Australia Opens the iPhone: What Rival App Stores Change in 2027

By Jaspal Singh October 22, 2026 Updated: October 22, 2026

From noon on 1 March 2027, iPhone owners with an Australian Apple Account should be able to install apps from rival app stores and developer websites, and developers can sell in-app content without Apple's payment system. Australia's Federal Court ordered it on 22 October 2026, and Apple says it will appeal.

What Happened

Justice Jonathan Beach of the Federal Court of Australia handed down his remedies judgment in Epic Games Inc v Apple Inc (No 2) [2026] FCA 1552 on 22 October 2026. It runs to 1,104 paragraphs and turns the liability findings he made in August 2025 into binding orders. In that earlier ruling, [2025] FCA 900, he found that Apple had a substantial degree of power in two markets, iOS app distribution and iOS in-app payments, and misused it in breach of section 46 of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010.

The new orders begin with a declaration that Apple has been contravening section 46(1) since 6 November 2017. The court then makes four groups of orders:

Fortnite comes back. Once Epic applies in writing, Apple must process its developer agreements and let Fortnite and Epic's other apps back into the Australian App Store. This order is not delayed, and Epic said Fortnite would return to the Australian store on 22 October. Apple removed the game on 13 August 2020.
Alternative distribution. Apple must let users discover, install and update apps, including whole app stores, from outside the App Store, and must give developers the tools and APIs to build them.
Alternative payments. Apple can no longer force App Store apps to use In-App Purchase (IAP), or stop them from linking to a cheaper checkout elsewhere.
No retaliation. Apple cannot reject or disadvantage a developer because it also distributes outside the App Store or uses another payment method.

Orders 3 to 11, the technical and commercial changes, start at noon Melbourne time on 1 March 2027. Apple gets one chance to push that back: if it applies between 1 and 15 February 2027 with supporting evidence and the court agrees, the start moves to 3 May 2027. Apple must also pay 85% of Epic's costs up to and including the liability trial. Costs of the remedies hearing are reserved.

Apple told Reuters it will "request a stay and appeal the outcome", citing its intellectual property and App Store security, as 9to5Mac reported. Epic called the ruling great news for developers and for iOS users in Australia.

Why It Matters

Australia joins the European Union, Japan and Brazil in requiring Apple to open the iPhone to rival app stores, but it got there through a developer's lawsuit rather than new legislation. That shows in the detail. The EU's Digital Markets Act left Apple room to design its own compliance terms. The Australian orders spell out what Apple may not charge.

That makes the fee rules the part most likely to matter outside Australia. In the EU, Apple's current terms on its developer support page charge a 5% Core Technology Commission on digital sales made through alternative marketplaces or web distribution. Developers who want to run a marketplace must also pass eligibility tests such as a credit check or a US$1 million letter of credit. Order 5(a) of the Australian judgment forbids Apple from imposing "any fees or conditions" for access to, or use of, alternative distribution channels. Order 9(d) bars any fee on purchases made in apps distributed that way. If the orders survive appeal, Australia will have the cheapest route onto the iPhone anywhere.

The ruling also reaches beyond Australian companies. Developers can be based anywhere as long as they stay in Apple's Developer Program, and payment providers can be foreign too.

How It Works

The orders apply to a defined group of people. A "User" is anyone whose Apple Account has its country or region set to Australia. "App Store" means the Australian storefront. The obligations follow the account's region setting, not where the phone happens to be, which matches how Apple already handles the EU, Japan and Brazil.

Installing apps from outside the App Store

Order 3 defines "Alternative Distribution Channels" as direct downloads from websites and alternative app stores. An app can travel that way only after two checks: an automated scan for "genuine security and/or privacy reasons", and notarisation by Apple "or a suitably qualified third party". The second part is new. Under the EU rules, notarisation is Apple's job alone. The Australian order leaves room for an independent body to do it.

Apple must then provide the tools and APIs developers need to build and update such apps, and to build a storefront app that can install other apps. It must provide them "in the same manner and on substantially the same terms" as for App Store developers. Order 4 forbids OS-level restrictions that stop apps from running unless they came from the App Store or were pre-installed by Apple. Order 5(g) says Apple cannot ban phone makers or carriers from pre-installing third-party apps, including rival stores.

The court also limited the friction Apple can add. Order 5(i) prohibits warnings, delays or extra steps that are "disproportionate to the security risk" or designed to deter people from installing apps. Apple can remove or disable a sideloaded app only in three cases: it contains illicit, objectionable or harmful content; it is malware that needs urgent removal, or that the developer has not fixed after reasonable notice; or Australia's Online Safety Act requires its removal.

Paying outside Apple's system

For App Store apps, Apple can no longer require IAP for digital content or ban buttons and links to a developer's own checkout. Developers can charge less outside IAP, need not offer IAP at all, and need not report or open their alternative-payment transactions to audit (order 9). Apple may add security requirements for another payment method only if they are "necessary and proportionate". It must first send affected developers a written notice explaining the risk (order 7).

Fees follow a split design:

Apps distributed outside the App Store: no fee at all on in-app purchases through other payment methods, or on content bought on the web for use in the app.
App Store apps using other payment methods: Apple may charge no more than it charges App Store apps that sell physical goods or services through non-Apple payments, plus any extra costs it genuinely and reasonably incurs. Apple does not normally take a commission on physical goods such as rides or retail orders, so the benchmark sits close to zero.

Apple can still charge for its developer tools, but only if those charges are no higher than what free and ad-funded App Store apps pay (order 5(b)). Since developers of free apps pay only the annual Developer Program membership, the effect is the same.

What Apple kept

Apple won three points. The orders are limited to Australia, and the court refused Epic's request for worldwide injunctions on discretionary grounds. Apple does not have to list rival app stores inside its own App Store: the judge found that ban lawful once sideloading is allowed. And automated scanning and notarisation survive as a security gate. The injunctions have no expiry date, but Apple can apply to vary them if circumstances change.

What's Still Unknown

The biggest open question is the appeal. Justice Beach says in his reasons that he will need to discuss with the parties whether any of the orders should be stayed while an appeal runs, and on what terms. If a stay is granted, 1 March 2027 could pass with nothing changing for users.

The second question is how Apple will implement the orders. The phrase "suitably qualified third party" has no defined process yet. Neither does the line between a proportionate install warning and a deterrent one. Apple's EU marketplace terms have been rewritten several times since iOS 17.4 in 2024.

Third, nobody yet knows which rival stores will launch. Epic already runs its own iOS store in the EU, but Australia is a far smaller market.

Finally, the same judge delivered separate reasons on 22 October in the class actions against Apple and Google, Anthony v Apple Inc; McDonald v Google LLC (No 2) [2026] FCA 1553. Any compensation those claimants recover will be decided in that case, not this one. Epic's own case against Google settled and was dismissed on 6 March 2026, after Google's "new era" changes for Android openness.

Frequently Asked Questions

When can I sideload apps on my iPhone in Australia?

Under the court's orders, the distribution and payment changes start at noon Melbourne time on 1 March 2027. Apple may apply between 1 and 15 February 2027 to push that to 3 May 2027, and the court must agree. A stay pending Apple's appeal could delay things further. Until then, the App Store remains the only general way to install apps on an Australian iPhone.

Do I need to live in Australia to use alternative app stores?

The orders protect users whose Apple Account has its country or region set to Australia, so the account setting matters, not your physical location or citizenship. Developers face no residency rule. Any developer worldwide who stays in Apple's Developer Program can distribute to Australian accounts. How Apple will treat Australian accounts used while travelling is something its implementation will need to answer.

Is Fortnite back on the iPhone in Australia?

Yes, or very soon. The order to readmit Fortnite and Epic's other apps to the Australian App Store took effect immediately, not in 2027. Epic only had to apply in writing and submit apps that comply with Apple's rules as modified by the judgment. Epic said Fortnite would be available again on 22 October 2026, more than six years after Apple removed it in August 2020.

Will apps be cheaper in Australia now?

They could be, but the court did not order lower prices. Developers can now charge less through their own checkout or a rival store, and Apple cannot stop them advertising that. For apps outside the App Store, Apple can take no fee on those purchases. Whether developers pass the savings to users or keep them as margin is their choice.

Are sideloaded iPhone apps safe?

The orders keep a security gate. Every app distributed outside the App Store must pass an automated security and privacy scan and be notarised by Apple or a qualified third party. Apple can also disable apps containing malware or harmful content. But these apps skip the App Store's full human review, so checking who runs a rival store before installing from it is sensible.

How is Australia's ruling different from the EU's Digital Markets Act?

The EU rules come from legislation, and Apple wrote its own compliance terms, including a 5% Core Technology Commission and eligibility checks for marketplace operators. Australia's rules come from a court finding that Apple broke competition law. The orders ban fees or conditions on alternative distribution and allow notarisation by third parties, so on paper they leave Apple far less room.

Can Apple appeal the Federal Court's decision?

Yes. Apple has said it will appeal and seek a stay. An appeal would go to the Full Court of the Federal Court, and possibly later to the High Court with special leave. The judge has said he will discuss with the parties whether any stay is needed and on what terms. A stay could delay the March 2027 start date.