform exports compliant builds before each launch. If you want full control over that toolchain, try Anything free and export your own code so your submission stays in your hands.
Start by accepting the current PLA in your account, then pick one upcoming launch and verify two things: your account type matches the seller name you want, and your platform produces Xcode 26-compatible builds. Then export your own code and check your Apple account before your next submission.
