Capacitor Apple Review Preflight

Run a pre-submission or post-rejection Apple review audit for a Capacitor app.

This skill adapts the Apple guideline and rejection-rule corpus from truongduy2611/app-store-preflight-skills and narrows the workflow to Capacitor-specific project inspection.

When to Use This Skill

User wants an Apple App Store review preflight for a Capacitor app
User received an Apple rejection and wants the project audited against likely guideline failures
User wants to check metadata, entitlements, privacy manifests, Sign in with Apple, subscriptions, or minimum functionality before submission
User wants reviewer-notes guidance for a Capacitor iOS submission

Live Project Snapshot

Detected Capacitor, auth, subscription, analytics, and privacy-related packages: !node -e "const fs=require('fs');if(!fs.existsSync('package.json'))process.exit(0);const pkg=JSON.parse(fs.readFileSync('package.json','utf8'));const sections=['dependencies','devDependencies'];const out=[];for(const section of sections){for(const [name,version] of Object.entries(pkg[section]||{})){if(name.startsWith('@capacitor/')||name.startsWith('@capgo/')||name.includes('firebase')||name.includes('sentry')||name.includes('revenuecat')||name.includes('purchase')||name.includes('subscription')||name.includes('auth')||name.includes('analytics')||name.includes('segment')||name.includes('amplitude')||name.includes('mixpanel'))out.push(section+'.'+name+'='+version)}}console.log(out.sort().join('\n'))"

Relevant Apple review file paths: !find . -maxdepth 6 \( -name 'package.json' -o -name 'capacitor.config.json' -o -name 'capacitor.config.ts' -o -name 'capacitor.config.js' -o -name 'Info.plist' -o -name '*.entitlements' -o -name 'PrivacyInfo.xcprivacy' -o -name 'project.pbxproj' -o -path './ios' -o -path './fastlane/metadata' -o -path './metadata' \)

Procedure

Step 1: Confirm This Is the Right Review Scope

Use this skill for Apple-facing review work, not for generic publishing.

If the task is mostly about screenshots, release setup, or store upload mechanics, combine this skill with capacitor-app-store.

Step 2: Identify App Type and Load the Right Checklist

Always read:

references/guidelines/by-app-type/all_apps.md

Then add the checklist that matches the app:

subscription_iap.md for subscriptions or IAP
social_ugc.md for UGC or moderation-heavy apps
kids.md for Kids Category
health_fitness.md for health, fitness, or medical claims
games.md for games
ai_apps.md for AI or LLM features
crypto_finance.md for crypto, trading, or financial workflows
vpn.md for VPN and networking apps
macos.md only when the submission also targets macOS

Use references/guidelines/README.md for the full guideline index when a rejection cites a specific section.

Step 3: Inspect Capacitor and iOS Project State

Start from the injected snapshot above, then inspect:

package.json for Capacitor, auth, analytics, subscription, and SDK dependencies
capacitor.config.* for app identifiers, app name, web asset config, and live update settings
ios/App/App/Info.plist or the project-specific Info.plist
any *.entitlements files
PrivacyInfo.xcprivacy if present
fastlane/metadata or other local metadata directories if they exist

Pay special attention to Capacitor-specific Apple review risks:

social login providers without a Sign in with Apple path when required
heavy WebView-only apps that may trigger 4.2 minimum functionality concerns
third-party SDKs that imply Required Reason API declarations or privacy disclosures
native capabilities enabled in Xcode but not justified by shipped functionality
Capgo, Appflow, or other live-update flows that need clear reviewer notes and compliance boundaries
missing or vague usage strings for camera, photo library, microphone, location, notifications, Face ID, tracking, or local network access

Step 4: Run Rule-Based Review Passes

Use the upstream rule files as the source of truth:

metadata: references/rules/metadata/*.md
subscription: references/rules/subscription/*.md
privacy: references/rules/privacy/*.md
design: references/rules/design/*.md
entitlements: references/rules/entitlements/*.md

Map them onto the Capacitor app:

metadata rules against App Store text, screenshots, preview videos, and review notes
privacy rules against Info.plist, privacy manifests, SDK usage, and data collection flows
design rules against app navigation, native value, login flows, and reviewer accessibility
entitlements rules against enabled capabilities in the iOS project

If App Store metadata is not stored locally and asc is available, pull it with asc metadata pull --output-dir ./metadata. If not, audit local metadata sources and state what remains unverified.

Step 5: Produce a Capacitor-Focused Preflight Report

Use this format:

## Apple Review Preflight

### Rejections Found
- [GUIDELINE X.X.X] Issue summary
  - Evidence: file or metadata location
  - Why it matters for this Capacitor app
  - Fix: exact remediation

### Warnings
- [GUIDELINE X.X.X] Potential issue

### Passed
- [Category] Checks that looked clean

### Missing Inputs
- Metadata or review assets that were not available locally

Order findings by severity and make each fix concrete.

Step 6: Suggest Reviewer Notes and Submission Follow-Ups

When relevant, draft reviewer notes for:

demo accounts or test credentials
hidden or non-obvious features
hardware dependencies
subscription test flows
AI moderation or content controls
live-update behavior and what code can change post-review
reasons for special entitlements or network behavior

Error Handling

If app metadata is unavailable locally and asc is not configured, continue with the code and project audit and clearly mark metadata checks as partial.
If the app is mostly a thin web wrapper, call out guideline 4.2 risk directly rather than burying it in warnings.
If social login is present, verify whether guideline 4.8 requires Sign in with Apple before concluding the auth flow is review-safe.
If third-party SDKs suggest Required Reason API usage, inspect PrivacyInfo.xcprivacy before assuming privacy compliance.
If the user is asking how to fix a specific rejection, prioritize the cited guideline and only then expand to adjacent risks.

capacitor-apple-review-preflight