I would like to change my region/country. Although some information that I ‘ve read they advise to delete all my subscriptions and be sure that the payment method will be available in the new region. So, I would like to keep the same debit card from my previous region and not cancel my subscriptions, is it possible?
[Re-Titled by Moderator]
Windows
The article Change your Apple ID country or region - Apple Support describes how to change your Apple ID country or region, and the requirements and results of doing this.
Read below for how to handle subscriptions.
There is the tendency on the forum to sometimes repeat statements that are outdated or are not based on what Apple currently says. Nowhere does Apple say that you have to have a payment method from the same country. All that Apple says in Change your Apple ID country or region - Apple Support about payment methods when changing country is: "Make sure that you have a payment method for your new country or region." It then refers you to Payment methods that you can use with your Apple ID - Apple Support to see if the payment method you use in one country is also a payment type valid in your new country. It says nothing about international payment method restrictions. In fact the only official statement I can find about international payment methods is what Apple says is in its support article: If your payment method is declined in the App Store or iTunes Store - Apple Support : "You might need to ask your financial institution to allow international purchases on your debit or credit card". If anything this is supporting the possible use of payment methods from other countries.
● Subscriptions
Make sure you have canceled all your subscriptions (see: If you want to cancel a subscription from Apple - Apple Support ). Wait for any memberships, pre-orders, movie rentals, or season passes to complete. Items will still be active until their expiration date. You need to contact Apple and request any ongoing items you have be ended immediately if you do not want to wait until they expire naturally.
● Remove all your Apple Account balance
- In the main change country article Apple only proposes a single way for you to clear your balance. That is to contact them and ask them to keep it. Apple offers this specific link for that service --> https://getsupport.apple.com/?caller=kbase&PGF=PGF63005&category_id=SC0998&symptom_id=20198
- Another still viable way is to add a credit or debt card as a payment method to your Apple ID and buy items just in excess of your remaining Apple ID balance. This will use up all the balance and any excess will get charged to the card, leaving nothing in your account.
● Pending purchases and refunds
If you have pending purchases, or refunds in the process of being returned to you, you will have to wait until these clear.
● Leave or disband any Family Sharing groups.
Refer to Leave Family Sharing - Apple Support
For items where you need to contact Apple to resolve an issue:
Click here ➞ Choose your country or region - Official Apple Support
Select your country (if you do not see your country, also look for "other" regions; e.g., "Other Africa"), then "Choose a product". Click the "show" item under each category for more selections. If you don't see one that handles your issue then keep experimenting with selections until you reach one that gets you a chat session or a telephone call and get the representative to redirect you.
or:
See a list of Apple phone numbers around the world. Click here --> Contact Apple for support and service - Apple Support
The article Change your Apple ID country or region - Apple Support describes how to change your Apple ID country or region, and the requirements and results of doing this.
Read below for how to handle subscriptions.
There is the tendency on the forum to sometimes repeat statements that are outdated or are not based on what Apple currently says. Nowhere does Apple say that you have to have a payment method from the same country. All that Apple says in Change your Apple ID country or region - Apple Support about payment methods when changing country is: "Make sure that you have a payment method for your new country or region." It then refers you to Payment methods that you can use with your Apple ID - Apple Support to see if the payment method you use in one country is also a payment type valid in your new country. It says nothing about international payment method restrictions. In fact the only official statement I can find about international payment methods is what Apple says is in its support article: If your payment method is declined in the App Store or iTunes Store - Apple Support : "You might need to ask your financial institution to allow international purchases on your debit or credit card". If anything this is supporting the possible use of payment methods from other countries.
● Subscriptions
Make sure you have canceled all your subscriptions (see: If you want to cancel a subscription from Apple - Apple Support ). Wait for any memberships, pre-orders, movie rentals, or season passes to complete. Items will still be active until their expiration date. You need to contact Apple and request any ongoing items you have be ended immediately if you do not want to wait until they expire naturally.
● Remove all your Apple Account balance
- In the main change country article Apple only proposes a single way for you to clear your balance. That is to contact them and ask them to keep it. Apple offers this specific link for that service --> https://getsupport.apple.com/?caller=kbase&PGF=PGF63005&category_id=SC0998&symptom_id=20198
- Another still viable way is to add a credit or debt card as a payment method to your Apple ID and buy items just in excess of your remaining Apple ID balance. This will use up all the balance and any excess will get charged to the card, leaving nothing in your account.
● Pending purchases and refunds
If you have pending purchases, or refunds in the process of being returned to you, you will have to wait until these clear.
● Leave or disband any Family Sharing groups.
Refer to Leave Family Sharing - Apple Support
For items where you need to contact Apple to resolve an issue:
Click here ➞ Choose your country or region - Official Apple Support
Select your country (if you do not see your country, also look for "other" regions; e.g., "Other Africa"), then "Choose a product". Click the "show" item under each category for more selections. If you don't see one that handles your issue then keep experimenting with selections until you reach one that gets you a chat session or a telephone call and get the representative to redirect you.
or:
See a list of Apple phone numbers around the world. Click here --> Contact Apple for support and service - Apple Support
No.
You must cancel all subscriptions, and the payment method must be valid for the new region.
You cannot use a payment method from say the UK if your new region is set to France or Japan.
Read the support document you posted from carefully. It explains in great detail what is required to change regions.
How to change my country/region on Apple ID?
