Family member unable to purchase app due to unverified PayPal on Apple Account

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Family member unable to purchase app due to unverified PayPal on Apple Account

So… I’ve run into this issue NUMEROUS times and am greatly upset and seriously considering to ditch everything Apple related as a result… despite being a loyal customer for over a decade…

Firsf off family sharing became a thing, everything is set up and works… We ALWAYS buy gift cards because we don’t want to share our private information like bank details… But eventually we got forced to add a phone number for verification due to the family sharing thing, which eventually stopped working due to the SIM card not being a SPECIFIC TYPE….. Hence being forced to buy an entirely new SIM card which is nearly impossible these days…

In the end I decided to hook up my PayPal BECAUSE nobody could download any of their shared games no more due to this issue of the sim no longer working as a payment method…

the first thing that happened was Apple instantly billed me money STRAIGHT FROM MY PAYPAL for my first next Cloud Subscription payment, DESPITE there being money in the actual account?…

I forcibly blocked this payment, yet it wouldn’t return the money to my bank account to which I NEVER gave approval… So it would be forced to pay the subscription from the actual Apple gift cards we buy in our stores…

now… we spend Money and can’t even use it?…

Also the fact that Apple claims the “most upper payment method!” (Which would be presumed to be the “Gift card money actually active on the account”, but isn’t.. it completely bypasses to go straight to my PayPal and hence directly from my bank which was NEVER intended or agreed to…)

after blocking the PayPal causing it to not take money from PayPal but actually pay from our gift cards it works like intended…

Months go by… And one member wishes to purchase a game in the App Store…

but it claims my PayPal isn’t verified?…

it asks me to verify with my phone number…

But the sheer fact it says “Verification needed”, followed by asking for my PayPal phone verification…

which I don’t trust because I fear it will directly use my actual bank account via PayPal to pay instead of the money my fam. Has on their actual account via gift cards…

Can anyone help as to how to prevent this kind of scam from Apple from happening?…

it’s very upsetting and INCREDIBLY annoying and a HUGE waste of my time and energy and I am very angry for this…. and this is the second time I’m here regarding this matter….

It happens on an iPhone XS Max, but I doubt the model would influence it…

[Re-Titled by Moderator]

Original Title: Family member can’t purchase app because my PayPal isn’t verified - They have money on her Apple account and CAN’T USE IT thanks to this broken feature… - It needs to pay the app from that balance, NOT MY PAYPAL!

Earlier iPhone models

Posted on Sep 29, 2025 5:05 PM

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Answer 1

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Limnos

Level 10

424,895 points

Sep 29, 2025 5:43 PM in response to __P__

If you blocked a payment from a Paypal account then it is possible Apple has decided that account cannot be trusted anymore. You will need a new payment method.

Not all things can be purchased with account balance. Apple is not specific. --> How apps, content, and subscriptions from Apple are billed - Apple Support

Some purchases aren’t charged to your Apple Account balance

● You can't use your Apple Account balance to send gifts or gift cards.

● For some recurring charges, like AppleCare+, you can't start your subscription with Apple Account balance. But as long as you keep another valid payment method on file and your Apple Account balance would cover an entire charge, your recurring charge will pull from your Apple Account balance (see the article for more information).

● Some subscriptions might not be charged to your Apple Account balance.

● If you use Family Sharing, your family members can't spend your Apple Account balance. Funds that you add to your Apple Account balance are available only to you.

I don't really use PayPal (PP) but my understand is it acts as a seamless conduit from your bank to Apple. It is PP taking the money from your bank when your authorize Apple to charge for a purchase. That is how PP operates (or so is my limited experience with them.) Note that Apple will probably want some kind of payment method which is likely to not run out of money and default on payments.

For Family Sharing, the Organizer must have a valid payment method. If Apple checks and finds a method is not valid then they will refuse purchasing to everybody.

Eventually you may find that truly old equipment cannot upgrade to the system software required by Apple for a service. I don't think you XS has reached that point yet but you may wish to make note that it has reached the no-upgrade point.

I am not understanding all that business about a SIM card. I have no idea where in the world you are. Some Account let users use a telephone number for an account ID, and may offer mobile billing. For a while until very recently I was using equipment much older than yours and didn't have any problems. Mind you, I didn't connect with cellular service and this is the first time I have heard about any problems with older SIM cards. If you really think it comes down to that somehow then you will need to find a newer sim Card. I'd have to wildly speculate why your card is somehow presenting problems.

P.S., Account balance is usually tried first except where it is not allowed as a payment method. However, for Family Sharing there must be at least one other reliable payment method such as a credit or debit card Payment methods that you can use with your Apple Account - Apple Support

Account Balance is always at the top but typically must have at least one other kind. It's the order of those other kinds that can be adjusted.

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