Apple announced today that App Store Connect now includes new age rating questions for apps with social media features. Here are the details.
During WWDC26, Apple announced a series of new child safety and parental control features across its platforms.
Among them is Time Allowances, which gives parents more flexible ways to manage how much time their kids spend in different app categories, including Entertainment, Games, and Social Media.
Apple explains that apps and games that include social media capabilities “will be placed in the Time Allowance category for Social Media” regardless of the category selected in App Store Connect, and “receive a minimum age rating of 13+.”
The company adds that apps that don’t enable social media capabilities for users under 13, “won’t be included in the Time Allowance category for Social Media for users under 13.”
To prepare for the launch of Time Allowances in iOS 27, iPadOS 27, and macOS 27, Apple today updated the age rating questionnaire in App Store Connect with new questions about apps that include social media capabilities.
Here’s how Apple defines social media capabilities, and how those answers will affect App Store listings and Time Allowance categories:
“A social media capability is defined as the ability to redistribute, amplify, or interact with user-generated content through a social feed or similar discovery method. The Time Allowance category for Social Media is based on whether your app or game offers social media capabilities, regardless of the app category selected in App Store Connect. Apps with these capabilities will display a new Social Media content descriptor on their App Store product page.”
The new questions are available to review and answer starting today. Beginning in September 2026, developers will be required to complete them before submitting new apps or updates to the App Store, or when “submitting apps for notarization for alternative distribution.”
To learn more about what’s new with the age rating questionnaire on App Store Connect, follow this link.
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