@privaterelay.appleid.com does NOT forward emails. @iCloud DOES forward them. What's going on?

You're describing a widespread and long-standing issue with Apple’s @privaterelay.appleid.com email aliases. These addresses are created when you use “Sign in with Apple” and are designed to work only with the specific app or websitethey were created for. Emails sent from outside that original context — even by you — are usually blocked without notice, making them unreliable for general use.

This becomes a serious problem when you’ve used a private relay address as your login or recovery email for important accounts. Since you can’t receive confirmation or password reset emails outside the original app context, you may become permanently locked out of those services. Despite years of user complaints, Apple has neither acknowledged the issue publicly nor provided a fix.

The relays technically still exist — you can check them under Settings > Apple ID > Sign-In & Security > Apps Using Apple ID — but their limited functionality and silent failure behavior make them unusable for most purposes. You cannot control how they forward, and messages sent from Gmail or other providers are typically dropped.

The best course of action is to contact any affected service and request a manual change of your login email, bypassing confirmation if possible. You should also report the issue directly to Apple via apple.com/feedback and keep a record of all accounts tied to relay addresses. Apple urgently needs to improve transparency and control over these aliases to prevent loss of access.