Store switching

[Louisealberter]

Hi, I am currently residing in Germany with my account with the App Store in The UK, I wanted to purchase the BBC global app which for obvious reasons is not available in the UK store I was requested to switch to the Irish store where said app was available, but on switching stores was informed that my account was only valid in UK store. Please help. Thanks

louise

 

[J. A.]

Hi, I am currently residing in Germany with my account with the App Store in The UK, I wanted to purchase the BBC global app which for obvious reasons is not available in the UK store I was requested to switch to the Irish store where said app was available, but on switching stores was informed that my account was only valid in UK store. Please help. Thanks

louise

To get an account in another country's store, you need a payment method (can also be "None" if the app is free) and a valid address for that country.

Go to App Store - Featured, scroll down to your Apple ID and tap it. Now there are two possibilities: either you sign out and sign in again, creating a new Apple ID (new email address, you can't use the one that's already your Apple ID), or you choose "View Account", then tap the country in your existing Apple ID and change to another country, following the instructions.

Both have their advantages and disadvantages. If you use the second method, you have to change your country again, going through every step you had to do before. I'd prefer the first method, if you have a different email address. It's easier switching between stores, you just have to sign out of the one Apple ID and sign in with the other one (but you have 2 Apple IDs then).

Just a thought: is the BBC global app available in the German store as well? It would be easier using an address from there, because you're already there.

 

[leelai]

Hi, I am currently residing in Germany with my account with the App Store in The UK, I wanted to purchase the BBC global app which for obvious reasons is not available in the UK store I was requested to switch to the Irish store where said app was available, but on switching stores was informed that my account was only valid in UK store. Please help. Thanks

louise

As JA has said, see if this app is available in the Germany App Store which would be easiest for you right now as you may need to buy a German iTunes card to activate an account there. Some accounts can be activated by selecting None for credit card but some do need some form of payment whether an app is free or not.

To open another account you will need a new email address and this must be for the Country in which you want to open an account for. In other words you cannot use an email which would denote the UK.....a gmail email account is very good as it does not denote any region.

I have 2 accounts myself as some apps I want are not available in my country's store. It's just a matter of signing out of one account and then into the other for whatever purchases you want to make. When updates do become available for these apps bought in another store, you will just be asked for the password for that store (no need to sign in and out of the different stores for updates)

On another note here and I'm just giving you this info now to save you wondering what to do when this problem pops up.
As you did switch to the Irish store and were informed that your account was only valid in the UK, next time you do try to buy an app you will get a message saying that you need to switch back to the UK store. This is easily done by just viewing your Apple ID, so go to Settings - iTunes and App Store, tap your ID and select View your Apple ID when the options pop up. You will need to input your password and then you are good to go. Hope this helps!

 

[J. A.]

Just changing the country, using the existing Apple ID, will work as well. I've tried it with mine (the Austrian) once. It's inconvenient, though.

 

[J. A.]

Just to add:

If you want to switch between stores, it's better to have more than one Apple ID.

If you decide to change the store, and continue with that one (never using the old location again), the better choice would be to just change your existing Apple ID.