How to Change Your Apple ID Country (And What You Need to Do First)

As someone who spent the better half of a decade living abroad, let me tell you: changing the country settings in your Apple account can be complicated. Few modern fates are worse than losing access to your photos, documents, movies and books simply because you decided to collect your belongings and cross the ocean. Fortunately, there are several steps you can take to protect your purchases and personal information before changing your account country settings.

As a general rule, you should always re-download content you have purchased before making major changes to your account settings. This logic is especially true when you change your country’s account, as content is not universally viewable in all regions. Before making any changes, download all the apps, music, streaming videos, and books you want to access on your devices. It’s important to note that you likely won’t be able to transfer this content between devices once it’s made inaccessible, so make sure you have what you want available before making any changes.

Next, make sure you have a valid payment method, as Apple will ask you to add a new payment method before confirming any country changes. To find out what payment methods are available for your next location, check out the guide on Apple’s support page.

If you are unable to add your new payment method, you may need to wait until you are physically in your new country or region. Once there, you can create a new Apple account under your new location settings.

Luckily, Apple now lets you transfer digital purchases between accounts. However, some limitations still apply.

Once you’re ready, you should clear the remaining balance in your Apple account, as it may no longer be transferable once you change your Apple Store country. Unfortunately, Apple does not offer the option of getting a cash refund unless you live in an area where such refunds are required by law.

Instead, spend your remaining balance on App Store products or Apple services. In some countries, these scales can be used on products or accessories. If you don’t have enough money to buy anything, you can clear your balance by contacting Apple Support. To check your account balance, go to App Store > Tap your photo or initials and your funds will be visible under your name.

Next, let’s move on to your subscriptions. Unfortunately, many of your favorite subscriptions don’t allow you to maintain your membership while changing your country settings. Fortunately, Apple generally lets you cancel a subscription if it prevents a change of country or region.

To cancel a subscription on your Apple device, go to Settings > your name > Subscriptions. Then select your subscription and press Cancel subscription. If you see an expiration message in red, your subscription has already ended.

You should always wait to modify your account until all pending transactions have been completed. In some cases, changing your settings too early may cause you to lose access to certain subscriptions, pre-orders, season passes, and movie rentals. If you need to change your account before a pre-order is available, you can cancel it on the App Store by selecting your account and going to the page Pre-orders menu below Subscriptions.

Of course, there are some caveats when changing your account’s country settings. If you’re part of a Family Sharing plan, for example, you may not be able to make the change. Instead, you will need to leave your Family Sharing group before making any adjustments.

If you are unable to change your account country, Apple suggests checking all of the settings above before contacting support.

On an iPhone, iPad or Apple Vision Pro, access your Settings application and press your name. Then go to Media and purchasing and log in to your Apple account. From there, tap Country/Regionselect your new neighborhood of residence and press Continue. After reviewing your terms and conditions, tap Accept. Finally, select your payment method and enter your new payment information and billing address.

On your Mac, simply open your Apple Music or Apple TV app and go to Account section on your menu bar. Then choose Account settings and log in to your Apple account. Click Country/Regionselect your new location and click Continue. After reading and agreeing to the terms and conditions, enter your payment information and billing address.

If you use the Apple Music or Apple TV apps on your Windows PC, open the app and click on the name in the bottom sidebar. Once there, go to View my account > Change country or region. Select your new country, accept the terms, enter your new billing information and tap Continue.

You can also access your Apple account online at account.apple.com. Then go to Personal information > Country/Region.

After you update your account settings, you may notice that some features are not available in your new region. This is especially true for Apple’s updated assistant, Siri AI, which will not be rolling out to European customers due to an ongoing legal battle with the EU. However, these situations are not necessarily static. In China, for example, Apple overcame a prolonged regulatory impasse to bring Apple Intelligence to the People’s Republic.

For a list of features that may or may not be available in your new region, looking at online resources such as Apple Feature Map can be helpful.