Notifications have to be tied to functionality the user actually wants — promotional or advertising content sent as a push notification, without being explicitly opted into, violates this guideline.
Usually caught after user complaints about promotional pushes, or when a review build's notification permission prompt doesn't match what's actually sent afterward.
"Your app sends push notifications that are being used for advertising, promotions, or direct marketing purposes, which is not permitted per guideline 4.5.4."
Guideline 4.5.4 says push notifications must be tied to something the user wants. Promotional or advertising content sent as push notifications, without explicit opt-in, is a violation. Reviewers often discover this when the notification permission request does not match what is sent afterwards, or after users complain about promotional messages.
Push notifications interrupt people at any time and appear on the most personal screen of the device. If apps used them freely for marketing, users would switch notifications off altogether, and legitimate alerts would be lost. By limiting notifications to functions users care about, and requiring consent for promotions, Apple protects the usefulness of the channel for every developer.
Only if users have explicitly opted in to them.
Yes, notifications tied to the user's activity and needs are expected uses.
They are reviewed against related rules about extensions.
Platform rules change often. This page is a plain-language explanation written by AppReviewFix, not official guidance. Check the current App Store Review Guidelines for the exact wording.