Why is my iPhone 7 not eligible for iOS 16 update?

An iPhone 6s, iPhone 6s Plus, iPhone 7, iPhone 7 Plus, or iPhone SE 1 isn't capable of 16 or above; they require an A11 or better CPU.

(255419)

Because iPhone 7 lacks the hardware required to be updated past the most current version of iOS 15.

Because the minimum requirement to run iOS 16 is an iPhone 8.

lavanda67 wrote:

Why is My Device Not Eligible for the Update?

Correct, that model is not compatible with iOS 16 or higher.