Apple’s new EU business terms, effective Thursday, October 1, 2026, require a developer to select its payment options for the European Union and keep that selection in place for 12 months. The choice covers Apple In-App Purchase, alternative in-app payment processing, linking out to the web, or a combination of those, and Apple’s developer support page states the 12-month requirement without listing an exception.
The lock-in arrives alongside a genuine reversal: Apple In-App Purchase and alternative payment options can now run inside the same app in the EU, something Apple’s own terms previously prohibited. A developer gets more combinations to choose from, and then has to live with the combination it picks for a full year.
Key facts on the payment lock-in
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Effective | October 1, 2026 |
| Lock-in period | 12 months from selection |
| What is locked | The chosen combination of Apple IAP, alternative in-app processing, and web link-out |
| What changed | Apple IAP and alternative payments can now coexist in one app, previously prohibited in the EU |
| Reporting tied to the choice | Monthly transaction reports due within 15 days of month end |
| Source | developer.apple.com/support/apps-in-the-eu/ |
How the 12-month lock-in works
Apple’s language is that a developer distributing in the EU “selects” its payment options and “must maintain those options for 12 months.” The support page does not name a process for changing the selection early, does not say whether the clock resets with each new app version, and does not describe an appeals or exception process for a developer that wants to switch sooner.
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That makes the moment a developer signs the updated Apple Developer Program License Agreement and picks its payment mix a decision with a one-year tail, not a setting that can be revisited at the next update. A developer that has run a single payment route for years and now wants to add a second one gets that flexibility for the first time under the new terms, but the decision still carries the same 12-month floor once it is made.
Apple’s page does not distinguish between a developer picking a combination for the first time on October 1 and one that later decides to add a route it had not offered before. Both cases read, on the current wording, as starting a fresh 12-month period from the point of selection.
The routes a developer can lock in
| Payment route | Commission on the route | Can combine with the others |
|---|---|---|
| Apple In-App Purchase | 26% standard, 15% reduced | Yes, as of October 1 |
| Alternative in-app payment processing | 20% standard, 10% reduced | Yes, as of October 1 |
| Link out to the web | 15% standard, 10% reduced (Store Services Commission) | Yes, as of October 1 |
Apple In-App Purchase and alternative payments can now run side by side
Before this change, Apple’s EU terms required a developer to pick a lane. The August 18, 2026 update removes that restriction, and Apple’s release states the new position without elaborating on how a checkout screen should present both options to a shopper at once. Once a developer picks a combination, though, the 12-month rule applies to the combination as a whole, not to each payment method individually.
The monthly reporting clock that comes with each option
Whichever combination a developer locks in, Apple’s terms require monthly transaction reports within 15 days following the end of each calendar month. For link-outs specifically, only sales made within 7 days of a link tap count toward the Store Services Commission, a detail covered in Apple’s developer documentation alongside the lock-in rule.
What Apple has not said
- Apple has not published a process for changing a locked payment selection before the 12 months end.
- Apple has not said whether an app that changes ownership or is acquired inherits the prior owner’s remaining lock-in period.
- Apple has not described how the monthly transaction report should reflect a combination of payment routes running at once.
- Apple has not said what enforcement follows if a developer’s app is found using a payment route outside its locked selection.
The 12-month lock-in takes hold the moment a developer’s chosen terms become effective on October 1, 2026. Developers can review the full payment-option language on Apple’s developer support page now. Our iOS 27 coverage and iPhone 18 Pro reporting track the platform and devices these apps run on.
