Apple updates Declared Age Range API for national, state-level age assurance laws

Apple has released a beta update to its Declared Age Range API, which it has pitched as an alternative to biometric age check methods. A release from the company says the new toolset aims to help developers “meet their age assurance obligations under upcoming U.S. and regional laws, including in Brazil, Australia, Singapore, Utah and Louisiana” – all of which require app stores to provide some kind of age check for mature content.

The Declared Age Range API allows parents or guardians to set an age range for their kids, which is shared with apps to ensure young people are accessing age-appropriate content. The system does not require a birth date. Per its white paper on the subject, “the age range will be shared with developers if and only if parents decide to allow this information to be shared, and they can also disable sharing if they change their mind.”

Loot boxes win apps adult rating in Brazil

Apple breaks down its approach to age assurance laws regionally. “Developers who are distributing apps in Brazil can use the updated Declared Age Range API to obtain a user’s age category,” it says. “Age categories for users in Brazil will be shared when the user or a parent or guardian (where relevant) agrees to share the age category with you. The API will also return a signal from the user’s device about the method of age assurance.”

Also in Brazil, apps identified to contain loot boxes through the age rating questionnaire will be given an automatic 18+ rating.

And in Brazil, as well as Singapore and Australia, Apple now requires age verification “through reasonable methods” for users looking to download apps rated for adults 18 and over. “The App Store will perform this confirmation automatically.” Apple says. The measure is pitched as a complement to the Declared Age Range API.

Utah, Louisiana’s laws spur new measures in beta

Apple’s response to age assurance legislation in the U.S. is along similar lines. “For users with new Apple Accounts in Utah as of May 6, 2026, and in Louisiana as of July 1, 2026, age categories will be shared with the developer’s app when requested through the Declared Age Range API,” it says.

This scheme expands on the existing toolset, adding new signals that indicate whether age assurance requirements apply to the user and if the user is required to share their age range. It also enables developers to push update notifications through the Declared Age Range API, via the “Significant Update Action” feature.

Article Topics

age verification  |  app store age verification  |  Apple  |  Australia age verification  |  biometric age estimation  |  Brazil  |  Declared Age Range  |  Louisiana  |  Singapore  |  Utah age verification