App Store Connect age rating questionnaire adds social media questions (Apple)

Apple quietly shipped a workflow change that will matter to anyone shipping UGC, feeds, sharing, or creator-style features.

• Source: Apple Developer News (July 9, 2026), “Age rating questionnaire now includes social media questions”
• Read: https://developer.apple.com/news/?id=tlur8uvi

What changed

The age rating questionnaire in App Store Connect now includes questions about whether your app has social media capabilities.

Apple defines social media capability as the ability to redistribute, amplify, or interact with user-generated content via a feed or similar discovery mechanic.

Apps that meet the definition will show a Social Media content descriptor on the product page. If you indicate the capability exists but is disabled for under-13s, Apple says it will not be included in the Time Allowance category for Social Media for users under 13.

Apple also states that starting September 2026, responses will be required when submitting new apps or updates to the App Store.

Why this matters

This is one of those changes that looks like a compliance checkbox, but it affects:

• feature design: whether a “feed” is truly user-generated, or more like curated discovery
• onboarding and age gates: what is visible pre vs post age verification
• support load: disputes about restrictions that “worked last month”
• growth plumbing: lifecycle messaging and referral loops tied to sharing/UGC

Tiny win (30 minutes)

Make a one-page internal decision note:

1. Which features in your app count as “social media capability” under Apple’s definition
2. What is disabled (or should be disabled) for under-13s
3. Who owns the App Store Connect answers (product, legal, or release manager)

Then book a short review before your next major release, so you don’t discover this during the submission crunch.

Read the original: https://developer.apple.com/news/?id=tlur8uvi