App rejected? How to reply to Apple and appeal (2026)

By Sigsten Gustavii· 27 October 2026· 8 min read

When App Review rejects your app, the fastest route back is to fix exactly what Apple's message names and resubmit; replying or appealing is for when the reviewer has misunderstood your app.

A rejection feels personal, but it is routine: Apple says over 40% of unresolved issues come from a single guideline, 2.1, App Completeness. This guide walks through what the message means, your three options (fix and resubmit, reply, or appeal), how each works in App Store Connect according to Apple's own help pages, and how Borel helps you turn the message into fixes.

Step 1: Read the message properly

According to Apple's help on App Review messages, a rejection message explains how the app violates the App Review Guidelines. Find three things in it:

• The guideline number, such as 2.1, 4.2 or 5.1.1. Look it up in the guidelines and read the whole section.
• What the reviewer saw: often a step, a screen or a screenshot showing the problem.
• Whether it is the app or the listing. A metadata rejection is about the store listing, not the build.

The most common rejection reasons

Our submission checklist covers each of these before you submit, and the App Review glossary entry explains the process.

Step 2: Fix and resubmit

For most rejections, this is the whole job. Change what the message names, then resubmit:

• If the build changed, upload the new build and attach it to the version.
• If only the listing changed, Apple's help says a metadata rejection can resubmit the same build after you resolve the issue.
• If the submission had several items and only some were rejected, the submission shows Unresolved Issues. Apple's help explains you can edit and resubmit the rejected items, or remove them; each item can be edited once before resubmission.

Fix only what is asked, and check the rest of the app against the guidelines while you are there; a second rejection for something different costs another round. If you are unsure what the reviewer wants, a short reply asking for clarification before you rebuild can save a wasted submission.

Step 3: Reply to App Review when you need to explain

Sometimes the reviewer missed something: the feature is behind a setting, the demo account needed a step, or the app is for a specific group. Apple's help says you can correspond with Apple, including attachments such as screenshots and supporting documents, until you resubmit. To reply:

1. In App Store Connect, open the app and follow the link to unresolved issues.
2. In the In Progress section, choose Resolve next to the submission.
3. Choose Reply to App Review, write your reply, attach files if useful, and send it.

Be short, specific and polite: where the feature is, the exact steps, and a screenshot or short video. Apple notes that replying needs the Account Holder, Admin or App Manager role.

How to write a reply that works

A good reply makes the reviewer's next attempt easy. It says what you changed or where the feature is, in steps they can follow, and attaches proof. Something like this:

Thank you for the review. The workout history is on the second tab, History. To see it with data, sign in with the demo account in App Review Information (reviewer@example.com) and open History; the account has three weeks of sample workouts. A screen recording is attached. We have also added a short hint on the empty state so the tab is clearer.

• Lead with the answer, not with background about your company.
• Give exact steps and the account to use.
• Attach a screenshot or short recording of the feature working.
• Say what you changed, even if small, to show you took the note seriously.

Mistakes that make a rejection last longer

• Resubmitting unchanged in the hope of a different reviewer.
• Fixing the symptom, not the guideline: for example, hiding a broken button rather than making it work.
• Arguing in a reply when the message names a real problem.
• Letting the demo account expire between submissions.
• Appealing a valid rejection, which uses your one appeal for that submission and delays the fix.

Step 4: Appeal, when it is really a misunderstanding

If you believe the reviewer misunderstood your app's concept or functionality, or treated you unfairly, Apple's App Review page lets you appeal to the App Review Board. Apple asks you to:

• Give specific reasons why your app complies with the guidelines.
• Submit only one appeal per submission that did not pass.
• Answer any requests for more information before appealing.

An appeal is not a way to argue with a valid rejection, and it is not faster than a fix. If the message names a real problem, fixing it is almost always faster than appealing.

A special case: bug-fix updates

If you are submitting an update that fixes bugs and the reviewer finds other issues, Apple says you can choose to resolve those in your next submission, as long as there are no legal or safety concerns. You reply to the offer message in App Store Connect and ask for the current submission to be approved. It is a useful way to get an urgent fix out without waiting on a separate, unrelated change.

How long it takes to get back in

After you resubmit, the app joins the queue again. Apple says it reviews at least 50% of submissions within 24 hours and 90% within 48, so a quick, correct fix usually costs a day or two. See how long App Store review takes for each status.

How to handle a rejection with Borel, step by step

Borel turns Apple's rejection message into a list of fixes, separating what it can do from what only you can.

1. Open the rejected app in Borel's publish area and paste what Apple wrote.
2. Borel analyses the message and sorts each finding by guideline: something broken, the listing, access for the reviewer, the app being too limited, or documentation Apple wants.
3. Send the fixes Borel can make to the build, such as a crash or a dead control, and try the new version on the live iPhone.
4. Do the parts only you can: working credentials for the reviewer, or documents and authorisation Apple asks for.
5. Fix listing issues in the Publish flow if it is a metadata rejection.
6. Resubmit to Apple from Borel once the corrected build is selected.

Apple rejected the app under 2.1: the Save button on the new-entry screen does nothing on iPad. Fix it, check every other button on that screen on iPad too, and tell me what changed.

For apps with accounts in Borel's cloud, Borel also keeps the reviewer's demo account working before each submission, which avoids one of the most common reasons a reviewer cannot get in.

The bottom line

A rejection names a guideline and usually a fix. Change exactly that and resubmit, or resubmit the same build for a metadata issue; reply when the reviewer missed something; appeal to the App Review Board only for a genuine misunderstanding, once per submission. If you are publishing with Borel, paste Apple's message in and let it sort the fixes for you.

I think a rejection is usually a to-do list, not a verdict. Read it calmly, fix exactly what it names, and if Borel can help with the fix, paste Apple's message in and let me know how it goes.

– Sigsten

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