# App Store Guideline 2.5.4: background modes used for the wrong purpose

> Apple rejected the app under Guideline 2.5.4 for a background mode it doesn’t need. Remove the mode in Xcode, or show the reviewer the feature that uses it.

Canonical: https://app369.com/fix/app-store-guideline-2-5-4-background-modes/
Last updated: 2026-11-09

Guideline 2.5.4 is the App Store rule that background modes are only for their intended purpose, such as audio, location or VoIP. A rejection means the app declares a mode, often audio or location, that the reviewer couldn’t see a feature using.

**Short answer**

Open Signing & Capabilities in Xcode and check each Background Mode. Remove any mode the app doesn’t need, including ones a plugin added. For a mode you keep, reply in App Store Connect with where the feature is and how to trigger it, and add a short video if it is hard to find.

Rather not fix it yourself? [**App Fix Ticket**](https://app369.com/fixed-price/flutter-firebase-bug-fix/) starts with a fixed-price diagnosis, then a fixed price for the fix before any fix work.

## **Why Apple flags the mode, and the fix**

1. 01 ### **A mode is on that no feature uses**
  > “Multitasking apps may only use background services for their intended purposes: VoIP, audio playback, location, task completion, local notifications, etc.” [**Apple, Guideline 2.5.4**](https://developer.apple.com/app-store/review/guidelines/#2.5.4) A template, a tutorial or an old feature can leave Audio, Location updates, Background fetch, Background processing or Bluetooth switched on. Reviewers check each declared mode, so turn off the ones the app doesn’t use. Xcode stores them in UIBackgroundModes in Info.plist.```
<!-- Info.plist, example only: keep a mode only if a shipping feature uses it,
     including remote-notification (silent push) -->
<key>UIBackgroundModes</key>
<array>
  <string>remote-notification</string>
</array>
```
2. 02 ### **Audio is on to keep the app alive**
  > “The app plays audible content in the background.” [**Apple Developer, Background execution modes (audio)**](https://developer.apple.com/documentation/xcode/configuring-background-execution-modes) Playing silent audio to keep the app running in the background is not what the audio mode is for. The audio mode is for apps that play sound the user hears, such as music, podcasts or navigation prompts.
3. 03 ### **Location updates where significant-change would do**
  > “For example, apps can use the significant-change location service to receive location events as an alternative to using the Location updates background mode.” [**Apple Developer, Configuring background execution modes**](https://developer.apple.com/documentation/xcode/configuring-background-execution-modes) Continuous background location drains the battery, so the reviewer looks for a feature that needs it, such as turn-by-turn directions or workout tracking. For check-ins or nearby alerts, use significant-change location or region monitoring, which don’t need the mode. They still need the Always permission and a clear purpose string.
4. 04 ### **A plugin or Expo config turned the mode on** Flutter and React Native plugins for audio, location or geofencing may ask you to add a background mode in their setup steps. In Expo, a config plugin or ios.infoPlist.UIBackgroundModes in app.json can add modes at build time. Remove the entry, run npx expo prebuild --clean, and check the generated Info.plist. If the feature isn’t in this release, remove the mode, or the plugin.
5. 05 ### **The feature exists but the reviewer didn’t find it**
  > “Use background execution modes sparingly because overuse can negatively impact device performance and battery life.” [**Apple Developer, Configuring background execution modes**](https://developer.apple.com/documentation/xcode/configuring-background-execution-modes) If the mode is needed, say where in the reply: which screen, which action starts it, and what keeps working in the background. Use App Review Information notes for the next submission, and add a demo account if the feature needs sign-in.

Checked against the vendor’s docs on November 9, 2026: [App Store Review Guidelines: 2.5.4](https://developer.apple.com/app-store/review/guidelines/#2.5.4); [Apple Developer: Configuring background execution modes](https://developer.apple.com/documentation/xcode/configuring-background-execution-modes).

## **Rather hand it over?**

Fixed scope, fixed price, paid upfront. The work happens in writing; no call needed.

**Resubmit before Apple’s holiday slowdown**

Pay for the Diagnosis and send the rejection and access to the app by Monday, December 7 (US Eastern). The Diagnosis is back by Thursday, December 10. Pay for the Fix that day and it arrives as a pull request by Thursday, December 17, in time to build and resubmit before December 20.

In past years Apple said reviews may take longer around the holidays: [December 20 to 26 in 2024 (opens in a new tab)](https://developer.apple.com/news/?id=iwvebnw2), [December 22 to 27 in 2023 (opens in a new tab)](https://developer.apple.com/news/?id=uijoypq9), [December 23 to 27 in 2022 (opens in a new tab)](https://developer.apple.com/news/?id=xpkhwg3l). Apple hasn’t posted its 2026 dates yet (checked October 30). Approval stays Apple’s decision.

- [from $450**App Fix Ticket**One reproducible bug in an existing mobile or web app, diagnosed and fixed.**See scope and start**](https://app369.com/fixed-price/flutter-firebase-bug-fix/)

[**All 127 Fiverr reviews**](https://app369.com/reviews/)

Related: [**App Store Guideline 2.5.1**](https://app369.com/fix/app-store-guideline-2-5-1-software-requirements/) · [**App Store Guideline 2.1**](https://app369.com/fix/app-store-guideline-2-1-app-completeness/) · [**App Store Guideline 5.1.1**](https://app369.com/fix/app-store-guideline-5-1-1-data-collection/) · [**App Store Guideline 5.1.2**](https://app369.com/fix/app-store-guideline-5-1-2-data-use-and-sharing/)

Questions

## **More on this rejection**

<details>

<summary>**Should I reply to App Review or appeal? **+</summary>

Reply first. Apple says you can correspond with App Review in App Store Connect to resolve the issues before resubmitting, which is the place for a demo account, a screen recording or an explanation. Appeal to the App Review Board only if you believe App Review misunderstood the app or treated you unfairly. Apple allows one appeal per rejected submission and asks for specific reasons the app complies.

</details>

<details>

<summary>**Do I need a new build for a 2.5.4 rejection? **+</summary>

Yes, if you remove a mode, because UIBackgroundModes is in the app binary. If the mode stays and the reviewer missed the feature, a reply with steps can be enough.

</details>

<details>

<summary>**Can you fix it for me? **+</summary>

Yes, through the App Fix Ticket: you send the rejection message and access to the app, Simon writes a diagnosis of what App Review hit and how to fix it, then fixes the code so you can resubmit. Each step has a fixed price, paid upfront. Approval stays Apple’s decision; the ticket covers the fix.

</details>

A different error?

## **Describe it and get a written quote**

Send the error and what you were doing. You get a written scope, a fixed price and a timeline; Simon replies by email, usually within one business day.

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