Apple to Raise Price in U.K App Store by at Least 25% Due to Brexit-Related Exchange Rate Fluctuations

Apple has told developers that it is making changes to its App Store pricing in India, Turkey, and the U.K. The company cites fluctuation currency exchange rates and taxation changes as the reason for the moves.

Dear _____,

When foreign exchange rates or taxation changes, we sometimes need to update prices on the App Store. Prices for apps and in-app purchases (excluding subscriptions) will increase in India, Turkey, and the United Kingdom.

Tax laws have changed for customers purchasing apps and in-apps in the following countries:

• India. Effective December 1, 2016, a service tax rate of 14% along with additional levies of 0.5% for Krishi Kalyan Cess (KKC) and Swachh Bharat Cess (SBC) have been introduced.
• Romania. Effective January 1, 2017, value added tax (VAT) rate changed from 20% to 19%.
• Russia. Effective January 1, 2017, a value added tax (VAT) rate of 18% has been introduced.

We will administer the collection of taxes from customers and the remittance of taxes to the appropriate tax authority in India and Russia. We already collect and remit taxes for Romania. Your proceeds will be adjusted accordingly, and will be calculated based on the tax exclusive price.

Subscription prices in India, Romania, Russia, Turkey, and the United Kingdom will not be affected. You can change the price of your subscription at any time in iTunes Connect with the option to preserve prices for existing subscribers. For details on price preservation, see Offering Subscriptions.

All changes will be made within the next 7 days, and the Rights and Pricing section of My Apps will be updated. You can also download the updated price tier charts.

If you have any questions, contact us.

Best regards,
The App Store Team

An App Store Pricing Schedule shows Apple is raising the prices for apps and in-app purchases by at least 25%. The new pricing is due to the weak pound exchange rate, which has been down against the U.S. dollar by around 19% or so since the Brexit vote.

The changes mean apps that have gone for £0.79 will now be priced at £0.99, and apps that were priced at £1.49 will now cost £1.99. While higher tiers and in-app purchases will see similar hikes, subscription prices will not be affected. Developers can manually change the price of subscriptions in iTunes Connect.

While Apple’s email to developers only covered the App Stores, similar price increases are likely to be seen for other iTunes purchases, such as movies, TV shows, and music. The App Store price increases will go live in the next seven days.

Apple’s announcement comes in the wake of a 1.6% inflation rate in the U.K.

(Via MacRumors)

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