Notifications

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Learn about the technical aspects of notification delivery on device, including notification types, priorities, and notification center management.

Notifications Documentation

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didRegisterForRemoteNotificationsWithDeviceToken() not called if requestAuthorization() is not called
If I run the following code in didFinishLaunchingWithOptions() UNUserNotificationCenter.current().requestAuthorization(options: [.alert, .badge, .sound]) { granted, error in if granted { DispatchQueue.main.async { application.registerForRemoteNotifications() } } } Then the result is that didRegisterForRemoteNotificationsWithDeviceToken() gets called. However if I change the code to be just: DispatchQueue.main.async { application.registerForRemoteNotifications() } Or as as its already running on main in this scenario, then just application.registerForRemoteNotifications() Then didRegisterForRemoteNotificationsWithDeviceToken() does NOT get called, but also neither does didFailToRegisterForRemoteNotificationsWithError(). Obtaining a push token is supposed to be independent of the user granting notifications permissions, so why am I not observing that behavior? I only observe this behavior when running on hardware, when running on the simulator both forms of the code work. Yet its nothing to do with my phone not being able to contact the Apple servers etc. - if I change the code back and forth back and forth between the two then if 100% works when using requestAuthorization() and 100% doesn't when not using it. There's nothing additional or out of the ordinary with the code, its standard app delete template stuff. Why isn't it getting a push token when requestAuthorization() isn't used? (I've tried adding an async delay to calling registerForRemoteNotifications(), but it made no difference).
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Sep ’25
Not Receiving Incoming VoIP Push Notifications on iOS 18.4 (React Native App)
Hi Apple Dev Team, We have a React Native application that includes call functionality using PushKit and VoIP notifications. We are using APNS to send the VoIP notifications, and everything has been working smoothly on iOS versions up to 18.3.1. However, after updating to iOS 18.4, we are no longer receiving incoming VoIP push notifications on the device. There have been no code changes related to our PushKit or notification logic — the exact same build continues to work correctly on devices running iOS 18.3.1 and earlier. We're trying to understand if anything has changed in iOS 18.4 that affects VoIP push delivery or registration behavior. Would appreciate any guidance, and happy to share code snippets or configuration if needed. Thanks in advance!
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Apr ’25
Clarification on APNs MDM Push Certificate per-customer requirement for MSP/multi-tenant MDM
Hello Apple Developer Community, We’re building an MDM product (SaaS, multi-tenant). I’d like clarification on the APNs MDM push certificate usage model for service providers (MSPs). Question: Is it acceptable for an MDM vendor to use a single APNs MDM push certificate owned by the vendor to manage devices for multiple, independent customer organizations? Or is it required/recommended that each customer (company) must obtain and use its own APNs MDM push certificate (issued under the customer’s Apple ID) for their tenant? Why we’re asking: We understand that many guides show the process where each customer logs into the Apple Push Certificates Portal with their own Apple ID, uploads a CSR provided by the MDM, and then renews yearly. Practically, for a small team and early-stage deployments, using one vendor-owned certificate across multiple tenants would be simpler. We want to ensure we’re not violating any policy, terms, or technical requirements (e.g., certificate ownership, topic binding, device token isolation, audit/compliance expectations). What we need from Apple (or authoritative sources): An official Apple document or policy that clearly states whether per-customer certificates are mandatory vs strongly recommended for MSP/multi-tenant MDMs. If per-customer is mandatory, please point to the relevant clause or section. If a vendor uses a single certificate for multiple organizations, what risks or consequences should we expect (e.g., compliance issues, supportability, potential program violations, off-boarding problems, etc.)? Context: We’re sending only MDM wake notifications (standard MDM flow). We understand certificates expire yearly and must be renewed with the same Apple ID to avoid device re-enrollment. We want to follow Apple’s best practices while keeping early operations manageable. Any guidance, links to official documentation, or clarification from Apple engineers/moderators would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!
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Oct ’25
Are notification pushes not being received when in Picture-in-Picture mode?
Hello, I recently had an unusual experience, and I’m wondering if this is related to Apple’s policies, so I wanted to ask. While a call is in Picture-in-Picture (PIP) mode, notification pushes from the same app do not appear. The API is being triggered, but the notification banner does not show on the device. Once PIP is closed, the notifications start appearing normally again. Is this behavior enforced by Apple’s policies? What’s interesting is that banners from other apps do appear — only the banners from the app currently in PIP are not shown.
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Dec ’25
Push Notification Delivery Delays and Failures on iOS Devices
I am experiencing an issue with push notifications on my iOS application. The issue is as follows: On Android devices, push notifications are received immediately without any problems. On iOS devices, the behavior is inconsistent: When the app is in the foreground, notifications are received immediately. When the app is in the background or in recent apps with a significant delay of 5–10 hours, push notifications are not received at all. This behavior creates a major challenge for us, as timely notifications are critical for our app’s functionality. We have already verified the following points on our side: Push notification certificates and APNs setup are correct. Payload and server configurations are valid, as notifications are working fine on Android. No restrictions from the server-side, since Android users receive notifications instantly. It seems the issue is specifically related to iOS devices or APNs delivery. Could you please help us identify the cause and provide guidance on how to resolve this?
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Push Notification Icon Not Updated on Some Devices After App Icon Change
Hi, We recently updated our app icon, but the push notification icon has not been updated on some devices. It still shows the old icon on: • iPhone 16 Pro — iOS 26 • iPhone 14 — iOS 26 • iPad Pro 11” (M4) — iOS 18.6.2 • iPhone 16 Plus — iOS 18.5 After restarting these devices, the push notification icon is refreshed and displays the new version correctly. Could you advise how we can ensure the push notification icon updates properly on all affected devices without requiring users to restart? Thank you.
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Consent Revocation Notification
We are in the process of preparing our app to support the new Texas law (SB2420) that takes effect 1/1/2026. After reviewing Apple's recent announcements​/docs concerning this subject, one thing isn't clear to me: how to associate an app install with a​n App Store Server RESCIND_CONSENT notification​ that could be delivered to our server. Our app is totally free so there isn't an originalTransactionId​ or other similar transaction IDs that would be generated as part of an in-app purchase (and then subsequently sent as part of the payload in the notification to our server during an in-app purchase scenario). So my question is: How do I associate an app (free app) install with an App Store Server RESCIND_CONSENT notification​ that is sent to our server​?
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Dec ’25
Significant increase in 410 "Unregistered" responses from APNs when sending push notifications.
We are observing a significant increase in 410 "Unregistered/ExpiredToken" responses from APNs when sending push notifications after 20 July. According to documentation, this indicates that the device token is no longer valid for the specified topic. However, the sudden spike raises questions about whether there have been any recent updates or changes to APNs' token invalidation logic. Could you please confirm: Whether there have been any recent updates in APNs behavior related to 410 responses? If there are best practices or recommendations for handling large volumes of token invalidations in order to detect uninstallations?
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Aug ’25
Timestamp with 410 error code
Docs mention the following about the timestamp field returned by APNs: "The time, represented in milliseconds since Epoch, at which APNs confirmed the token was no longer valid for the topic. This key is included only when the error in the :status field is 410." We would like to clarify whether this timestamp is subject to the fuzzy schedule or whether it represent the accurate time of when APNs knew that the token became invalid? We understand that using 410 for tracking purposes is off label. However we still would like to have the most accurate information in regards to when token became invalid. This will help us debug user issues better in cases when they re-install, uninstall, change permission settings, etc.
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Aug ’25
iOS blocks 100% notification for app in the background
I created my app. One of its functionality is receive remote notification in the background (it receives it from Firebase Cloud Messaging via APNS) and replies with device location data. This is "boat tracking and alarm" type of app. It worked well both on my iPhone (where I use the same Apple ID as on developer's account) and on my son's iPad (different Apple ID). After the first review, when app was rejected with some remarks, background remote notifications completely stopped working on my iPhone. It looks like my iPhone put the app in permanent sleep. It never receives the background notifications. It receives them though in 2 case: when I open the app (it is no longer in background) when location is changed (it wakes app in the background). But the app should also respond when the device is stable at the position (I use both: precise and Significant Location Change. In the latter case changes are very rare). Btw, I scheduled a background task, not location, and it also never gets executed, so this workaround does not work. I describe it, so any Apple engineer does not get confused, verifying that these remote notifications reach the device. NO, they never get through when app is in the background (THIS IS THE PROBLEM), not that they are never delivered (the are, in the foreground). And the proof that it is not a problem with the app or remote notification construction is: they work on another drives (iPad) with no issues. Sometimes they are very delayed, sometimes almost instant. But usually they work. they worked the same way on my iPhone (with my developer's Apple ID) before the first rejection, and I haven't messed with messaging functionality since then. Now I am over with the last hope I had. I finally got my app release in App Store. I hoped official version would release some blockade my iOS put on my app. But unfortunately not. Official version works the same way as the test one. It works fine (receiving notifications in the background) on my son's iPad and it does not receive any background notification on my iPhone (100% block rate). Can anyone help me how can I reset my apps limits, the iOS created for my app? It seems that the rejection was a sparkle here - this is just a hint. I can provide any system logs for Apple engineers from both devices (iPhone and iPad) if you would like to check this case.
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Sep ’25
Which apns errors should cause us to remove the tokens from our server's db?
Having some discussion about when we should clear out a token from our servers. Docs say: Don’t retry notification responses with the error code BadDeviceToken, DeviceTokenNotForTopic, Forbidden, ExpiredToken, Unregistered, or PayloadTooLarge. You can retry with a delay, if you get the error code TooManyRequests. The way I see it is that with the exception of PayloadTooLarge, all other errors means you should remove the token from your server. Either because: The token is no longer good The token is good, but this is just not the right: environment (sandbox vs production) topic (the token is from a different bundle id or developer team) target (app vs live activity appex) Do I have it right? Extra context: when using the "JSON Web Token Validator" tool, a colleague reported that a 410 -Expired token (from couple days back) was still valid today. This raises questions about when tokens should actually be deleted and how these error codes should be interpreted. Also is it possible for the docs to get updated for us to explicitly know if a token should get removed and not leave it for interpretation?
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Nov ’25
Regarding the change of device tokens after an iOS update
In the app we are developing, we update the device token upon app launch using didRegisterForRemoteNotificationsWithDeviceToken. Previously, after an iOS major update, if the app was left without being launched, users experienced an issue where notifications would not be received. Later, we confirmed that running didRegisterForRemoteNotificationsWithDeviceToken during app launch updates the device token and restores the ability to receive notifications. Therefore, we believe that the device token may change due to an iOS major update. We want to understand the detailed conditions under which the device token is updated due to an iOS update: Does the same issue occur after iOS minor updates as well? Does it always happen during iOS major updates? We reviewed the official documentation, but there was no detailed description of the device token update conditions. Additionally, we contacted Apple, but received no clear answers. If anyone has experienced the same situation, we would appreciate any information you can share.
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Jun ’25
Inconsistent VoIP Push Behavior Post Network Restoration
We are observing unexpected behavior in Apple Push Notification Service (APNS) delivery and would appreciate clarification and guidance. Below is a detailed breakdown of the scenario and related questions. Abbreviations: APNP – Apple Push Notification Provider APNS – Apple Push Notification Service Scenario: User1 is registered on iOS device1. Flight Mode is enabled on iOS device1. User2 initiates a call to User1 (Time t = 0 sec). User2 cancels the outgoing call after 5 seconds (Time t = 5 sec). Flight Mode is disabled on iOS device1 after 20 seconds (Time t = 25 sec). Observation: iOS device1 displays an incoming call notification (CallKit UI) after flight mode is turned off, despite the call being cancelled by User2. This notification disappears automatically after approximately 8–10 seconds. Logic Flow: At time t = 0, our APNP sends a VoIP push (priority) to APNS for the incoming call. Since device1 is in flight mode, APNS cannot deliver the push. At t = 25 sec, after flight mode is turned off, APNS delivers the cached VoIP push to device1. The app takes ~5 seconds to initialize (CSDK setup, SIP registration, etc.). It eventually receives a SIP NOTIFY with state="full" and empty dialog info (indicating no active call). Consequently, the CallKit incoming call is removed after ~8 seconds. Questions: → We set the apns-expiration header to 0, expecting that the VoIP push would not be delivered if the device was unreachable when the push was sent. However, APNS still delivers the push 20–30 seconds later, once the device is back online. Q. Why is the apns-expiration header not respected in this case? → Upon receiving the VoIP push, we require ~10–12 seconds to determine if a visible CallKit notification is still relevant (e.g., by completing SIP registration and checking for active dialogs). Q. Is it acceptable, per Apple guidelines, to intentionally delay showing the CallKit UI (incoming call) for 10–15 seconds after receiving the VoIP push? → Apple documentation states that the priority VoIP push channel should be used only for notifying incoming calls, while regular (non-VoIP) pushes should be used for other updates, including call cancellations. Q. What is the rationale behind discouraging the use of the priority VoIP push channel for call cancellation events? In some cases, immediate cancellation notification is as critical as the initial incoming call. Would Apple consider it acceptable to occasionally use the priority VoIP channel for rare call-cancellation scenarios without risking throttling or suspension? → In our implementation, we send an incoming call notification via the priority VoIP channel. Shortly after, we send a call cancellation notification on the regular push channel, marked with "content-available": 1. We expect this regular push to wake the app (triggering application:didReceiveRemoteNotification:fetchCompletionHandler:), but in practice the app never wakes, and our debug logs inside that delegate method never appear. Q. Under what exact conditions does a "content-available": 1 regular push fail to wake the app when it follows a VoIP push? Are there additional requirements (e.g., background modes, rate limits, power optimizations) that could prevent the delegate from being called? → According to Apple documentation: “APNs stores only one notification per bundle ID. When multiple notifications are sent to the same device for the same bundle ID, APNs keeps only the latest one.” However, in our tests: If a device is offline when APNs receives both: (a) a priority VoIP push for an incoming call, (b) a regular push for call cancellation (same bundle ID), Upon the device reconnecting, APNs still delivers the earlier VoIP push, instead of discarding it and delivering only the most recent (cancellation) notification. Q. Why doesn’t APNs replace the queued VoIP push with the newer regular push when both share the same bundle ID? Is this expected behavior due to channel type differences (VoIP vs. regular), or is there a way to ensure that the latest notification (even if regular) supersedes the earlier VoIP push? We’d appreciate your input or recommendations on handling such delayed pushes and any best practices for VoIP push expiration handling and call UI timing.
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Aug ’25
Alarm sounds ios without critical alerts
Hello guys, i need a little help. Im building an alarm clock app, pretty good one, and i have my own sounds i want to use as the alarm ring but notifications on apple cant work when the phone is turned off or the device is in silent mode (Or at least thats how i understand it) unless they have this feature called critical alerts that lets you have notifications even when the phone is turned off or silented. Without this, the phone can do just one beep and only when you open the notification, then it starts ringing but how is this supposed to wake you up? Alarmy has this worked out fine and i cant figure out how, maybe someone here knows. Im thinking maybe they have the critical alerts enabled but then i dont know why Apple would approve theirs and not mine. I tried to submit for the critical alerts feature but apple didn’t approve it saying the app is not the use case and im kinda lost. The whole app could be ruined because of this. So my question is. is there any way how i can use my custom sounds as a notifications on ios even if the phone is turned off or in silent mode+turned off and the app is not straight up running without being approved for critical alerts? Somehow like alarmy does it but i dont know if they have the critical alerts or not. Thank you very much for any kind of help 🙏. For everyone whos reading this, take care!
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Notification Service Extension not getting invoked on macOS
I’m testing remote push notifications on macOS, and although notifications are received and displayed correctly, my Notification Service Extension (NSE) never gets invoked. The extension is properly added as a target in the same app, uses the UNNotificationServiceExtension class, and implements both didReceive(_:withContentHandler:) and serviceExtensionTimeWillExpire(). I’ve also set "mutable-content": 1 in the APNS payload, similar to how it works on iOS — where the same code correctly triggers the NSE. On macOS, however, there’s no sign that the extension process starts or the delegate methods are called. import UserNotifications class NotificationService: UNNotificationServiceExtension { override func didReceive(_ request: UNNotificationRequest, withContentHandler contentHandler: @escaping (UNNotificationContent) -> Void) { let modified = (request.content.mutableCopy() as? UNMutableNotificationContent) modified?.title = "[Modified] " + (modified?.title ?? "") contentHandler(modified ?? request.content) } override func serviceExtensionTimeWillExpire() { // Called if the extension times out before finishing } } And the payload used for testing: { "aps": { "alert": { "title": "Meeting Reminder", "body": "Join the weekly sync call" }, "mutable-content": 1 }, "MEETING_ORGANIZER": "Alex Johnson" } Despite all correct setup steps, the NSE never triggers on macOS (while working fine on iOS). Can anyone confirm whether UNNotificationServiceExtension is fully supported for remote notifications on macOS, or if additional configuration or entitlement is needed?
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Nov ’25
track PushNotification delivery
Hello Team, We are working on a requirement where the business wants to track the delivery of push notifications on iOS devices. Specifically, they want to capture the moment when the device receives the notification and it appears as a badge in the Notification Center—regardless of whether the app is in the background or not—and then send that delivery status back to APNs. We have explored multiple approaches, but so far, we are only able to capture events when the user interacts with the notification banner. We would like to understand: Is it technically possible to send an event to APNs or another service upon receipt of the notification on the device without requiring user interaction? Any guidance or recommendations would be greatly appreciated.
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May ’25