Apple has officially opened App Store submissions for apps built with the new SDKs for iOS 27, iPadOS 27, macOS 27, tvOS 27, visionOS 27 and watchOS 27. The announcement on Apple Developer News means developers can now upload software compiled against the latest toolkits, test it with TestFlight and submit it for review. Xcode 27 Release Candidate is available as well.
This move follows Apple’s annual cycle, with submissions opening shortly before the new operating systems reach customers. Apple pointed developers toward capabilities including Apple Intelligence, the Foundation Models framework, design updates and new App Store features.
The April 2027 cutoff
Starting in April 2027, apps and games uploaded to App Store Connect must meet new minimum requirements. iOS and iPadOS apps must be built with the iOS 27 and iPadOS 27 SDK or later, and tvOS, visionOS and watchOS apps must be built with their respective 27 SDKs or later. That gives teams several months to migrate projects, update dependencies and test against the new requirements before submissions built on older SDKs stop being accepted.
macOS 27 is Apple silicon only
On the Mac side, the changes carry particular weight. Apple said macOS 26 is the final release supporting Intel Macs and Rosetta, and macOS 27 will run only on Apple silicon. Developers who want to limit an app to Apple silicon Macs can set the Xcode build architecture to arm64 only, then rebuild and resubmit. Apple said dropping Intel support lets teams simplify development and optimize for Apple silicon. Users on Intel Macs will stay on macOS 26, so developers still serving them will need to communicate minimum system requirements clearly.
Age ratings and App Store assets
Parental controls have been expanded through Time Allowances, which give parents more flexible ways to manage the time their kids spend in apps across categories such as Entertainment, Games and Social Media. Apps and games with social media capabilities need to indicate them in App Store Connect when answering age rating questions.
Apple is also adding new product page headers and search result assets to the App Store, with design guidance and templates for headers, screenshots, app previews and In-App Events. A product page preview tool in App Store Connect, which shows exactly how a page will look before it’s published, is coming soon.
Overall, the opening of submissions for the 27 family is a standard but significant milestone in Apple’s yearly cadence. It sets a clear migration timeline, and the Apple silicon-only Mac release is the change most likely to require real work for teams still shipping Intel builds.
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