VPNs removed from the App Store in Russia: what is happening
VPN apps have been removed from the Russian App Store since 2024, at the request of Roskomnadzor and as part of Apple’s handling of requests from the regulator. According to public Reuters reporting, by the summer of 2024 Apple had removed at least 25 VPN apps from the Russian segment of the stores; since then, the list has continued to grow regularly.
For an end user, it looks like this: you open the App Store, search for a familiar app — and it is not there. If you have an iPhone and an Apple Account tied to the Russian region, you simply will not find many popular VPN clients. At the same time, already installed apps generally continue to work; the question is what to do after reinstalling or changing devices.
Below is what exactly happened, how it affects different iOS users, and what legal options remain. Without calls to violate Apple’s ToS: only what is allowed by Apple’s own rules.
In brief
- Apple removes VPN apps from the Russian App Store at the request of RKN.
- According to Reuters, at least 25 apps had been removed by mid-2024; the list is growing.
- An already installed app continues to work until you delete it.
- In another country’s App Store, the same apps are generally available.
- The legal method is to change the Apple Account region (covered in a separate article).
- Third-party stores such as AltStore are available only in the EU under Apple’s rules.
What happened: the facts
App removals in Russia are happening in waves. Roskomnadzor sends Apple requests to remove specific products that violate Russian legislation “on means of bypassing blocks.” Apple processes the requests under its own policy: if there is a legal demand from a competent authority of the country where the storefront operates, an app may be hidden for that region.
Which apps have been removed
The removals affect both large commercial VPNs and small clients with support for bypassing blocks. According to public media reports, the list includes several international providers with millions of users. The list is not fixed — it changes with each new wave of requests.
What happens to an already installed app
If the app was installed on the device before removal, it continues to work. Apple does not remove it remotely. You lose access to it only in these cases: manual deletion, a full iPhone reset, moving to a new device with restore from the App Store, or expiration of the signing period in rare enterprise variants.
Can it be restored from purchase history
Sometimes, yes. If the app was once downloaded with your Apple Account, you can download it again through the “Purchases” section in the App Store. But only if the app still exists in some storefront and is available to your account under Apple’s rules. If the app has been removed from the Russian segment and your account is tied to Russia, reinstalling will return an error.
Before and after
| Before | After | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Searched for a VPN app in the App Store | Search results are empty or the needed app is missing | Change the account region or search in a foreign storefront |
| The installed app worked | Deleted it from the iPhone — it cannot be installed again | Restore it from “Purchases,” if available |
| Bought a VPN subscription inside the App Store | The subscription is active, but the app is gone | Download the client from another region / web installation |
| Got a new iPhone | Some apps are not restored | Use a backup or change the region |
| The VPN updated itself | It stopped supporting the required protocols | Switch to a current build from another region |
| iOS updated | VPN configurations were reset | Restore from a backup or import again |
How to check right now
Open the App Store on your iPhone and check the “Purchases” section of your Apple Account. If the app is there, the “Download” button will appear if it is still available to your account. If the app has disappeared from the Russian segment and your account is tied to Russia, the App Store will show the error “not available in your country or region.”
At the same time, check through Freedom Checker how VPN services behave on your operator and in your region in general. App removal and protocol blocking are two different problems; sometimes it turns out that the app is not what broke, but the VPN channel itself.
Failure or blocking?
An App Store-side failure usually looks like “the store does not open,” “the app list does not load,” or “payment error.” This is handled by restarting the device and checking Apple System Status.
Removal of an app by the regulator is not a failure and not traffic blocking, but an administrative action at the store level. From the network point of view, your internet is fine, but the app is no longer in the App Store catalog for your region. Trying to fix this with network settings is useless: the issue is resolved only at the account-region level or through alternative storefronts where Apple’s rules allow it.
What to watch for
- Do not delete an installed app unless you are sure you can reinstall it.
- If you plan to change devices, check in advance whether the app is available in your region.
- A subscription is not lost automatically: it is tied to the Apple Account, not to the device.
- Do not buy “VPN installation from a foreign store” from third parties — this violates Apple’s rules and risks losing account data.
- AltStore PAL and third-party stores are available only in the EU under Apple’s decision.
- Enterprise distribution outside the App Store is a separate infrastructure and is not available to an ordinary user.
- Any “jailbreak instructions” are a separate matter involving loss of warranty and security risks.
Conclusion
The removal of VPNs from the Russian App Store is not a block on your internet and not Apple abandoning users in Russia. It is the execution of specific legal requirements for specific apps. Already installed products work, and in foreign segments of the stores the same VPNs are generally available.
Details on specific waves of removals are in Reuters’ coverage of the 2024 events. What to do in practice if your VPN is no longer in the Russian App Store is covered in the next article about installing a VPN when it is unavailable in the region.