App Store and Google Play Deadlines: What Changed in 2026 and What Is Due by 2027

The Google Play target API level for 2026 is Android 16, and for apps that took Google's extension the last day to comply is November 1, 2026. Apple moved too: Xcode 26 has been required since April, iOS 13 became the minimum target in September, and the iOS 27 SDK is required from April 2027. This page lists every store deadline that affects a business app, with the date, the source and what to do about it. Updated October 23, 2026.

What changed, and when

Both stores raised their technical minimums in 2026, and three more dates land between now and spring 2027. This table lists each rule with the date it took or takes effect and where it was announced. "In force" means the date has passed and the rule now applies.

Every date above comes from Apple's or Google's own developer pages, linked in the sources at the bottom. We checked each one on October 23, 2026. We will update this page when Apple or Google changes any of these dates or publishes the next set.

Google Play: the Android 16 target and the November 1 cutoff

Since August 31, 2026, Google Play only accepts new apps and app updates that target Android 16, API level 36. Wear OS and Android Automotive OS apps must target Android 15 (API 35), and Android TV and Android XR apps Android 14 (API 34).

Developers who needed more time could request an extension to November 1, 2026 through a form in Play Console. If your team took that extension, the cutoff is nine days from the date of this article. After it, an update that does not target API 36 cannot be published, which includes urgent bug fixes and security patches.

Existing apps that are not updated are treated differently. They must target at least Android 15 (API 35) to remain available to new users on devices running newer Android versions. An app that targets Android 14 or lower is still available to people who already installed it, but new users on newer phones cannot find or install it. Google's wording: users who previously installed the app from Google Play "will not be impacted".

Internal apps are exempt: Google excludes "permanently private apps that are restricted to users in a specific organization and intended for internal distribution only".

What breaks when you target Android 16

Changing one number in the build file is the easy part. Targeting API 36 switches on behaviour changes that can alter how your app looks and responds, so it needs testing, not just a rebuild. These are the changes on Google's Android 16 behaviour list most likely to affect a business app.

The large-screen change has a temporary opt-out, but Google says it "won't apply when targeting API level 37", so it only buys time. Predictive back also has a temporary opt-out. Edge-to-edge does not.

If your app was built with React Native or Flutter, the framework version matters as much as your own code. An older framework may not support API 36 cleanly, so the real work can be a framework upgrade plus the plugins that depend on it. Our Android development team handles both.

Google Play: 16 KB page sizes by February 1, 2027

From February 1, 2027, updates to apps targeting Android 15 or higher that do not support 16 KB memory page sizes on 64-bit devices cannot be released on Google Play. Since every update now has to target Android 16, in practice this applies to every app you plan to keep updating.

It only affects apps that contain native code. Google lists three cases: your app uses C or C++ code, including the Android NDK; it links third-party native libraries or SDKs; or it was made with an app builder that uses native libraries on the device. Apps written only in Java or Kotlin, with only Java or Kotlin libraries, already support it, though Google still recommends testing.

Many cross-platform apps include native libraries through their framework or plugins, so check rather than assume. Google's page explains how: open the APK in Android Studio's APK Analyzer and look for .so files in the lib folder, or run zipalign's verification command.

Android developer verification: four countries now, global in 2027

Since September 30, 2026, apps installed or updated through participating app stores on certified Android devices in Brazil, Indonesia, Singapore and Thailand must come from registered, verified developers. Google announced the timeline on the Android Developers Blog on June 18, 2026, and said it will expand these protections globally to all apps on certified Android devices in 2027. No exact global date has been given.

For most Google Play developers this is already handled. Google says 99% of apps on Play were registered automatically and asked developers to register any remaining apps by September 30, 2026 "to avoid global removal from Google Play". If you distribute an Android app outside Google Play, for example as a direct download to staff or customers, you need to register it through the Android Developer Console before the global rollout.

Who it affects in Canada: nobody yet for installs in Canada, because Canada is not one of the first four countries. It does affect Canadian businesses now if they have users in those four countries, and it will affect every Android app distributed outside Google Play once the 2027 global phase starts. Check your Play Console home page for any unregistered apps today.

Apple: Xcode 26, iOS 13 minimum and the iOS 27 SDK next April

Since April 28, 2026, every app uploaded to App Store Connect must be built with Xcode 26 or later using the iOS 26, iPadOS 26, tvOS 26, visionOS 26 or watchOS 26 SDK. Since September 9, 2026, iOS and iPadOS apps must also target iOS 13 or later.

The next step is already announced. On September 9, 2026, Apple said that starting April 2027, iOS and iPadOS apps uploaded to App Store Connect must be built with the iOS 27 and iPadOS 27 SDK or later, with matching rules for tvOS, visionOS and watchOS. Apple has not given the exact day, but its past pattern has been late April. Plan for the start of April to be safe.

Two other Apple changes from the last few months affect what you submit:

• Age rating questions. The questionnaire now asks about social media capabilities, defined by Apple as the ability to redistribute, amplify or interact with user-generated content through a social feed or similar discovery method. Since September 2026, answers are required to submit new apps or updates. Apps with these features show a new Social Media content descriptor.
• App Review Guidelines, October 16, 2026. New guideline 2.5.19 consolidates the rule against hidden, dormant or undocumented features, and Apple says apps that add features after approval that were not in the reviewed version face removal from the App Store and the Developer Program. Guideline 1.2 now explicitly requires apps with user-generated content to prevent and remove nonconsensual intimate imagery, including AI-generated imagery.

Mac apps have one more: Apple says macOS 26 is the final release supporting Intel Macs and macOS 27 runs on Apple silicon only.

A rebuild in a new Xcode version usually surfaces deprecation warnings, third-party SDKs that need updating, and sometimes layout changes from the new design system. The iOS development work is mostly testing those changes, not writing new features.

If you sell in the EU or the US: fee changes

Two fee changes this year apply only if you sell to users outside Canada. Apple moved every developer distributing in the EU to a single set of business terms, with key updates effective October 1, 2026, including replacing the Core Technology Fee with a 5% Core Technology Commission on digital transactions in apps distributed outside the App Store. Google introduced a new fee structure for users in the EEA, UK and US on June 30, 2026, and for Australia and Japan on September 30, 2026.

For transactions with Canadian users, Google's older structure still applies (15% on the first $1 million USD of earnings each year) until it rolls the new fees out globally, for which no date has been announced. Our mobile app statistics page has the full fee table.

Who needs to act

You need to act if any of these describe your app. Most businesses with an app built more than about 18 months ago will tick at least one.

• Your Android app has not had an update published since before August 31, 2026.
• Your team requested the Google Play extension, which ends November 1, 2026.
• Your Android app uses native code, a cross-platform framework, or an SDK such as a payments, maps or video library.
• Your iOS app was last built before April 28, 2026, so the next update needs Xcode 26.
• Your iOS app supports versions below iOS 13.
• Your app has a feed, comments, sharing or other user-generated content, which affects both the age rating questions and guideline 1.2.
• You distribute an Android app outside Google Play.

If none apply, you are current today. The April 2027 Apple SDK rule will still reach you, so put it on the calendar now.

Deadline checklist

• Now: open Play Console and check the target API level of every app, any extension in place, and the developer verification status on the home page.
• Before November 1, 2026: if you took the extension, publish an update targeting API 36. If you cannot, at least make sure the current release targets API 35 so new users can still find it.
• Before any Android update: test edge-to-edge layouts, back navigation, tablet and foldable layouts, and any health or sensor permissions on an Android 16 device.
• By January 2027: confirm 16 KB page size support with APK Analyzer or zipalign, and update native libraries and SDKs that fail.
• Before the next iOS release: build with Xcode 26 or later, raise the minimum target to iOS 13 or later, and answer the social media age rating questions.
• By March 2027: test your iOS app with the iOS 27 SDK so the April 2027 rule is a routine release, not a scramble.
• Before 2027: register any Android app you distribute outside Google Play.
• Ongoing: budget for at least two platform updates a year. Our price sheet puts maintenance at roughly 15 to 20% of the build cost per year, or a monthly plan.

If this list is longer than your team has time for, our maintenance and support plans cover exactly this kind of work, and our guide on whether to rebuild or update an older app helps when the update turns out to be bigger than expected. For how often these rules trip apps up in review, see our app store review statistics.