App Store Compliance & Metadata for Global Markets: A One‑Page Checklist

Make three checklist columns in your launch spreadsheet: (A) Required product metadata, (B) Payment/monetization allowed, (C) Privacy/consent requirements. Use the entries below to fill each country row before you open a console submission. Treat ‘allowed’ payment paths as conditional — if a country requires local law workarounds you must create a separate build or clearly documented business account in App Store Connect / Play Console.

Before you submit: run the acceptance tests in the last section for each target country. If any test fails, don’t release — iterate with your contractor, resubmit, and record the App Store Connect / Play Console rejection text verbatim in your tracker so you can map fixes to outcomes.

Apple and Google both require most digital goods sold inside apps to use their in‑app billing systems, but there are important, country-specific exceptions and allowed external link programs. For Apple: outside the U.S. Apple forbids buttons/links that direct customers to purchase mechanisms other than In‑App Purchase; the U.S. storefront has narrower allowances for external links for purchases of digital content. For Google Play: apps distributed via Play must use Play Billing for in‑app digital purchases except where specific policy sections apply, and Google has rolled out controlled external payments programs with explicit integration steps for eligible developers.

Concrete checklist entries to paste per country row (copy these exact labels): - Apple_AppStore_Payments: IAP_REQUIRED / EXTERNAL_ALLOWED_WITH_RESTRICTIONS_U.S_ONLY / PROHIBITED - Google_Play_Payments: GPB_REQUIRED / EXTERNAL_ALLOWED_BY_PROGRAM / EXEMPTED_BY_CATEGORY - Footnote: If country law requires alternate billing (for example certain EU remedies, India local requirements or special regulatory orders), mark as LEGAL_EXEMPTION and attach legal memo.

Every App Store (Apple) submission must include: app privacy policy URL (both in App Store Connect and inside the app), App Privacy Details (the privacy nutrition label fields), and accurate descriptions of data collection/processing. Google Play requires a privacy policy whenever your app accesses sensitive user data and strongly expects it in the Play Console and inside the app.

Use the short snippets below as starting points — customize to match your real practices; never submit untrue statements. Place the privacy policy URL in the App Store Connect “Privacy Policy URL” field and display an in‑app link labeled “Privacy & Data” on your main settings or onboarding screens.

Age-rating mismatches are common review failure points. Set your age rating conservatively based on content and privacy practices; use a lower rating and add restricted features on a server flag if you must gate mature content. For Apple and Google, provide honest content descriptors (sexual content, violence, gambling) in the submission forms — reviewers use those to validate the rating.

Localization priorities to avoid rejections: translate store‑listing protected phrases (e.g., “subscription,” “free trial,” “auto‑renewal,” local pricing currency), localize screenshots for cultural relevance, and include localized privacy policy pages if a country requires local language (some regulators or review bodies treat missing local language pages as a compliance red flag).

Create a set of short, actionable acceptance tests per country that contractors must pass and you must confirm in your submission notes. Tests should be written as steps with expected results and exact UI text to match. Keep tests deterministic and automatable where possible.

Below are example acceptance tests you can paste into tickets or hand off to localization / QA contractors. Include console screenshots and review rejection handling instructions in every ticket so fixes feed back to the tracker.