Guideline 4.5.4: Apple push notification rejection

Guideline 4.5.4 covers push notifications. Your app has to work without them, must never put sensitive information in them, and must never use them for promotion without consent. A marketing notification needs written consent in your app and a toggle to withdraw it, on top of the iOS permission.

I publish my own iOS apps with Expo. On TradaZen, my trading simulator, I removed a notification that announced a discount and replaced it with a reminder with no offer, which I disclosed to the reviewer. This guide is based on Apple's text, its developer license, its documentation and that case. For the big picture on rejection reasons, read why Apple rejects an app.

What does guideline 4.5.4 say?

The rule sits in section 4 "Design", part 4.5 "Apple Sites and Services", of the App Review Guidelines. Hence the rejection title: "Guideline 4.5.4 - Design - Apple Sites and Services". The text sets three limits.

1. No mandatory notifications. "Push Notifications must not be required for the app to function." Denying the iOS prompt must not block anything.
2. No sensitive information. They "should not be used to send sensitive personal or confidential information". A notification shows up on the lock screen, in front of anyone.
3. No promotion without consent. Marketing is forbidden "unless customers have explicitly opted in to receive them via consent language displayed in your app's UI", with "a method in your app for a user to opt out".

The last sentence warns that abuse can cost you access to the service. Two nearby rules complete the picture. 4.5.3 forbids notification spam. 5.1.2(i) forbids requiring notifications to be enabled to access a feature, content or a reward.

What the developer license adds

The guidelines talk about push notifications. Schedule 1 of the Apple Developer Program License Agreement, which you accepted when you signed up, goes further on three points.

• Local notifications are covered. Section 2.2 targets "the APN or Local Notifications". A reminder scheduled in the app, with no server, follows the same rule.
• Promotion is defined broadly. It includes upselling and "sending any messages to promote the use of Your Application or advertise the availability of new features or versions".
• The iOS prompt is untouchable. Section 1.3 forbids bypassing Apple's consent panel. If consent is denied or withdrawn, you send nothing.

My reading: a "come back to the app" message gets close to promotion, even without a price. Apple doesn't settle this case, and that's why I disclose this kind of reminder to the reviewer.

What does the 4.5.4 rejection message mean?

The best documented rejection targets an app that doesn't work without notifications. In a 2018 B4X forum thread, Apple writes: "Push notifications must be optional and must obtain the user's consent to be used within the app." The developer then reports a black screen after denying permission. The lead suggested in the thread: a UI that waited for the notification token before displaying.

Assume the reviewer denies permissions to see what happens. If the app freezes, nags, or takes away a feature, 4.5.4 or 5.1.2(i) kicks in. For marketing without consent, I haven't found any recent public rejection message.

Which consent for which notification?

My grid combines Apple's text, the license and the Human Interface Guidelines. The "trial ending" and "come-back reminder" rows are my reading, not a written Apple position.

Notification type	Consent required	Compliant example
Response to an action	iOS prompt	"Your export is ready"
Chosen reminder	iOS prompt	Daily lesson at 7 p.m.
Trial ending, renewal	iOS prompt	"Your trial ends on the 12th"
Come-back reminder	iOS prompt + caution	No price, only once
Offer or discount	iOS prompt + consent	Box checked in the app
App news	iOS prompt + consent	Sent to subscribers only
Private message, health	Never any content	"New message"
Provisional notification	No prompt at first	Arrives with no sound or banner

"iOS prompt" means the system permission. "Consent" means a separate choice in your app: a sentence saying what you'll send, and a toggle that's off by default.

Subscription reminders and offers

The Managing notifications page of Apple's Human Interface Guidelines mentions subscriptions: a person may appreciate "an offer to become a subscriber", if they've agreed to marketing notifications. It adds two obligations: a settings screen in the app to change their mind, and never using the "Time Sensitive" level for marketing.

The line I draw: a reminder that informs about a purchase already made isn't an offer, a message that pushes to buy is. "Your trial ends on the 12th" informs. "50% off for 24 hours" sells. The purchase screen the notification opens is still subject to rule 3.1.2.

Soft, or provisional, notifications

Apple talks about "provisional authorization" in its documentation on permissions. The app can send without showing the iOS prompt. Notifications arrive with no sound or banner, only in the Notification Center history, with buttons to keep or turn them off. With Expo, it's an option of requestPermissionsAsync:

import * as Notifications from "expo-notifications";

await Notifications.requestPermissionsAsync({
  ios: {
    allowAlert: true,
    allowBadge: true,
    allowSound: true,
    allowProvisional: true,
  },
});

The ios.status field is then IosAuthorizationStatus.PROVISIONAL until the person chooses. A provisional notification replaces the iOS prompt, not marketing consent. A promotion sent provisionally is still a promotion.

Watch the vocabulary. On TradaZen, I call a "soft notification" a calm-toned reminder, sent only if the iOS prompt was accepted. That's not provisional authorization.

Setting up explicit consent with Expo

1. Ask for iOS permission in context. Apple recommends asking after an action that shows its value, not at first launch. On TradaZen, it shows up for example after an onboarding reward or a finished lesson. Same logic as for the rating request.
2. Add a separate marketing consent. A toggle off by default, with a clear sentence, for example: "Receive offers and news, at most once a week."
3. Provide a settings screen. Reminders and offers can be turned off in the app, not just in iOS Settings.
4. Filter when sending. Your server, or your local scheduler, sends a promotion only to people who opted in.
5. Let everything work without it. Denying blocks no screen, no feature, no reward.

TradaZen: the notification I removed

On October 12, 2026, a TradaZen version was rejected under rule 5.6, which targets purchases obtained through manipulation. Apple doesn't point to the element in question. So I went through the whole purchase funnel again, notifications included.

One notification was a problem. Leaving the app during onboarding or on the subscription screen scheduled this local message: "I have an exclusive discount just for you." It only depended on the iOS permission, with no separate marketing consent. That's exactly the promotion without explicit consent that 4.5.4 and the license describe. I deleted it in all thirty of the app's languages.

In its place, a single reminder: "Your journey is waiting. Pick it up whenever you want, no rush." Its limits:

• it only goes out if notifications are allowed;
• only once per install, five minutes after leaving onboarding or the subscription screen;
• it's canceled if the person comes back before then;
• no price, no discount, no timer, no sound.

This reminder still sits in the gray area described above. I didn't hide it: it's described in the review notes and in my reply to the reviewer. A disclosed reminder is up for discussion, a hidden reminder looks like a trick.

How do you respond to a 4.5.4 rejection?

The conversation happens in App Store Connect, where you reply to the App Review message. Fix things first: remove the requirement, add marketing consent or clean up the text, then make a new build. The template I'd use, to adapt:

Hello,

Thank you for your feedback on Guideline 4.5.4.

In the new build:
- The app works fully if notifications are denied.
- Promotional notifications are sent only to users
  who turn on "[toggle name]" in [screen]. It is off
  by default and can be turned off at any time.
- Notifications never include [sensitive data].

How to test:
1. Deny notifications at the first prompt.
2. Open [feature]: it works without them.
3. Open [screen] to see both toggles.

Best regards,

The 4.5.4 checklist before submission

• The app is fully usable after a permission is denied, with no blocked screen or withdrawn reward.
• The iOS prompt shows up after a useful action, never on the first screen.
• Every promotion, local or remote, depends on a marketing consent that's off by default.
• An in-app settings screen turns off reminders and offers.
• No notification text shows health data, an amount or a private message.
• No promotion at the "Time Sensitive" level.
• The review notes list the notifications sent during the first days.
• You've tested the flow while denying every permission. The TestFlight guide shows how to install your build for this test.

Check your submission before sending

The Review Kit brings together my pre-submission checklist, note templates for the tester, and Claude Code skills that review your project. For a human eye, book an hour with me: we'll go over your notifications and your settings screen together on a video call. The full process is on the app rejected by Apple page.

Getting ready for your first release? Take your free diagnostic: it puts the steps in order and sends you my Apple anti-rejection checklist.

Frequently asked questions

What does "Guideline 4.5.4 - Design - Apple Sites and Services" mean?

It's the rejection title when Apple finds your notifications mandatory, too revealing, or promotional without consent. Read the sentence after the title: it says what the reviewer found.

Can you ask for notifications during onboarding?

Yes, if denying blocks nothing and the request follows a moment that shows its value. Never tie a reward to consent: 5.1.2(i) forbids it.

Is a trial-ending notification marketing?

My reading: no, if it only informs about the current trial. If it offers a discount or another subscription, it becomes a promotion and needs marketing consent.

Are local notifications covered by 4.5.4?

The guideline talks about push notifications, but Schedule 1 of the developer license applies the promotion rule to local notifications. Treat them the same way.

Does a provisional notification exempt you from marketing consent?

No. It skips the iOS prompt at first, but a promotion is still a promotion: it needs explicit consent in the app and a way to opt out.