Make sure your app gets approved on the Play Store by following these steps
1. Getting your app ready for Play Store submission
2. Submission form requirements
3. Example in-app disclosure by Roam.ai
Gaining access to a user's location opens up possibilities to provide some of the most useful day-to-day experiences. But location data is also some of the most personal information, and efforts are being made to increase privacy and hand control back to the user.
Launched for all new and existing apps from March 29, 2021, Android has introduced a new and improved Google Play Store app review process to avoid malicious apps gaining unnecessary user location data.
The process does require you to do more work, so in this article we're going to walk you through the steps of getting your app approved for background location.
Before you complete the permissions declaration form, there are some best practices you need to follow to make sure you’re in the best position for approval.
We recommend first reviewing Android's official policy documents. Sticking as closely as possible to the official documents strengthens your chances of getting approved the first time.
One of the biggest factors that Google will consider when evaluating your app is whether the location feature delivers clear value to the user or is needed for your app's core functionality. For example, fitness or health.
If the sole purpose of requesting location is for ads, analytics or entertainment, Google will not approve your app. So think carefully about whether requesting background location is essential or if you could deliver the same experience without it.
According to a Google survey, 15% of users uninstalled an app for asking for location permissions when they didn't understand why or felt like permissions were not required. Transparency is key, so it's vital to communicate how you use background location in the Google Play store listing.
You can do this in a few ways:
Here is a good example that successfully meets all points:
To go one step further, you must include a link to your privacy policy on your app's listing. Learn more about how to correctly prepare your privacy policy here.
Once you've got everything in place, you can start working on your permissions declaration form and get your app approved with no delay.
To ensure Google can approve your app, you will need to complete a permission declaration form. Here you'll need to answer questions and create a short video that demonstrates your app's use of location data.
You can find the location permissions declaration form via the Play Console. Once there, you'll need to answer the following questions (max 500 characters):
As well as answering questions, you’ll need to include a short video that demonstrates the background feature in use and the required steps a user will take when enabling background location.
This gives Google a clear overview of your background location use and, importantly, how your users will encounter your in-app disclosure.
Your video should show:
Check out the sample video below:
So you’ve built your location-based app and it’s ready to go. One last step is to include a prominent in-app disclosure window that makes it clear to users how you access, collect, use and share their location data.
The requirements:
Here's a model example of an in-app disclosure provided by Google:
Below we have included an example from Roam.ai's demo app, Ignite, following the guidelines provided by Google.
The prominent in-app disclosure clearly states how we use user location:
Once a user accepts the in-app permissions, they will be directed to an opt-in dialogue clearly stating that background location will be accessed:
When a user starts testing and exits the app, a sticky notification will always appear on the user's screen, alerting them that background location is enabled.
Through this process of in-app disclosure, dialogue boxes for enabling location settings and a sticky notification, Roam.ai makes it clear why, how and when background location is used.
By taking the extra time to highlight how you use location in your app, you're helping Google successfully approve your app with no delay. Importantly, being transparent to your user increases trust and highlights that you respect their right to privacy!
If you need more help getting your app approved or want to contact a team member, get involved in our discord community or contact us today.