The key facts

  • All apps with dating features or romantic content will receive an 18+ rating
  • From November 16, developers must add new content descriptors, including sharing the user's location with others
  • The measure continues Apple's policy of protecting minors following the global rollout of age assurance and new parental controls

New App Store rules

Apple is tightening the App Store's age requirementsto restrict minors' access to online dating apps and AI companions with 'sexual or romantic content.' The company announced this to developers on Monday, November 3, in an official announcement. Although major dating services usually already restrict their platforms to adults, Apple's new rule requires an 18+ rating for all apps with dating or romantic relationship features — regardless of their primary purpose.

What exactly changes on November 16

Starting November 16, developers are required to declare new content descriptors so that an app's age rating matches its features. In addition to the 'dating and relationships' category, an app must declare if it shares the user's real location with another person or group. Apple made a separate exception for Brazil: family apps with a location-sharing feature may request an official rating from the Ministry of Justice and Public Security (MJSP) instead of being assigned an A16 rating, as local law requires.

Who will be affected by the restrictions

The rule may have the greatest impact on AI companion apps, where such features are just one of many. Character.AI, Replika, and similar services, often aimed at a young audience, allow users to create virtual friends, lovers, and fantasy characters. Last year xAI launched 3D-animated AI companions with the ability to unlock NSFW features. According to TechCrunch, by the summer of 2025 the leading companion apps in the App Store and Google Play had been downloaded 220 million times in total — meaning Apple's new policy affects a segment with an audience in the tens of millions.

A continuation of child protection policy

The new rules are a continuation of Apple's earlier steps to protect minors: in February the company rolled out age assurance technology worldwide, and in June it announced additional parental controls and child safety features. Thus, the 18+ rating requirement for dating apps and AI companions is being built into the already-launched age verification system rather than being introduced in isolation.