Japan App Store alternative payments: 2026 commissions

By Mehdi Azizi
Published October 27, 2026, 10 min

In Japan since iOS 26.2, Apple takes 21% on alternative payments, 15% via a web link and 26% on in-app purchase. Small Business Program: 10 to 15%.

In Japan, the smartphone software competition law, known as "スマホ新法", forced Apple to open up payments in the App Store. Since iOS 26.2, your app can offer an alternative payment, through a third-party provider or a link to your website, as long as it also offers in-app purchase. Apple then takes 21% on a third-party payment and 15% on a sale made through your link, or 10% in both cases if you're in the Small Business Program.

In-app purchase now costs 21% commission plus a 5% payment processing fee, or 10% plus 5% for a small developer. This guide gives every rate, a calculation on ¥1,000, the rules for minors and the steps to turn these options on. It also applies if you develop from France: the rules cover iOS apps distributed in Japan, whatever country the developer is in.

I publish my own iOS apps, and they sell through in-app purchase. I haven't tested these Japanese options: everything below comes from the text of the law and Apple's pages, reviewed on October 27, 2026.

The Japanese law and what it changes

Its full name is スマートフォンにおいて利用される特定ソフトウェアに係る競争の促進に関する法律 (Act No. 58 of 2024). It's also cited as スマホソフトウェア競争促進法 and スマホ新法. Apple calls it the Mobile Software Competition Act, or MSCA.

According to its text on e-Gov, the law was enacted on June 19, 2024 and took effect in three stages: June 19, 2024, December 19, 2024, then December 18, 2025. The version in force on e-Gov dates from that last stage: that's full entry into force. Its implementing rules are a regulation of the Japan Fair Trade Commission (公正取引委員会, JFTC), the authority in charge of the law.

Apple announced its changes the day before, on December 17, 2025, in a press release, with iOS 26.2. According to its page on changes to iOS in Japan, you now have four ways to sell digital goods:

keep in-app purchase only: Apple states that no change is required on your side;
add a third-party payment provider in the app, alongside in-app purchase;
add a link to an offer on your website, which opens in the browser;
distribute the app outside the App Store, on an alternative marketplace authorized by Apple.

Options 2 and 3 stay in the App Store, with the same review. Most of this guide is about them.

Apple's commissions in Japan, option by option

Here are the rates Apple publishes on its page about payment options in Japan. "Small developer" here means a Small Business Program member. The same reduced rate applies to the Mini Apps Partner Program and the Video Partner Program.

Option	Standard rate	Small Business Program	Subscription after 1 year
Apple in-app purchase	21% + 5%	10% + 5%	10% + 5%
Third-party payment in app	21%	10%	10%
Link to your website	15%	10%	10%
Alternative marketplace (CTC)	5%	5%	5%

Four rules hide behind this table:

the 5% is a processing fee, charged only when Apple collects the payment through in-app purchase;
the rates apply to the price the customer pays, and tax calculation follows Apple's license agreement;
with a link to your website, only sales made within 7 days of the click are subject to the commission of 15% or 10%;
the 5% Core Technology Commission (CTC) only concerns apps distributed outside the App Store.

For a Small Business Program member who keeps in-app purchase, the total stays at 15%, same as the program's reduced rate elsewhere. At the standard rate, it drops to 26%, versus 30% in most countries. Apple sums it up in its press release: developers selling digital goods in Japan pay the same or less than before. Eligibility and enrollment are covered in the Small Business Program guide.

Calculation on ¥1,000: what you keep

This is a worked example, not a measurement. It takes a ¥1,000 purchase and ignores taxes to stay readable. The payment provider's fees aren't included: they depend on your contract, and I haven't looked them up for Japan.

Option	Standard rate	Small Business Program
Apple in-app purchase	¥740 (Apple takes ¥260)	¥850 (Apple takes ¥150)
Third-party payment in app	¥790, minus provider fees	¥900, minus provider fees
Link to your website	¥850, minus provider fees	¥900, minus provider fees

For a small developer, the gap with in-app purchase is at most 5 points, before provider fees and the extra work. On ¥1,000, that's ¥50 at best. At the standard rate, the gap is also 5 points for a third-party payment, but it climbs to 11 points for a link to your website.

The threshold to remember: if your provider takes more than 5% of the price, in-app purchase leaves you more than a third-party payment, in the Small Business Program as at the standard rate.

Redo this calculation with your provider's actual contract before deciding.

Requirements for offering another payment

Apple tightly controls the purchase screen. According to the payment options page for Japan:

in-app purchase must appear on every screen where you offer a payment, at the same time as the other option;
it must be at least as prominent as the other option: layout, text, font, color and size all count;
use the "Apple In-App Purchase" artwork provided by Apple, on a black or white button, with no custom color;
the other option can show a different price and different benefits;
the flow must not discourage or hinder in-app purchase;
your App Store listing must say nothing about buying on your website or through another payment.

Before sending the user to the other payment, you must show a disclosure sheet: it says they're dealing with you, not Apple. On iOS 26.2, you build it yourself with Apple's resources. Starting with iOS 27.2, a StoreKit API will show it for you; the page still marks it "Beta" as of October 27, 2026.

On its side, the App Store shows an information banner on your listing, a note in its Information section and the External Purchases label at download time.

You also take over everything Apple used to do for you. For these purchases, Apple can't help your customers with refunds, purchase history or subscription management. Report a Problem and Family Sharing don't cover them either. Payment issues, refunds and taxes become your job. Your provider must meet PCI Level 1 for card data and offer customer service that handles disputes, subscription management and refunds.

Finally, these options only apply to the Japanese storefront, on iPhone, from iOS 26.2. The other App Store rules stay in place: a subscription must still follow guideline 3.1.2.

Rules for minors

Apple imposes these rules on every app offering another payment in Japan.

User	Third-party payment in app	Link to your website
Kids category	Yes, after a parental gate	No
Under 13	Yes, behind parental controls	No
13 to 17	Yes, behind parental controls	Yes, behind parental controls

Outside the Kids category, your app must also support parental purchase controls and ask for a parent's approval. According to Apple's press release, parental controls cover users under 18.

One question remains: how do you know the user's age? As of October 27, 2026, Apple's page doesn't cite any API that gives the age. It points to StoreKit's canMakePayments, which only says whether the person can authorize a payment, and announces new APIs in a future update. If your app is in the Kids category, or your user is under 13, the web link is off the table.

Turning on external payment, step by step

Apple's pages don't describe a single switch in App Store Connect. Activation goes through your agreement, your App ID, your code and your submission.

Accept the updated license agreement. Only the Account Holder can do it. Apple asked all members to accept it by March 17, 2026. Once accepted, your account gets access to the required entitlement.
Add the entitlement to your App ID in Certificates, Identifiers & Profiles. Apple calls it StoreKit External Purchases or Offers. It's required even for an offer outside the app without a tappable link.
Declare it in your project. The key is com.apple.developer.storekit.custom-purchase-link.allowed-regions, an array, with the value jp. With Expo, it goes in ios.entitlements in the app config.
Code the flow in this order: check canMakePayments, then the isEligible property of ExternalPurchaseCustomLink, then show the disclosure sheet on tap. Starting with iOS 26.4, request a token with token(for:) before each possible transaction. These APIs only exist in Swift: in an Expo app, you need a native module that calls them.
Build the purchase screen following the rules above, with in-app purchase next to it.
Submit the app with your provider's name in the review notes. Check first that it can already process payments for your app.

Your binary is the same worldwide. isEligible tells you whether the option is available: if the value is false, show nothing. Outside Japan, the general rule applies: it's explained in the guideline 3.1.1 guide. South Korea and Brazil have their own programs, each with its own guide.

Monthly reporting and Apple's invoice

Apple can't see your sales outside in-app purchase. So you have to report them every month, within 15 days after the end of the calendar month.

According to App Store Connect Help on reporting, the report includes all tokens, even those that led to no purchase. It also counts refunds, adjustments, renewals and one-time purchases. Starting with iOS 26.4, it's sent through the External Purchase Server API, from your server. For transactions made on iOS 26.2 and 26.3, reporting is manual.

Apple then calculates its commission by the 15th of the following month and sends you an invoice, payable within 30 days. Apple keeps a right to audit. If you don't pay, Apple can deduct the amount from your revenue in other countries, remove your app or terminate your membership.

You develop from France: what applies to you

Your country changes nothing. Apple talks about iOS apps distributed in Japan: if your app is available on the Japanese storefront, these terms apply to it.

If you keep in-app purchase, you have nothing to code. Apple handles payment, currency conversion, tax support and customer service, and applies the rates in the table to your Japanese sales. Since April 1, 2025, according to Apple, it collects and remits Japan's 10% consumption tax on these sales itself, for developers based outside Japan.
If you add another payment, Japanese taxes on those sales become your responsibility. Apple says so without detailing local rules: check with your accountant before you start.
The 10% rate requires enrollment in the Small Business Program. Without it, you pay the standard rate, except for a subscription after its first year.
Your other countries don't change. These terms only apply to the Japanese storefront. The European Union and the United States have their own rules, summarized in the guideline 3.1.1 guide.

Alternative marketplaces and other changes

The law goes beyond payments. An alternative marketplace must be authorized by Apple. An app distributed that way has no in-app purchase and goes through a basic review, notarization. The 5% CTC then applies to its digital sales, to the app's price if it's paid, and to sales made within 7 days of a click on its link.

For users in Japan, iOS 26.2 also adds a browser and search engine choice screen. Browsers authorized by Apple can use an engine other than WebKit.

My take for a small developer

If you're in the Small Business Program, keep in-app purchase in Japan as long as your volume there stays modest. The maximum gain is 5 points, before provider fees. The cost, on the other hand, is certain: disclosure sheet, parental controls, monthly reporting, support, taxes and the banner on your listing.

The math changes in two cases:

you already have a web payment running, with its refunds and taxes;
you're above the Small Business Program threshold: the link to your website saves you up to 11 points on a purchase or the first year of a subscription, then 5 points.

Before all that, the real lever is still selling. In my view, the choice between subscription and one-time purchase matters more than 5 points of commission. If you stay on in-app purchase, RevenueCat manages your subscriptions across all storefronts, Japan included.

Rates and rules reviewed on October 27, 2026 on Apple's pages. Payment rules change fast from one country to another: reread Apple's page before you code an external payment.

Frequently asked questions

What is Apple's commission in Japan since the law?

On the App Store, 21% at the standard rate and 10% for the Small Business Program or a subscription after one year. In-app purchase adds a 5% payment fee. A link to your website costs 15%, or 10% at the reduced rate.

When did the スマホ新法 law take effect?

It was enacted on June 19, 2024. According to e-Gov, its full version has applied since December 18, 2025. Apple released its changes with iOS 26.2, announced on December 17, 2025.

Do I need to change anything if I keep in-app purchase?

Nothing in your code: Apple states that no change is required. The Account Holder did have to accept the updated license agreement by March 17, 2026. The new rates then apply to your Japanese sales.

Does this affect foreign developers?

Yes. The terms cover iOS apps distributed in Japan, whatever country the developer is in. If your app is on the Japanese storefront, they apply to it.

Can I show a lower price on my website?

Yes. Apple allows a different price and different benefits for the other option, shown in the app next to in-app purchase. However, your App Store listing must say nothing about buying on your website.

Is the web link allowed for children?

Not for apps in the Kids category or for users under 13. From 13 to 17, it's allowed behind parental controls.

When do I have to report external sales to Apple?

Every month, within 15 days after the end of the calendar month. The report includes all tokens, even without a purchase, plus refunds and renewals.

Do I need an entitlement for external payment in Japan?

Yes, the StoreKit External Purchases or Offers entitlement, with the value jp. Your account gets access once the Account Holder accepts the updated license agreement.

Official sources

Charging for your app, in Japan and everywhere else

Before you touch your payment setup, take the free diagnostic: it tells you what's really blocking your project and sends you my Apple anti-rejection checklist.

To hook up your subscription, build your paywall and publish, the iOS Kit walks you through the four-step path with the Starter Code from my apps, at your own pace. Everything about monetization is gathered on the iOS in-app subscription page.

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