Apple Requires Developers To Include Detailed Age Ratings In App Store, End Limit For January 31, 2026

JAKARTA - Apple has officially announced that all app developers are now required to provide more detailed information on the age rating of their apps if they wish to remain available on the App Store. This new policy imitated the previous approach known as privacy nutrition labels, which Apple launched in 2020.

At the time, Apple asked developers to explain transparently what kind of personal data their app collects. The launch process was slow, many developers delayed, and some of them were revealed to be collecting large amounts of user data without transparency.

Now Apple is taking a similar step, but this time concerns age verification. This is part of the company's ongoing efforts to protect children, as announced in February 2025.

"We have introduced a series of new mandatory questions in the rating valuation qualifier for all apps," Apple wrote on its developer news website.

This mandatory question includes four main topics:

- Control in apps (in-app controls)

- App capabilities (capability)

- Medical or health topics

- The theme of violence

"Your answer to this question will help Apple calculate age ratings more accurately, and help you provide age-appropriate experiences," Apple continued.

Once the developer fills out the form, Apple will determine the age rating suitable for their application. However, the developer is given the flexibility to increase the age rating if deemed necessary but is not allowed to lower it.

What is inevitable is the deadline. Apple set a deadline until January 31, 2026 for every app that wants to remain available on the App Store to update their age rating details.

Complete details of this policy include demands against developers and control arrangements for parents listed in Apple's official White Paper.

Apple's move comes following pressure coming from various parties, including social media companies. In fact, in March 2025, the US state of Utah became the first to require Apple and other platform companies to implement an age verification system.

Some social media companies actually argue that the responsibility for age verification should exist on platforms like Apple and Google, not on their individual apps. One of the main reasons behind that opinion is the high cost of implementing the age verification system independently.

On the other hand, there are concerns that if social media applications find out the age of the user, the data could be misused or even sold to third parties.

In response to this, Apple's system is designed to maintain user privacy. Parents can manage various controls, but in general, all the app does is ask the question of whether users are old enough to use the app and will only receive a yes or not answer from the system.

With this approach, Apple is trying to balance children's safety and user privacy protection while still affirming the company's commitment to the transparency and responsibility of developers.