Brand Claim Process
Overview
A brand claim is the process by which an organization establishes and verifies ownership of a brand within Apple Business. Brand creation, location creation, and verification are completed together — the outcome of verification determines the published state of both the location and the brand.
Partners are often involved in this process on behalf of their client organizations — either by managing locations after a claim is established, or by creating the brand and initiating verification directly when using OAuth app Share Access.
Understanding verification paths is essential for predicting when resources will become available to manage via the API, and which features will be accessible after verification completes.
Prerequisites
For Delegated Partners
- The client organization must be registered in Apple Business.
- The client organization must have granted Share Access to your organization.
- The brand must already exist under the client organization.
For OAuth App Partners
- The client organization must have authorized access through the OAuth app flow.
- If no brand exists, you may create one using the Brand API.
Only OAuth app Share Access permits a partner to create brands on behalf of a client organization. Delegated partners can manage existing brands but cannot create them.
Verification Paths
After a brand and its first location are created, ownership must be verified with Apple Business. There are two paths, each resulting in different brand capabilities after verification completes.
Path 1 — Phone Verification
The location owner receives a call from Apple Business to confirm the location is theirs. This is the fastest path to publishing a location. See the Apple Business User Guide > Verify an existing location with a phone call.
Outcome: Brand and location are PUBLISHED.
Path 2 — Document Verification
The organization submits supporting evidence — such as a business registration document, website domain, or app store listing — to Apple Business for review. This path involves an asynchronous review period.
Outcome on approval: Location is PUBLISHED. The brand becomes ACTIVE.
Outcome on rejection: Location is REJECTED. The brand becomes INACTIVE.
Capabilities by Verification Path
Both paths result in a published brand, but the verification method determines which features are available and how subsequent locations are published.
After Phone Verification
The brand and its first location are published. Additional locations can be created, but each requires individual phone verification before publishing.
The following services are not available until document verification is completed and approved:
- Business Caller ID (BCID)
- Branded Mail
After Document Verification
Subject to approval by Apple Business, the brand has access to the full set of Apple Business API capabilities. For details on how subsequent locations are published, see Active Brand — Capabilities & Feature Setup.
Monitoring Progress
Brand claim verification is asynchronous. After initiating verification, poll for notifications to track state changes for both the brand and its associated locations.
| Event | Notification? | Feedback? |
|---|---|---|
| Location submitted for phone verification | No | No |
| Location published (phone verification) | Yes | Yes |
| Documentation submitted for Apple Business review | No | No |
Approved — brand ACTIVE, location published | Yes | Yes |
Not approved — brand INACTIVE, location rejected | Yes | Yes |
Related
| Brand API | Manage brand resources |
| Active Brand — Capabilities & Feature Setup | Features available after document verification is approved |
| Location API | Manage location resources |
| Notifications | How to receive and interpret state change events |
| Share Access | How partners gain access to manage an organization's brands and locations |