2026 iOS external-purchase links in the EU: StoreKit setup and the App Store fee stack

Summary. Since 26 June 2025, an iOS app in the European Union can send users to an external checkout, but Apple still takes a cut. Under the current terms, a developer not on the alternative EU business terms pays 2% initial acquisition fee (first six months), 5% or 13% Store Services fee depending on the tier chosen, and a 5% Core Technology Commission, for a total Apple fee of 12% to 20% on initial purchases, with payment processing on top. Turning this on removes in-app purchase from the same app; it is one or the other. Apple's old Core Technology Fee of EUR 0.50 per install above one million is being replaced by the Core Technology Commission by 1 January 2026. This guide walks through the technical setup with StoreKit, the Info.plist keys, the mandatory disclosure sheet, and a fee table so you can decide whether external purchase is worth it for your app.

External purchase links exist because the EU Digital Markets Act (DMA) forced Apple to let developers steer users to payment options outside the App Store's in-app purchase system. Apple's response merged link-outs, web views, and alternative payment processing into a single "communication and promotion of offers" capability, gated behind the StoreKit External Purchase Link Entitlement. The capability is available for apps in the EU, and external purchase links are also supported in South Korea under a separate framework. It is not available in India, the United States, or most other markets, so this is a decision for teams shipping to European users.

What actually changed, and the one rule that trips teams up

Before the June 2025 update, Apple treated linking out and alternative in-app payment as separate features with separate rules. Now they are one entitlement. The destination can be a website, an alternative marketplace, or another app, reached through a web view or a native flow. RevenueCat, which analysed the rules in detail, summarised the shift as one entitlement covering three fees.

The rule that catches teams: if you adopt external purchase, you cannot also offer Apple in-app purchase in that same app. It is either the App Store's in-app purchase system or external offers, not both. That single constraint decides most cases, because Apple in-app purchase converts better than a web checkout for most consumer apps, and losing it to save a few points of commission rarely pays off unless you already have your own billing relationship and audience.

The 2026 fee stack: what Apple charges on an external purchase

This is the part worth modelling before you write any code. The table below shows Apple's fees on initial purchases for a developer that has not adopted the alternative EU business terms and uses external offers. Percentages are of the transaction value, and a payment processor fee applies on top of every row.

Scenario (EU, external offers, not on alternative terms)	Initial acquisition fee	Store Services fee	Core Technology Commission	Apple total on initial purchase
Full App Store services, not in Small Business Program	2% (first 6 months)	13%	5%	20%
Tier-2 services opted out, not in Small Business Program	2% (first 6 months)	5%	5%	12%
Small Business Program, full services	0%	10%	5%	15%
Small Business Program, tier-2 opted out	0%	5%	5%	10%

The initial acquisition fee applies only to purchases by new users in their first six months after download, so the ongoing rate after six months is lower. The Core Technology Commission is 5% and, from 26 June 2025, applies to sales you communicate and promote through the entitlement; Apple confirmed it is replacing the per-install Core Technology Fee by 1 January 2026. For a small developer already in the App Store Small Business Program, the math almost never favours external purchase: your best case is 10% plus a payment processor, versus 15% in-app purchase with far better conversion and no integration work.

What you give up if you drop tier-2 Store Services

The 12% and 10% rows above only apply if you opt out of tier-2 App Store services. That is not free. Apple's tier-2 opt-out removes a long list of things most apps rely on.

Tier-2 service you lose	Practical impact
Automatic app updates	You must prompt users to update, often with an in-app message and a store link
Ratings and reviews	No App Store social proof on your product page
App Store discovery	No search beyond exact match, no featuring, no in-app events
App analytics in App Store Connect	You lose Apple's install and engagement insights
Expedited review and phased release	Slower releases, no staged rollout
Apple Business Manager and School Manager	No managed distribution to enterprise or education

You can change the tier choice quarterly, so this is reversible, but opting out realistically suits only apps with their own distribution channel and marketing, the Spotify and Epic tier, not a typical product. For most teams the honest read is that the headline 12% is a trap: the discovery you lose costs more than the commission you save.

Step by step: requesting the entitlement and wiring up StoreKit

Here is the implementation path once you have decided external purchase is right for your app.

1. Request the entitlement

In your Apple Developer account, agree to the StoreKit External Purchase Link Entitlement Addendum for EU Apps, then request the com.apple.developer.storekit.external-purchase-link entitlement. Apple sends an email confirmation once it assigns the entitlement to your account. You then enable it on your App ID in Certificates, Identifiers and Profiles.

2. Add the entitlement to your app

Add the entitlement key to your app's .entitlements file.

<key>com.apple.developer.storekit.external-purchase-link</key>
<true/>

3. Declare countries and destinations in Info.plist

List the country codes you support in SKExternalPurchase, and map each to a destination URL in SKExternalPurchaseLink. URLs must use HTTPS and be valid absolute links.

<key>SKExternalPurchase</key>
<array>
  <string>de</string>
  <string>fr</string>
</array>
<key>SKExternalPurchaseLink</key>
<dict>
  <key>de</key>
  <string>https://example.com/checkout</string>
  <key>fr</key>
  <string>https://example.com/fr/checkout</string>
</dict>

A 2026 relaxation matters here: Apple now allows links with query parameters, redirects, and intermediate landing pages, and lets you use multiple or dynamic URLs through the ExternalPurchaseCustomLink API without hard-coding every URL in Info.plist. That makes it practical to pass a user or campaign identifier to your web checkout, which the original 2024 rules blocked.

4. Present the link through StoreKit

Call StoreKit to show the link. ExternalPurchaseLink.open() presents Apple's disclosure sheet and then sends the user to your destination. Check eligibility first, because the API returns ineligible outside supported storefronts.

import StoreKit

func openExternalCheckout() async {
    guard let link = try? await ExternalPurchaseLink.current, link.eligible else {
        // Fall back to your in-region purchase flow.
        return
    }
    do {
        // Presents Apple's system disclosure sheet, then opens the URL.
        try await ExternalPurchaseLink.open()
    } catch {
        print("External purchase link failed: \(error)")
    }
}

For multiple destinations or dynamic links, use ExternalPurchaseCustomLink instead, which returns a token you attach when you open a specific URL. Both paths present the same Apple-controlled sheet.

5. Do not touch the disclosure sheet

Apple requires a system disclosure sheet, informally called a scare sheet, before the user leaves for the web. It tells the user they are transacting with you and not Apple, and that Apple is not responsible for the transaction. The copy is templated by Apple and shown through the StoreKit API. You cannot restyle or reword it, and attempting a custom sheet fails App Review. Users can opt out of seeing it on later purchases.

Testing and the compliance checklist

Eligibility is determined by the storefront country of the device's production App Store account, not by the device region or a sandbox setting. To test, sign in with a production Apple Account whose storefront is an EU country such as Germany or France; an account set to India or the United States reports ineligible, which is the most common false alarm in testing.

Run this checklist before you submit.

Compliance item	Requirement
Entitlement	Addendum signed and external-purchase-link entitlement enabled on the App ID
In-app purchase	Removed from the app; external offers and Apple in-app purchase cannot coexist
Info.plist	SKExternalPurchase country codes and SKExternalPurchaseLink URLs present and HTTPS
Disclosure sheet	Presented via StoreKit, unmodified
Region gating	External flow shown only to eligible EU storefront accounts
Reporting	Process to report external-purchase sales to Apple for commission each cycle

Getting the reporting right matters, because Apple still bills the 5% Core Technology Commission and the acquisition and Store Services fees on external sales; you are responsible for reporting those transactions. Skipping that is a terms breach, not a saving.

India and global context

For teams outside the EU, the practical takeaway is that this is a European feature. External purchase links do not apply in India or the United States, where Apple in-app purchase remains mandatory for digital goods, so an India-market app cannot use this to cut Apple's commission at home. Where it matters for Indian studios is export work: if you build apps for EU-facing clients, or run a subscription app with meaningful European revenue, external purchase is a real option worth modelling against in-app purchase conversion. If you also process European personal data, remember that a web checkout moves payment and customer data into your own stack, which brings GDPR duties, and DPDP duties for any Indian users, onto your side of the line. Our note on Siri and EU DMA availability planning and the iOS 27 App Store developer strategy cover the wider Apple-in-the-EU picture, and if you are early in a build, our UISceneDelegate migration guide covers a change you will hit alongside this one.

FAQ

What is the StoreKit External Purchase Link Entitlement?

It is the Apple entitlement that lets an EU iOS app steer users to an external checkout instead of in-app purchase. Since June 2025 it covers link-outs, web views, and alternative payment under one "communication and promotion of offers" capability, and you request it in your Apple Developer account after signing the EU addendum.

Can I keep Apple in-app purchase and add an external link too?

No. Apple makes it either or: an app that adopts external purchase offers cannot also use Apple in-app purchase in the same app. That constraint drives most decisions, because in-app purchase converts better than a web checkout for most apps, so giving it up to save commission points only helps apps with their own billing and audience.

What does Apple charge on EU external purchases in 2026?

For a developer not on the alternative EU terms, Apple charges a 2% initial acquisition fee for the first six months, a 5% or 13% Store Services fee depending on tier, and a 5% Core Technology Commission. That totals 12% to 20% on initial purchases, with a payment processor fee on top of every scenario.

Which countries support external purchase links?

The External Purchase Link Entitlement is available for apps in the European Union, and the wider communication and promotion of offers capability extends across the EEA, which adds Iceland, Liechtenstein, and Norway. External purchase links are separately supported in South Korea. They do not apply in India, the United States, or other markets.

Can I customize Apple's disclosure sheet?

No. Apple presents a system disclosure sheet through StoreKit before the user leaves for your site, telling them they are transacting with you and not Apple. The wording is templated by Apple, and you cannot restyle or reword it. Building a custom sheet fails App Review, so treat the sheet as fixed.

What is the Core Technology Commission and how does it differ from the CTF?

The Core Technology Commission is a 5% fee on digital goods sold through external offers, effective 26 June 2025. It replaces the Core Technology Fee, a per-install charge of EUR 0.50 above one million annual installs, which Apple is retiring in favour of the commission by 1 January 2026 as it moves to a single EU business model.

How do I test external purchase eligibility?

Eligibility depends on the storefront country of the device's production App Store account. Sign in with a production Apple Account set to an EU storefront such as Germany to see the eligible path; an account set to India or the United States reports ineligible. This account-storefront mismatch is the most common testing mistake teams hit first.

Is external purchase worth it for a small app?

Usually not. For a developer in the App Store Small Business Program, the best external-purchase case is roughly 10% plus a payment processor, versus 15% for in-app purchase with better conversion and no build work. Unless you already run your own billing and have an audience outside App Store discovery, in-app purchase remains the stronger option.

How eCorpIT can help

eCorpIT builds and ships iOS apps for teams selling into the EU, including the StoreKit external-purchase flow, App Store Connect entitlement setup, and the web checkout on the other side of the link. We model the fee stack against your real conversion data before you commit, so you do not trade App Store discovery for a commission saving that a lower web conversion rate erases. If you are weighing external purchase against in-app purchase for a European launch, talk to our iOS engineering team and we will scope the build and the numbers. See also our iOS and Swift app development service.

References

1. Apple Developer: Update on apps distributed in the European Union
2. Apple Developer: External Purchase documentation
3. Apple Developer: ExternalPurchaseLink
4. Apple Developer: ExternalPurchaseCustomLink
5. Apple Developer news: Updates to the StoreKit External Purchase Link Entitlement
6. Apple Developer news: Updates for apps in the European Union
7. Apple Developer: Communication and promotion of offers on the App Store in the EU
8. Apple Developer: Core Technology Fee
9. Apple Developer: Store services tiers
10. RevenueCat: Apple's June 2025 EU update, one entitlement, three fees
11. Stora: how to add external purchase links to your iOS app in 2026

Last updated: 18 July 2026.