Cannot submit apps with Xcode 26.2 RC

Thank you for providing this information. You are correct that the 26.2 RC is still not permitted to submit builds. The team typically updates this page when it is ready and open to submissions.

https://developer.apple.com/help/app-store-connect/release-notes/

On the release notes, you’ll see something like “You can now upload apps built with Xcode….”

I understand that submitting with RC versions is often possible, and I acknowledge that this may be an inconvenience. Please continue to monitor the release notes for updates.

Could you please provide any reasons why you are unable to submit with the previous released version?

Albert Pascual
  Worldwide Developer Relations.

Hi Albert,

Thanks for the clarification.

In past cycles, RC builds have typically been permitted for submission within a few hours, so this situation is a bit unusual. I’m assuming iOS 26.2 will likely ship next week, but ASC is also warning developers that they may be overwhelmed during the holidays and encouraging early submissions — which puts us in a difficult position when RC uploads aren’t yet allowed.

Being able to submit with the RC would let us validate TestFlight builds ahead of time and ensure a smooth transition once 26.2 is released. At the moment, it isn’t even possible to test distribution builds, which makes it hard to prepare properly.

Could you shed some light on why RC submissions are blocked this time around?

Thanks again for your help.

I installed the RC (replacing 26.1), tested my app, and went to create a release for an update that happens to need to be released pretty quickly. I recall from previous experience RC builds could submit apps to the App Store so figured I wouldn’t run into any problems. Now I’m blocked. I could go download Xcode 26.1 and redownload the iOS 26.1 Simulator and retest my app with that SDK version but that’s a lot of wasted time/resources only to release the update on a very soon to be out of date SDK. :/ Do you expect this RC build to be accepted in the near future?

In our case we have been pending weeks to fix a problem that was broken with iOS 26.1 but resolved by a SwiftUI modifier with a new parameter available in Xcode 26.2:

extension View {
    func apply<V: View>(@ViewBuilder _ block: (Self) -> V) -> V { block(self) }
}
 
TabView {
   // Some tabs
}
.apply {
	if #unavailable(iOS 26.1) {
	    // Previous approach that stopped working in iOS/iPadOS 26.1
		$0.tabViewBottomAccessory() {
			if viewModel.showAccessoryView {
				// accessory content
			} else {
				EmptyView()
			}
		}
	} else {
	    // When compiled with Xcode 26.2+ for iOS/iPadOS 26.1+
		$0.tabViewBottomAccessory(isEnabled: viewModel.showAccessoryView) {
			// accessory content
		}
	}
}

So we are further frustrated by this longer than typical delay to open submissions to an RC build.

For anyone watching the link kindly provided by Albert, a new note is probably not created:

December 8, 2025 TestFlight update You can now upload apps built with Xcode 26.2 RC using the SDK for iOS 26.2 RC, iPadOS 26.2 RC, macOS 26.2 RC, tvOS 26.2 RC, visionOS 26. 2 RC, and watchOS 26.2 RC for internal testing through TestFlight.

because towards the end of the following day, December 9th, observe how "and external" was silently inserted:

December 8, 2025 TestFlight update You can now upload apps built with Xcode 26.2 RC using the SDK for iOS 26.2 RC, iPadOS 26.2 RC, macOS 26.2 RC, tvOS 26.2 RC, visionOS 26. 2 RC, and watchOS 26.2 RC for internal and external testing through TestFlight.

So watch carefully the same previously dated release note for "App Store" to be inserted.

Apple now accepting Xcode 26.2 RC submissions

Maybe I posted too soon because despite the text updating to say App Store and Apple accepting the upload it fails:

This was after many attempts to upload with timeouts and other strange errors messages with all three of our apps - I suspect from many of us were try to upload and it overloaded the servers.

And then... Apple reverted the text to remove the "App Store". So something is clearly wrong at their side.

This screenshot is with the Xcode 26.2 (175C2), which supersedes the RC version and was downloaded from the Apple Developer website directly. Not showing at the time of writing on the App Store and seemingly its builds are not accepted (yet).

Even with the new Xcode (not release candidate), I get error when uploading from Xcode:

Validation Failed: This bundle is invalid. Apple is not currently accepting applications built with this version of Xcode.

This is with Xcode 26.2 which has Released December 12, 2025 and Build 17C52. Also, the file name is Xcode_26.2_Apple_silicon.xip.

The link that Albert posted has updated to include this latest entry:

December 12, 2025 App Store Connect update You can now upload apps built with Xcode 26.2 using the SDK for iOS 26.2, iPadOS 26.2, macOS 26.2, tvOS 26.2, visionOS 26. 2, and watchOS 26.2 for the App Store, and for internal and external testing through TestFlight.

We were able to upload and submit our app.

Conclusions: This is probably a rare situation. However, it demonstrates that Xcode RC builds might not reach the point of having their archived app builds accepted for App Store submissions.

If anyone from Apple is reading this, our feedback:

We respect your processes and accept that it is often in Apple's and the developers' interests to not convey information that is subject to change. That said, when a pattern is established like almost always accepting Xcode RC built submissions, then expectations will become established amongst the developers. If you multiply the time spent and frustration caused across all the developers who would have been trying to submit apps in recent days, then it would have been appropriate to be more forthcoming.