Google is requiring mandatory developer verification for all Android apps in 2026

If you haven’t seen this yet, Google is planning to require mandatory developer identity verification for all Android apps, including apps distributed outside the Play Store, taking effect September 2026. This affects every independent and open source Android developer directly.

This is not just about the Play Store. After September 2026, on any certified Android device, applications from unverified developers will be blocked by default. The only proposed bypass, the “advanced flow”, exists only as a blog post and has not appeared in any beta, dev preview, or canary release. No one outside Google has seen it.

The community has been fighting back at keepandroidopen.org:

• Read the full breakdown of what this means
• Sign the open letter (organisations only)
• Contact your national regulators — contacts listed by country on the site
• Add the countdown banner to your project

September 2026 is closer than it looks. The time to push back is now.