# iTunes App Store Does Not Work With Gift Cards?



## GradientMac (Jan 1, 2008)

I've been reading in multiple posts online that the App store will not work with iTunes cards in Canada? Can anybody confirm this? If so, that's extremely stupid, that's like saying "So yeah, nobody over 18 can buy apps from the app store. *sticks tongue out* "


----------



## retrocactus (Jun 17, 2003)

You've read wrong....works fine with gift cards in any country. I have US and Canadian accounts with gift card balances that allow me to buy apps no problem.

Just redeem the card into your iTunes account and download away.


----------



## G-Mo (Sep 26, 2007)

retrocactus said:


> You've read wrong....works fine with gift cards in any country. I have US and Canadian accounts with gift card balances that allow me to buy apps no problem.
> 
> Just redeem the card into your iTunes account and download away.


I don't know about the US, but even if you have a gift card balance in your account, you have to have a credit card on file or you cannot use the App Store... or at least this has been my experience with both my wife and I -- having created both of our accounts by redeeming gift cards, neither of us had put in credit card details, and while the App Store let us buy "Free" Apps fine, it required us to register credit cards to purchase Apps (even though the App was $4.99 and the account balance was over $50...)!

Edit: This was from the iPhone directly, not in iTunes... I didn't try in iTunes!


----------



## retrocactus (Jun 17, 2003)

That's really weird then G-Mo....all my accounts have been created from Gift Cards rather than credit cards...and haven't had an issue so far. 

I have my iPhone hooked up to my US account since they have a lot more apps than the Canadian store...so if that is true, then it's a Canadian store issue.


----------



## krug1313 (Apr 27, 2007)

Same problem here. Won't let me purchase apps with the credit I have in itunes.


----------



## adam1185 (Feb 16, 2005)

I've also noticed that we get charged PST and GST for app purchases. I've never been charged extra GST or PST for anything else on iTunes.


----------



## retrocactus (Jun 17, 2003)

adam1185 said:


> I've also noticed that we get charged PST and GST for app purchases. I've never been charged extra GST or PST for anything else on iTunes.


All the more reason to use a US based account...preferably with an Oregon address where there is no tax at all.


----------



## GradientMac (Jan 1, 2008)

retrocactus said:


> All the more reason to use a US based account...preferably with an Oregon address where there is no tax at all.


Or Alberta, no PST and only 5% GST.

But I really want to use apps, but I can't if I need a credit cards, and most of the free apps are crap.


----------



## GradientMac (Jan 1, 2008)

retrocactus said:


> All the more reason to use a US based account...preferably with an Oregon address where there is no tax at all.


Or Alberta, 5% tax and no PST.

Also, am I reading this right? As long as I make an account with a credit card, I can still redeem gift cards onto that account and not charge the credit card? Or am I mistaken?


----------



## okcomputer (Jul 18, 2005)

adam1185 said:


> I've also noticed that we get charged PST and GST for app purchases. I've never been charged extra GST or PST for anything else on iTunes.


Yeah I was wondering that as well... are we paying tax on songs but it's included in the 99cents? Why wouldn't they do the same for apps?


----------



## adam1185 (Feb 16, 2005)

okcomputer said:


> Yeah I was wondering that as well... are we paying tax on songs but it's included in the 99cents? Why wouldn't they do the same for apps?


I would assume it's because different areas have different tax rates. So if they included the tax in the price of the app already then developers would receive less money from their app sales in areas with higher tax rates. This way the developer knows exactly how much they get from the sale of each app.

As for music, I'm not sure if there's tax included or not.


----------



## majormojo (Oct 1, 2009)

I’ve been pursuing this issue for some time. The Canadian Minister of Industry (Hon. Tony Clement) has stated in a letter to my MP and myself that he is unaware of any Canadian laws preventing me from using iTunes store credit for purchasing apps. See his letter here:

jimwhitelaw.com: iTunes credit in Canada


----------



## chas_m (Dec 2, 2007)

majormojo said:


> I’ve been pursuing this issue for some time. The Canadian Minister of Industry (Hon. Tony Clement) has stated in a letter to my MP and myself that he is unaware of any Canadian laws preventing me from using iTunes store credit for purchasing apps. See his letter here:
> 
> jimwhitelaw.com: iTunes credit in Canada


That's all very nice, but really since the rules regarding this are made by Apple, why don't you stop wasting your and Mr. Clements' time, and take it up with the vendor (ie Apple) directly?


----------



## majormojo (Oct 1, 2009)

Because I have taken it up with Apple and they claim the restriction is due to Canadian law.


----------



## G-Mo (Sep 26, 2007)

chas_m said:


> That's all very nice, but really since the rules regarding this are made by Apple, why don't you stop wasting your and Mr. Clements' time, and take it up with the vendor (ie Apple) directly?


Because it has nothing to do with Apple and has to do with Canadian "law"... ???


----------



## chas_m (Dec 2, 2007)

majormojo said:


> Because I have taken it up with Apple and they claim the restriction is due to Canadian law.


Okay, good. Now you need to forward Mr. Clement's letter to Phil Schiller (VP of Worldwide Sales) and ask for clarification.

I did not see anywhere in the thread where you included that salient fact. If I simply missed it, I apologise to you.


----------



## majormojo (Oct 1, 2009)

chas_m said:


> I did not see anywhere in the thread where you included that salient fact. If I simply missed it, I apologise to you.


The blog post I linked to has the full text of my email exchanges with Apple. Did you read it?


----------



## chas_m (Dec 2, 2007)

No, I didn't, so first I should apologise for not realising you had taken the matter up with Apple first.

But my suggestion still stands: you should forward Mr. Clements' letter to Phil Schiller directly and request clarification. He's a good guy and if your email gets through to him I feel confident he will respond.


----------



## majormojo (Oct 1, 2009)

Not to worry, chas. I'm continuing to follow up with Apple as well.  Got an email addr for Mr. Schiller?


----------



## Ace McDuck (Sep 27, 2005)

*US store works without CC, Cdn store doesn't*

I have a US account without a credit card & have purchased apps with a redeemed US iTunes card.

I just bought a Cdn iTunes card for my son to use & when he tries to purchase an app, iTunes says it requires a "method of payment" although the card is redeemed & the account shows the $ amount is there. Wtf?!? I don't want to have to give my children a credit card for them to purchase items. The account originally had a cc associated with it, but I removed it recently.


----------



## majormojo (Oct 1, 2009)

Welcome to the club, Ace.


----------



## Ace McDuck (Sep 27, 2005)

thanks, I think. 

So, if I put the CC info back, will iTunes use the iTunes card first, or does it just not work for apps?


----------



## jn (Nov 10, 2003)

majormojo said:


> Not to worry, chas. I'm continuing to follow up with Apple as well.  Got an email addr for Mr. Schiller?


Great work @majormojo

Have you tried taking this up with, or at least CC'ing anyone at Apple Canada? I believe the president is Derek C. Smith ([email protected], [email protected]?)

Also worth trying [email protected] and [email protected]

Hopefully you'll get a follow up from someone at the "Office of the President"


----------



## Rubble (Mar 4, 2007)

After reading this thread last night I sent the following email to Apple Canada iTunes Store Support: <[email protected]>

_Why can I not purchase apps for my iPhone via gift card from the iTunes Canada store? The Canadian Minister of Industry, Hon. Tony Clement knows of no such restrictions that the standard Apple reply refers to:

"this is due to Canadian Commerce Laws that the iTunes Store must strictly enforce" What commerce laws?

Please see the following for more details:

jimwhitelaw.com: iTunes credit in Canada

Why No iTunes Credit Towards App Purchases in Canada? | iPhone in Canada Blog - Tips, Tricks, News, and Tutorials for Canadian iPhone Users

Michael Geist - Clement Says No Legal Block To Using Apple iTunes Gift Cards For Apps

Thank you for your time. I look forward to your response._

This morning I got the following reply:

_Dear Dave,

Welcome to iTunes Store Support. I understand that you would like to know why you are unable to use gift card to purchase apps from the iTunes Canada store. I can certainly see your concern. My name is Harry, it is of high importance for us to address your concern.

First I apologize for the misinformation provided. This particular issue has nothing to do with Canadian laws. It is just that at this time Apple does not allow store credit to be used towards the purchase of app. I am sorry, I do not have any further information on this issue.

You will not be able to purchase software, games, or applications with store credit or an iTunes Gift Card in Canada. Customers residing in Canada may only purchase software, games and applications using a credit card. Your iTunes Gift Card balance can be applied towards purchases of all other types of content on the iTunes Store.

Apple recognizes that no one is better qualified to provide feedback about iTunes than the people who use it.

I encourage you to use the iTunes Feedback page to submit your comments:
Apple - iTunes - Feedback

Your efforts to share your feedback are very much appreciated. Thank you for choosing the iTunes Store. Please let me know if I can be of further assistance with this issue.

Regards,

Harry
iTunes Store Customer Support
My hours are: 11 am - 8 pm CST, Sunday, Monday through Wednesday, saturday.
_


So it looks like Apple is just being.... ah, I'd better not say any more. This issue really gets me worked up and I'll started using words that are less than kind....

Dave


----------



## jagga (Jul 23, 2005)

Just found out. I've heard a few rumors that over time keeping the credit in your iTunes account will eventually allow the purchases; but nobody can state the time length when stating this rumor.

I'm guessing it has to do with Credit Card corporations (Visa, MasterCard, etc) pays Apple directly, where retail stores pay middle or end of the month or end of the quarter. However this does not explain the gifts purchased online directly from Apple or within the official Apple Stores.

Is there anything I'm missing or something we can do to change this?


----------



## irontree (Oct 28, 2006)

Ace McDuck said:


> I have a US account without a credit card & have purchased apps with a redeemed US iTunes card.
> 
> I just bought a Cdn iTunes card for my son to use & when he tries to purchase an app, iTunes says it requires a "method of payment" although the card is redeemed & the account shows the $ amount is there. Wtf?!? I don't want to have to give my children a credit card for them to purchase items. The account originally had a cc associated with it, but I removed it recently.


Although not the best alternative you could get your son Visa or Mastercard gift cards that will work perfectly for the App Store.


----------



## chas_m (Dec 2, 2007)

Rubble, I should mention to you that despite the elegance of the letter you got, it was in fact written by a computer.

Try filing a report on an entirely different issue, and see for yourself. You will get an almost identical letter using exactly the same phrases but with key substitutions relating to your new issue.

IME with Apple, there IS something in Canadian commerce law (probably a guaranteed period of full refund) that Apple doesn't want to deal with, as it cuts into the paltry profit they make.

It could also be that Canadian banks or bank regulations demand a higher percentage or different payment options that are different enough to the US that Apple deems it a hassle.

There are lots of possible reasons. For whatever reason, Apple does not wish to divulge those reasons to us.


----------



## MacGuiver (Sep 6, 2002)

We just got stung with the tune gift card scam. We got the kids touches for Christmas and thought it would be a nice for Grandma to get them each an itunes gift card to buy some games. Thats all they really wanted to buy. So we were pretty ticked to discover that the balance of over $30 wasn't going down at all after buying over $25 in apps. I googled to see what was up only to discover the fine print on the back tells you the money you fork over to apple on a gift card is only good for music and movies and the cards are non refundable, even if you didn't even take them out of the packaging 
Apple is acting like crooks here. If this is the policy, Itunes gift cards should CLEARLY state it up front. No where is this clearly stated in the apple display case we bought them from at the store. Now we gotta find some music lover to see if we can pawn off the $75 in gift cards we haven't activated.
End of rant.

Cheers
MacGuiver


----------



## chas_m (Dec 2, 2007)

Just to summarise for those joining this long-running thread now:

1. In the US, a US iTunes gift card can be used for anything the iTunes Store sells, including apps from the App Store. I have a US account and have verified this to be true.

2. In Canada, a Canadian iTunes gift card CANNOT be used to buy apps from the App Store. It's good for music and movies ONLY. (removed a line about the availability of an App Store card, as it was incorrect.)

3. Only Apple knows exactly why this is. Thanks to another poster, we know that the Minister in charge of e-commerce is unaware of any law that forces Apple to do it this way, and I think we can take that as a statement from the government. As best we have been able to determine, Apple simply CHOSE to do it this in Canada for reasons undisclosed, but it should be noted that differences in financial regulation or differences in the laws between the US and Canada _could_ be a factor in Apple's reasoning.


----------



## Ace McDuck (Sep 27, 2005)

chas_m said:


> ... There is a separate App Store gift card that can be used to buy apps...


I haven't seen this anywhere and I just searched the Apple store for "gift card" and only got the generic iTunes cards. This would be just the thing for my kids. Where do you get these cards?


----------



## chas_m (Dec 2, 2007)

iTunes gift cards are available pretty much everywhere. Seriously. From gas stations to electronics stores, from grocers to souvenir shops.

App Store cards are much harder to spot, but I've seen them at Futureshop.


----------



## G-Mo (Sep 26, 2007)

chas_m said:


> App Store cards are much harder to spot, but I've seen them at Futureshop.


I just spoke to Apple Canada now and they confirmed that there is no such thing as an "App Store" gift card and that "customers residing in Canada may only purchase games and applications using a credit card."

So, unless what you saw was some sort of third party solution (ie - Pre-paid credit card marketed for use to purchase in the App Store), you are mistaken.


----------



## jonnyques (Dec 31, 2009)

Hi can you post the phone number for Canada? Id like to call and waist their time, and voice my displeasure. I bought $45 in cards for my kids to use with there new itouchs. Now I find out the cards are useless, and can not be refunded even though unused. This has been my first exposure to anything Apple, and I'm not impressed!
thanks


----------



## KMPhotos (Jun 17, 2008)

jonnyques said:


> Hi can you post the phone number for Canada? Id like to call and waist their time, and voice my displeasure. I bought $45 in cards for my kids to use with there new itouchs. Now I find out the cards are useless, and can not be refunded even though unused. This has been my first exposure to anything Apple, and I'm not impressed!
> thanks


I understand your frustration - it is echoed among many Canadians - but to be fair, a little tiny bit of research before hand could have saved you this problem.
Also, the cards can still be used for music and movies. So it's not a total waste.


----------



## jonnyques (Dec 31, 2009)

Well to be fair, THEY could CLEARLY put on the cards NOT FOR APPS OR GAMES. You download and install itunes and you buy a itunes card. I didn't install itunes, igames, iapps etc, and Apple doesn't advertise a iapp card or igames card. They put everything under one umbrella. NO WHERE on the itunes site does it say, APPS and GAMES NOT available for use with a itunes card. How hard would it be to put that information clearly on the itunes website? Why did I have to buy the cards, get frustrated trying to buy a game, waist time trying to find a contact number, search on-line help, only to then have to Google the problem to find a solution? It leaves me thinking that Apple knows there misleading people but are making no effort to inform them! 
As for the things they can buy with them, lets see. Music, they buy the CD which can be played on any device, and put on the ipod. Movies, again buy the DVD, can be used on any DVD player, in the van, converted and put on the ipod, Books, well they have a library card. No I don't see any value in the offerings from the card.
The things they want are games and apps.
My question would also be, what of the people who don't have a credit card? They just paid $300+ dollars for a glorified mp3 player. If all they can get is music, then thats all the ipod becomes, a $19.95 walmart mp3 player.
In this great world of information, from a company that spends millions of dollars in advertising promoting WHY they are better than a PC, they lack the technology to inform consumers that a itunes card doesn't work on apps or games.... Just sad!
JMHO
So do you have that phone number?
I still need to know if I put my credit card on one account and can that one account be used to buy apps to be put on 3 different itouchs? AND yes I know I would have to buy the same app 3 times.

The bottom line is I don't like having to put my credit card info out on the web and leave it there.


----------



## SINC (Feb 16, 2001)

Apple's policy in this regard is so friggin' far out to lunch it isn't even funny. Shame on Apple. Honour your commitments Apple!


----------



## irontree (Oct 28, 2006)

This is weird because I specifically remember purchasing games for my iPod Classic with gift cards... several of them in fact... this must have been before the app store came around?


----------



## Bjornbro (Feb 19, 2000)

SINC said:


> Honour your commitments Apple!


Which commitment is that? Seems to me everything is in writing and plain english.


----------



## SINC (Feb 16, 2001)

Bjornbro said:


> Which commitment is that? Seems to me everything is in writing and plain english.


Any gift card should be as good as cash and if Apple won't honour it, they or any other store should be legislated to do so.

They take your cash and screw you on the fine print and that is just not right.


----------



## jonnyques (Dec 31, 2009)

Bjornbro said:


> Which commitment is that? Seems to me everything is in writing and plain english.


Perhaps you can post a link or information as to which page in itunes it says the itunes card WILL NOT WORK with apps or games. Cause I still don't see it.

Also would it kill them to print on the itunes cards that THEY WILL NOT WORK with Games and Apps? After all its not like your in the store looking at cards and there is a choice, itunes, iapps, igames etc. Ive only seen the one card... itunes.

I can say after trying to buy a game several times, spending an hour reading the help section, etc i couldn't find any info that the cards would not work. I had to Google the problem to find out the itune cards are junk!

As for the cards being good for other things, Movies, Ill buy the DVD so I can play it on any TV, in the van, or convert it and load it on itouch. Music, Ill buy the CD and do the same. Any of the content is readily available to purchase in better formats than from itunes. Not to mention it can be had for free of the web with a little looking.

The only thing IMHO is buying the games and apps. I have told my kids I didn't want to jailbreak their itouches (I just bought 3) but after this crap I'm seriously reconsidering it.
Again anyone have the Canadian phone number?


----------



## nick24 (Jul 11, 2006)

jonnyques said:


> NO WHERE on the itunes site does it say, APPS and GAMES NOT available for use with a itunes card. How hard would it be to put that information clearly on the itunes website? Why did I have to buy the cards, get frustrated trying to buy a game, waist time trying to find a contact number, search on-line help, only to then have to Google the problem to find a solution? It leaves me thinking that Apple knows there misleading people but are making no effort to inform them!
> 
> So do you have that phone number?


I'll give you a clue re the phone number - try the contact us link, or was that a little too obvious for you? How to Contact Us - Apple Canada or 1-800-MY-APPLE. 

As for your claim that there's no info saying that iTunes gift cards cannot be used to purchase apps, I guess you missed this too "iTunes Gift Cards may not be used on the Canadian store to purchase applications and games". It's the 4th sentence in the iTunes Gift Cards Terms and Conditions section on any page where you can purchase a Gift Card. In fact, the overview section talks of purchasing music, movies and TV shows. Maybe you could have inferred from this that apps could not be purchased.

iTunes Gift Card - Silhouette - $15 - Apple Store (Canada)

Oh, and it's waste, not waist. And they're not there.


----------



## G-Mo (Sep 26, 2007)

nick24 said:


> I'll give you a clue re the phone number - try the contact us link, or was that a little too obvious for you? How to Contact Us - Apple Canada or 1-800-MY-APPLE.
> 
> As for your claim that there's no info saying that iTunes gift cards cannot be used to purchase apps, I guess you missed this too "iTunes Gift Cards may not be used on the Canadian store to purchase applications and games". It's the 4th sentence in the iTunes Gift Cards Terms and Conditions section on any page where you can purchase a Gift Card. In fact, the overview section talks of purchasing music, movies and TV shows. Maybe you could have inferred from this that apps could not be purchased.
> 
> ...


:clap:


----------



## chas_m (Dec 2, 2007)

G-Mo said:


> I just spoke to Apple Canada now and they confirmed that there is no such thing as an "App Store" gift card and that "customers residing in Canada may only purchase games and applications using a credit card."
> 
> So, unless what you saw was some sort of third party solution (ie - Pre-paid credit card marketed for use to purchase in the App Store), you are mistaken.


Thanks for the correction, G-Mo. That must have been what it was -- I don't spend much time in FS and so didn't look at it closely.


----------



## chas_m (Dec 2, 2007)

jonnyques said:


> I have told my kids I didn't want to jailbreak their itouches (I just bought 3) but after this crap I'm seriously reconsidering it.


I'm not understanding how jailbreaking their Touches will help ... it won't change anything as regards to buying games/apps on the App Store, and frankly I haven't seen doodly-squat worth downloading from non-App Store sources in terms of games or apps that would be useful to kids.

I'm afraid I'm with nick24 on this -- the caveat on iTunes Gift Cards in Canada is pretty obvious and you simply missed it. That said, I support your right to call and complain; I hope that eventually Apple will give Canadian gift cards parity with the US cards.


----------



## CPenney (Jan 3, 2010)

I just got my iPod Touch and I've also encountered the same issue. I've read that Canadian regulations/law do not allow software to be purchased with gift cards in the manner. Does anyone know more about this? I'd imagine that if the community knew who was responsible for this law/policy (Industry Canada?), we might voice our issues there.

It would be good if this could be changed.


----------



## G-Mo (Sep 26, 2007)

jonnyques said:


> Well to be fair, THEY could CLEARLY put on the cards NOT FOR APPS OR GAMES.


I have 5 iTunes cards sitting around the house (all different types and values) and all CLEARLY state on the back "Not redeemable for all purchases, such as iPod games or App Store purchases."

Don't know how they could make that any clearer.


----------



## HowEver (Jan 11, 2005)

It's an Apple policy.

People only assume that governments care remotely what you buy with your gift cards.




CPenney said:


> I just got my iPod Touch and I've also encountered the same issue. I've read that Canadian regulations/law do not allow software to be purchased with gift cards in the manner. Does anyone know more about this? I'd imagine that if the community knew who was responsible for this law/policy (Industry Canada?), we might voice our issues there.
> 
> It would be good if this could be changed.


----------



## chas_m (Dec 2, 2007)

CPenney said:


> I just got my iPod Touch and I've also encountered the same issue. I've read that Canadian regulations/law do not allow software to be purchased with gift cards in the manner. Does anyone know more about this?


I'm sorry you missed this post in this thread, I think it covers your question pretty thoroughly.


----------



## Benito (Nov 17, 2007)

That sucks because I just received $100 worth of iTunes gift cards and there will be apps I wanted to buy.


----------



## chas_m (Dec 2, 2007)

Benito said:


> That sucks because I just received $100 worth of iTunes gift cards and there will be apps I wanted to buy.


Surely you can use the gift cards for music and movies and use actual cash (well, credit) on the relatively modest cost of apps?

I could be way out of the norm, but I have something like 100 apps on my iPhone but have spent less than $60 (probably a lot less) since I tend to buy apps that are 99 cents (on sale or not) or less. I can't remember the last time I paid more than $2-3 for an app.

On the other hand, I buy a fair amount of music from iTunes each year, easily more than $100 (and that's not even counting movies, which I tend to rent not buy, or TV shows).


----------



## Benito (Nov 17, 2007)

Sure I can buy music or movies, actually I haven't purchased a movie yet. But I didn't know that you couldn't buy apps and there were more apps than music that I wanted currently. I'll eventually use them, but even in the past year, if you add up all the apps and music that I purchased, it didn't amount to anywhere close to $100. Oh well, I'll have to look at purchasing some movies or TV shows I guess in addition to music. No biggie I guess.


----------



## Bjornbro (Feb 19, 2000)

Benito said:


> Oh well, I'll have to look at purchasing some movies or TV shows I guess in addition to music. No biggie I guess.


You know you don't have to spend it all today, right? There's no time limit to the credit.


----------



## chas_m (Dec 2, 2007)

Another point: if you purchased some music back in the DRM days, you can "upgrade" that music to DRM-free, higher-bitrate/better quality versions of the tracks for 40 cents each (I think that's the current Canadian price). Comes with artwork and lyrics* too.

*lyrics not available on all songs


----------



## Benito (Nov 17, 2007)

Yes, I know that there isn't an expiry date on the gift cards. I'm not complaining about the present, it was a great gift.


----------

