On 16 October 2026 Apple updated the App Store Review Guidelines. The guidelines page now reads "Last Updated: October 16, 2026", and the list of edits sits in a developer news post. It has seven lines, and three of them matter to an indie developer: 2.5.19 on hidden features, 1.2, which now names AI generators outright, and the new 2.3.14 on creative assets.
Below are the App Store Review Guidelines changes one by one, written for developers who ship alone, with a table of what to do about each, and what Apple left unexplained. Quotes from the guidelines and Apple's news are verbatim, checked against the originals on 17 October 2026.
What changed in the App Store Review Guidelines on 16 October#
Apple's own summary: "The App Review Guidelines have been revised to support new features, updated policies, and to provide clarification." No effective date is given, so it is safest to treat the changes as live from publication.
| Guideline | What changed (per Apple's news) | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| 2.5.19 | New guideline on hidden, dormant, or undocumented features; the policy used to sit in 2.3.1 | Describe everything in the build in Notes for Review, including switched-off features. Remove code you could not show a reviewer |
| 1.2 | Clarified which apps are covered, plus a Developer Code of Conduct reference | If users create or upload content (AI output included), ship a filter, reporting and blocking |
| 2.3.14 | New guideline on creative assets | Check your header and search artwork: no prices, discounts or unverifiable claims |
| 3.1.1(a) | Music Streaming Services Entitlements merged into StoreKit External Purchase Link Entitlements; links must go to a "permitted destination" | If you link out to purchase, check the destination against the allowed list |
| 5 | Human trafficking and child exploitation: removal and a block on alternative distribution | No action needed |
| Before / After You Submit | Links to additional documentation | Walk through the list before you submit |
2.5.19: hidden features and "turn on after review" flags#
The text: "Don't include any hidden, dormant, or undocumented features in your app; your app's functionality should be clear to end users and App Review." It goes on to name concealment in the binary: "Attempting to hide undocumented features in your app binary, such as through code obfuscation or other methods, is grounds for removal of your app from the App Store and termination of your developer account."
A separate news post explains the motive: apps that present one thing to review and switch on another after approval, with "nudification" features as the example. Apple's figure for last year: "we prevented over 150K apps with safety issues from reaching customers and terminated over 193K developer accounts for engaging in fraud and abuse".
Fraudsters were the target, but "dormant" also catches a common indie habit. A feature ships behind a feature flag, review never sees it, and after approval the flag flips from the server. Apple says nothing about flags, so this is my reading, but code like that fits "dormant features" literally. Two safe options: enable the feature during review and describe it in the notes, or keep unfinished code out of the build.
The duty to describe features is still in 2.3.1(a): "All new features, functionality, and product changes must be described with specificity in the Notes for Review section of App Store Connect (generic descriptions will be rejected) and accessible for review." Apple says outright that vague notes get rejected, so they rank among the plainest app store rejection reasons.
1.2: an AI generator now counts as a UGC app#
The first paragraph of 1.2 covers apps where users "create, generate, upload, share, or otherwise contribute content", and names "AI content creation apps" next to social media and UGC platforms. "Nonconsensual intimate imagery" is on the list of risks.
The news post spells out what Apple expects: "Apps that host user-generated content are required to filter objectionable material, give users a way to report offensive content, and let users block abusive accounts." The guideline adds a new sentence: developers who fail to implement appropriate safeguards or to fix violations after notice "may be considered in violation of the Developer Code of Conduct". "Egregious or repeated behavior" is grounds for removal from the App Store and from the Apple Developer Program.
The guideline lists four required elements: a way to filter objectionable material, a reporting mechanism with "timely responses", the ability to block abusive users, and published contact information. If your app generates images, avatars or text, build all four from version 1.0. For apps where only the author ever sees the output, Apple does not say how strictly this applies. I would still ship the minimum and describe the flow in Notes for Review.
2.3.14: what creative assets must not contain#
The new guideline covers what Apple calls creative assets, usable "across the App Store, including the product page header and in search results". Its exclusions: inappropriate content, references to other apps "with an intent to mislead", "unverifiable product claims", and "specific or discounted pricing information". The asset must also suit all audiences.
A "-50% today" badge or a "$2.99" label on the artwork falls under that. Sizes and formats are covered in the piece on App Store creative assets rules, and how the artwork ties into keywords and product pages is in the one on keywords and custom product pages.
3.1.1(a) and section 5: two short changes#
In 3.1.1(a) the separate bullet for Music Streaming Services Entitlements is gone, folded into the bullet on StoreKit External Purchase Link Entitlements. The link must lead to a "permitted destination", and approved destinations "may vary by region". If you don't link out for payment, this doesn't apply to you.
Section 5 now covers the gravest case: apps that facilitate human trafficking or the exploitation of children are removed and also blocked "from alternative distribution".
What sits next to the guidelines#
These changes didn't arrive alone. Everything below comes from Apple's news posts, linked.
- License agreement. A revised Apple Developer Program License Agreement came out on 13 October. You accept it in your account. Among the edits are Schedule 2 terms for Group Purchases (several seats on one subscription).
- Age ratings. From the 9 July post: "Starting September 2026, you'll be required to indicate whether your app or game includes social media capabilities in order to submit new versions or updates". It mostly concerns apps with user content.
- Builds. Per the Upcoming Requirements page, uploads need Xcode 26 and the SDK 26 (since 28 April 2026). From April 2027 the SDK 27 is required, according to the 9 September post.
- iPhone Duo. Per the 5 October post, from April 2027 every submitted app must include iPhone Duo screenshots. My adaptation guide covers the layout side.
One more for subscriptions: store metadata has its own requirements, which I worked through in terms links for subscriptions, guideline 3.1.2. Before Lanternly 1.1 I added that block to 39 descriptions.
Pre-submit checklist#
- The build contains no features review can't see. "Turn on after approval" flags are off because the code isn't in the binary, not because of server config.
- Notes for Review list every new feature specifically.
- With user or AI content: filter, reporting, blocking, published contact.
- Header and search artwork carry no prices, discounts or promises you can't back up.
- A payment link goes to an allowed destination for the region and runs through the entitlement.
- The license agreement is accepted, and the social media questions in the age rating are answered.
What is still unclear#
No effective date is stated. Whether 2.5.19 applies to versions already approved, Apple doesn't say. Where "dormant feature" ends and ordinary server configuration begins isn't explained either, and for 1.2 there's no word on how "appropriate safeguards" are judged for apps whose output is never published.
Apple promises translations of the updated guidelines "within one month", so expect them around mid-November. Until then, the English original is the reference.
