iOS - Submitting Your App to the Apple App Store – Mag+ Designd Support

Note: This article covers the process of submitting an app to the Apple App Store. If you have previously submitted your app and are just updating it (with new features or a new build), please read the article "iOS - Updating a Live App."

Before You Begin

You will need an iOS Developer account and have set-up the AppStore Connect information for your app before following the steps in this article. For more information on this process, read the iOS articles located in the section "Setting Up Distribution Channels."
After creating an app entry in AppStore Connect, you should upload the build created by the mag+ Publish portal using Apple's Application Loader tool. For more information on uploading builds, please refer to the article "iOS - How to Upload Builds Using Transporter."
Before submitting your app for review, you must publish at least one mag+ Issue. The Apple Review Board must see this Issue within your app in order to approve it. For more information on publishing Issues, please read the article "Managing Issues."
If you have content (or subscription products) available for purchase in your mag+ app, you must publish at least one mag+ Issue that is connected to an in-app purchase (the in-app purchase can be for a Non-Consumable Issue, an Auto-Renewable Subscription or a Free Subscription). If you do not, the app will give an error message and the Apple Review Board will reject your app.

Important Information

When submitting a mag+ app to the Apple App Store, it is possible to include third-party integrations for serving advertisements, reporting on user activity, etc. Read the article "iOS - Adding Third-Party Integrations" for instructions on how to add these integrations to your app.

Please note that some third-party integrations make use of an Identifier for Advertisers (IDFA) which must be reported to Apple when submitting your app for approval. You can find information on which third-party integrations use IDFA and which checkboxes must be checked when submitting the app at the end of the article "iOS - Adding Third-Party Integrations."

How to Submit an App to the App Store for the First Time

2. Click on the "My Apps" icon to see the list of your available apps.

3. Click on your app in order to view the App Information page.

Note: It will look similar to the image below.

4. Click on the Testflight tab to show builds that can be submitted for review.

Note: If there are no builds uploaded, you will see the message "Submit your builds using Xcode or Application Loader." For detailed steps on how to use Application Loader, please refer to the article "iOS - Uploading Builds Using Transporter."

5. When submitted, the build will go through a "Processing" stage to check for errors.

Note: When the processing is complete, you will be able to select the build to associate it with your app in the next step.

6. Scroll down to the Build section page and click on add build.

7. In the window that appears, select the build you want to submit and click "Done".

8. Click on "Add for Review" and then it will redirect you to the final page of submission click on submit to app review.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Be sure to confirm if your app is using the "Advertising Identifier".  For more information, refer to the "Notifying Apple of Advertising Identifier (IDFA)" section of the article "iOS - Adding Third-Party Integrations."

9. After successful submission, your app status will change to "Waiting for Review".

The lead time for the Apple review varies but is usually around 2-3working days.

Note: At this point you cannot make any changes to the metadata until after the app is approved.