u/Kosary10

Hi everyone,

I’m an indie developer based in Iraq currently building a social deduction party game for mobile, and I’m facing a massive roadblock regarding app monetization and payouts. I’d love to hear how others in similar unsupported regions handle this.

As we know, Apple and Google strictly require using official In-App Purchases (IAP) for digital goods. We cannot use links to external websites, and we cannot integrate local mobile wallets or direct local payment gateways because it violates the Anti-Steering guidelines and leads to immediate rejection.

So, assuming I force my users to buy virtual Mastercards to use the official IAP system, I hit a second, much bigger wall: Receiving the payout.

1 No Direct Bank Support: Apple and Google do not support wire transfers to Iraqi bank accounts.

2 The Payoneer / Merchant Account Trap: Many suggest using Payoneer (which gives a US virtual receiving account). However, Google Play requires the Developer’s country to match the Merchant Account country. Since Iraq isn’t supported for Merchant registration, using a US Payoneer account triggers a request for US tax documents (SSN/EIN), which I obviously don’t have as an Iraqi resident.

My questions for developers who have successfully navigated this:

What is your actual strategy to receive your App Store / Google Play earnings?

Do you bite the bullet and incorporate a company (LLC) abroad just to get a matching business bank account and EIN?

Or is there a reliable Merchant of Record (MoR) or 3rd-party service that seamlessly integrates with iOS/Android SDKs without getting banned?

Or do you simply rely on a trusted friend/relative living abroad to host the developer accounts under their name?

Any advice or shared experiences would be incredibly appreciated. Thank you

Hi everyone,

I’m an indie developer based in Iraq currently building a social deduction party game for mobile, and I’m facing a massive roadblock regarding app monetization and payouts. I’d love to hear how others in similar unsupported regions handle this.

As we know, Apple and Google strictly require using official In-App Purchases (IAP) for digital goods. We cannot use links to external websites, and we cannot integrate local mobile wallets or direct local payment gateways because it violates the Anti-Steering guidelines and leads to immediate rejection.

So, assuming I force my users to buy virtual Mastercards to use the official IAP system, I hit a second, much bigger wall: Receiving the payout.

1 No Direct Bank Support: Apple and Google do not support wire transfers to Iraqi bank accounts.

2 The Payoneer / Merchant Account Trap: Many suggest using Payoneer (which gives a US virtual receiving account). However, Google Play requires the Developer’s country to match the Merchant Account country. Since Iraq isn’t supported for Merchant registration, using a US Payoneer account triggers a request for US tax documents (SSN/EIN), which I obviously don’t have as an Iraqi resident.

My questions for developers who have successfully navigated this:

What is your actual strategy to receive your App Store / Google Play earnings?

Do you bite the bullet and incorporate a company (LLC) abroad just to get a matching business bank account and EIN?

Or is there a reliable Merchant of Record (MoR) or 3rd-party service that seamlessly integrates with iOS/Android SDKs without getting banned?

Or do you simply rely on a trusted friend/relative living abroad to host the developer accounts under their name?

Any advice or shared experiences would be incredibly appreciated. Thank you

Hi everyone,

I’m an indie developer based in Iraq currently building a social deduction party game for mobile, and I’m facing a massive roadblock regarding app monetization and payouts. I’d love to hear how others in similar unsupported regions handle this.

As we know, Apple and Google strictly require using official In-App Purchases (IAP) for digital goods. We cannot use links to external websites, and we cannot integrate local mobile wallets or direct local payment gateways because it violates the Anti-Steering guidelines and leads to immediate rejection.

So, assuming I force my users to buy virtual Mastercards to use the official IAP system, I hit a second, much bigger wall: Receiving the payout.

1 No Direct Bank Support: Apple and Google do not support wire transfers to Iraqi bank accounts.

2 The Payoneer / Merchant Account Trap: Many suggest using Payoneer (which gives a US virtual receiving account). However, Google Play requires the Developer’s country to match the Merchant Account country. Since Iraq isn’t supported for Merchant registration, using a US Payoneer account triggers a request for US tax documents (SSN/EIN), which I obviously don’t have as an Iraqi resident.

My questions for developers who have successfully navigated this:

What is your actual strategy to receive your App Store / Google Play earnings?

Do you bite the bullet and incorporate a company (LLC) abroad just to get a matching business bank account and EIN?

Or is there a reliable Merchant of Record (MoR) or 3rd-party service that seamlessly integrates with iOS/Android SDKs without getting banned?

Or do you simply rely on a trusted friend/relative living abroad to host the developer accounts under their name?

Any advice or shared experiences would be incredibly appreciated. Thank you

Hi everyone,

I’m an indie developer based in Iraq currently building a social deduction party game for mobile, and I’m facing a massive roadblock regarding app monetization and payouts. I’d love to hear how others in similar unsupported regions handle this.

As we know, Apple and Google strictly require using official In-App Purchases (IAP) for digital goods. We cannot use links to external websites, and we cannot integrate local mobile wallets or direct local payment gateways because it violates the Anti-Steering guidelines and leads to immediate rejection.

So, assuming I force my users to buy virtual Mastercards to use the official IAP system, I hit a second, much bigger wall: Receiving the payout.

1 No Direct Bank Support: Apple and Google do not support wire transfers to Iraqi bank accounts.

2 The Payoneer / Merchant Account Trap: Many suggest using Payoneer (which gives a US virtual receiving account). However, Google Play requires the Developer’s country to match the Merchant Account country. Since Iraq isn’t supported for Merchant registration, using a US Payoneer account triggers a request for US tax documents (SSN/EIN), which I obviously don’t have as an Iraqi resident.

My questions for developers who have successfully navigated this:

What is your actual strategy to receive your App Store / Google Play earnings?

Do you bite the bullet and incorporate a company (LLC) abroad just to get a matching business bank account and EIN?

Or is there a reliable Merchant of Record (MoR) or 3rd-party service that seamlessly integrates with iOS/Android SDKs without getting banned?

Or do you simply rely on a trusted friend/relative living abroad to host the developer accounts under their name?

Any advice or shared experiences would be incredibly appreciated. Thank you