Apple is adjusting App Store pricing in four countries starting September 14, and the reasoning comes down to currency and tax shifts rather than a straightforward price hike. Israel, Indonesia, Morocco, and the Republic of the Congo are the storefronts affected, and the change only kicks in for developers who haven’t set one of those four as their base pricing storefront.
Here’s how it actually works: Apple lets developers pick a base country for pricing, then calculates equivalent prices elsewhere using exchange-rate data pulled from financial media and financial firms. If your base storefront happens to be one of the four getting adjusted, your price there stays put. Everyone else gets recalculated to keep the equivalent value consistent, which is standard practice for Apple’s global pricing system covering 43 currencies across 175 storefronts.
There’s a second, separate change buried in the same announcement. Starting immediately on August 27, developer proceeds are shifting in three countries due to new taxes: a fresh 20% VAT in Morocco, an 18% VAT in the Republic of the Congo, and Tanzania’s Digital Sales Tax climbing from 2% to 3%. That’s a proceeds adjustment for developers, distinct from the September 14 consumer-facing price changes.
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Two things worth flagging for anyone tracking this closely. Auto-renewable subscriptions are excluded entirely from the September 14 adjustment, and Apple hasn’t published an exact percentage increase for any of the four countries, so specific figures circulating online should be checked against App Store Connect directly rather than taken at face value.
If you’re a developer in any of these markets, the prices are already visible under Pricing and Availability in App Store Connect, and you can still override them manually before the change takes effect.
M Adnan Akram is the founder and lead writer at Phoonomo, covering mobile technology with a primary focus on Apple and the broader smartphone industry, alongside emerging developments in AI. He follows product launches, spec leaks, and industry trends closely to keep readers informed with timely updates.
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