Understanding location in the background permissions

To meet the policy requirements, we recommend using the following wording. Notice that the second example includes the use of location for ads. Using location data for ads must comply with our Use of location data for ads policies. 

Choose the most relevant phrasing:

• '[This app] collects location data to enable ["feature"], ["feature"] and ["feature"] even when the app is closed or not in use'.
• '[This app] collects location data to enable ["feature"], ["feature"] and ["feature"] even when the app is closed or not in use, and it is also used to support advertising'.

Examples:

'Fitness Funds collects location data to enable fitness tracking even when the app is closed or not in use'.

'This app collects location data to enable tracking and delivery of local weather alerts even when the app is closed or not in use'. 

The prominent disclosure may include other information to ensure compliance with policy requirements and clarity for users, but must at least include the above, where relevant.

Note: If the feature does not have a user-facing interface when the location in the background is active, please show the prominent disclosure notification when the app is opened for the first time instead.

If we can’t identify the feature that requires access to location in the background based on your declaration, then we need you to provide a clear description or additional information about the feature. When your app has multiple features that require access to location in the background, you must choose just one feature to declare. 

To resolve this issue, take one of these two steps:

• Resubmit a declaration form that clarifies and/or adds information to your description about one feature that requires access to location in the background.
• Remove the permission from the app manifest as well as the related source code for all APKs across all tracks (including closed and open tracks).

If your app has multiple features that require access to location in the background, use the following criteria to choose just one feature to declare. Then resubmit your declaration form via your Google Play Console account.

• The feature that you choose must be important to your app’s core functionality – its main purpose. Without this core feature, your app is broken or rendered unusable.
• Consider whether users would expect your app to access their location in the background and whether you can deliver the same experience without accessing their location in the background.
• The feature must provide significant benefits to users. For example, a family companion app uses location in the background both to trigger an alert if a child leaves a geo-fenced region and to notify users of nearby offers. The child safety geo-fencing feature should be used on your Permissions declaration because it delivers a more valuable user benefit (perceived safety) than the location-contextual ads’ benefits (convenience/personalisation).
• Access to the location in the background solely for the purpose of ads will be denied.

A developer may only declare one location-based feature that requires access to a location in the background, not multiple. The feature that you choose must be important to your app’s core functionality – its main purpose. 

When your app has several features that require access to location in the background, select just one feature to declare and resubmit your declaration form via your Google Play Console account. When choosing the feature, consider these questions:

• Is this feature necessary to the core functionality, or main purpose, of your app? Without this feature, would your app be broken or rendered unusable?
• Would users expect your app to access their location in the background? If not, then it may not be a good candidate for background location access.
• Could your app deliver the same experience without accessing the location in the background? If so, then that’s a better route to take for approval.
• If you decide that your app isn’t a good candidate for background location access and/or that you can offer the same user experience without it, make sure that you remove the background location access permission from the app manifest as well as the related source code for all APKs across all tracks (including closed and open tracks).
• Does this feature provide a significant benefit to users? For example, say a family companion app uses location in the background both to trigger an alert if a child leaves a geo-fenced region and to notify users of nearby offers. The child safety geo-fencing feature should be used on the Permissions declaration because it delivers a more valuable user benefit (perceived safety) than the location-contextual ads’ benefits (convenience/personalisation).
• Are ads the only reason for requesting access to the location in the background? Requests solely for the purpose of ads will be denied.

Our review team must be able to verify that an app offers the declared feature that requires access to a location in the background and verifies the feature’s functionality in the app. If a feature isn’t visible to the user, then the video submitted needs to demonstrate that feature’s functionality.

To resolve this issue, modify your video to demonstrate the declared feature for which you’re requesting background location access and resubmit your declaration form via your Google Play Console account. 

• Show in your video the in-app feature functionality that uses location in the background, including how a user would trigger the prominent disclosure and runtime permission (with user consent).
• If your declared feature’s functionality isn’t directly visible to the user, demonstrate the in-app experience. For example, show how it notifies the user of a fraud alert.

Our review team may find that a declared feature doesn’t meet our Location permissions policy requirements. To resolve this, remove the request to access the location in the background and submit an update to your app. Follow this guide if you want to declare a different feature for access to location in the background:

• Only choose a feature if it delivers clear value to your users and is important to your app’s core functionality – its main purpose. Without this core feature, your app is broken or rendered unusable.
• Consider whether users would expect your app to access their location in the background. If not, then it may not be a good candidate for background location access.
• If you can deliver the same experience for users without accessing location in the background, do that instead.
• Remember to remove the background location access permission from the app manifest as well as related source code for all APKs across all tracks (including closed and open test tracks) if you decide that your app isn’t a good candidate for background location access and/or that you can offer the same user experience without it.

Sometimes we’re unable to view a video provided in a declaration or the video doesn’t accurately reflect the in-app experience. The video must show the declared in-app feature’s functionality in action and how that feature uses location in the background. Demonstrate how a user would trigger the prominent disclosure and the device-based runtime permission (with user consent). 

Our review may find that a privacy policy doesn’t comply with our policy requirements. To resolve this, review the Personal and sensitive user data policy, then add or update your privacy policy as needed for compliance, following these guidelines:

• Your privacy policy must be available on an active URL (no PDFs).
• Make sure that it’s non-editable.
• Make sure that it refers to your app.
• It must specifically cover user privacy.
• Make sure that it’s linked on your app's store listing page and within your app.
• It must hold a reference to the same entity (for example, developer or company) used in the Google Play listing or to the exact name of the app.

Update your privacy policy:

• It must be available on an active URL (no PDFs).
• Make sure that it’s non-editable.
• Make sure that it refers to your app.
• It must specifically cover user privacy.
• Make sure that it’s linked on your app's store listing page and within your app.
• It must hold a reference to the same entity (for example, developer or company) used in the Google Play listing or to the exact name of the app.

Prominent disclosures must appear before an app’s location runtime permission, and they must tell users which feature(s) will use location in the background. Review the prominent disclosure and consent requirements and update your prominent disclosure:

• Make sure that your prominent disclosure includes the term 'location'.
• Indicate how location is used in the background by including one of these phrases: 'background'/'when the app is closed'/'always in use'/'when the app is not in use'.
• Include a list of all the features that use location in the background.
• If you extend permitted usage to ads, include: 'used to provide ads/support advertising/support ads'. (Choose the most accurate phrasing.)

An app must display a prominent disclosure in a dialogue that pops up before the app’s location runtime permission. If your app doesn’t have one, review the prominent disclosure and consent requirements and add a prominent disclosure.

• Your prominent disclosure must appear before your app’s location runtime permission.
• Include at least the following sentence, which you adapt to include all the relevant features requesting access to location in the background in your app that are readily visible to the user: 'This app collects location data to enable ["feature"], ["feature"] and ["feature"] even when the app is closed or not in use'. If you extend permitted usage to ads, also include: 'This data is also used to provide ads/support advertising/support ads'.
• Include any other details necessary to make it clear to the user how and why you’re using location in the background. While additional content is permitted, it should not cause the required content to not be immediately visible.

An app must display a prominent disclosure in a dialogue that appears before the app’s location runtime permission. Make sure that your prominent disclosure appears at the right time and meets the prominent disclosure and consent requirements:

• Display your app’s prominent disclosure in a dialogue that appears before the app’s location runtime permission.
• Include at least the following sentence, which you adapt to include all the relevant features requesting access to location in the background in your app that are readily visible to the user: 'This app collects location data to enable ["feature"], ["feature"] and ["feature"] even when the app is closed or not in use'.
• Include any other details necessary to make it clear to the user how and why you are using location in the background. While additional content is permitted, it should not cause the required content to not be immediately visible. 
• Include the following sentence, if you extend permitted usage to ads: 'This data is also used to provide ads'.

Our review team may find that a declaration’s selected feature doesn’t require access to location in the background to function. Or the feature could use foreground location access instead of access to location in the background. These make it ineligible for approval for background location access. 

In cases like these, you can either remove access to location in the background from your app and/or use foreground location access instead. Then submit an update to your app.