App Store review sent “Guideline 2.1 Information Needed”: the six things Apple asked for

Written by Koshin (web engineer and app engineer) · published 2026-10-09

Development log of Torecadash / October 2026

I submitted my iOS app, Torecadash, to App Review for the first time on October 6 (4:24 a.m. Pacific time). What came back was not a rejection but an email saying “additional information is needed.” This is a summary of what Apple asked for.

I do not write the review result in this article. I will add it once there is one.

What arrived

It was Guideline 2.1 “Information Needed — New App Submissions.” The reason given was that this developer account has little review history. Apple wanted more information so it could understand the app well enough to finish the review. It was not a finding that the app is defective.

The six things requested

I was asked to reply in App Store Connect and also to put the same content in the “App Review Information” notes field. The six items (summarized):

A screen recording on a physical device. On a device with the latest OS, starting from launching the app, show the normal flow of use. If there are account registration, login and deletion, user-generated content (including the report and block mechanisms), or paid features, include those too.
The purpose of the app and its intended users. What problem it solves and what value it provides.
How to start using the main features. If login is required, the credentials or sample files.
A list of the external services used. Data providers, authentication, payments, AI, and so on.
Differences in features or content by region. If there are none, say that it works the same in every region.
Proof of rights if the app deals with a highly regulated field or third-party protected material.

The email also included a list of common problems: bugs and crashes on a real device, a demo account if login is required, screenshots that show actual use, submitting in-app purchase products together with the app, and so on.

How it connects to what I fixed before

The first item mentions account deletion and reporting user-generated content. These overlap with what I had fixed before submitting (Japanese). Account deletion removed map posts too and revoked the Sign in with Apple token. Posts had a banned-word check and a report-review queue. I had also already drafted the review notes: the main features work without login, where deletion is, reporting of posts, and what Pro includes.

So the mechanisms existed, but I lacked something to show them. The screen recording in item 1 is exactly that.

What I learned

In a first review, you have to show the reviewer that it works.

The recording on a physical device is explicitly required to start from launching the app.
Put the same content in the notes field as in the reply. You can reuse it for the next submission.
Before submitting, check that you can answer the six questions yourself. If the answers come quickly, you save one round trip with review.

This article summarizes the email I received. It does not include the submission ID or other identifiers.

This is the English version of the original Japanese article.