Money debited, no credit
Topping up with iDEAL does not work: you can do this
You can top up your Apple ID credit via iDEAL in the Netherlands and via Bancontact in Belgium. You use iDEAL in the App Store to increase your Apple ID balance by an amount of your choice, so that you can then pay for apps and games with it. It may happen that the upgrade is not successful. Money has been debited from the account, but the credit does not appear on the account. You can do this if iDeal doesn’t work!
- Solutions
- Other problems
Contact Apple, not us
iCulture is a news site about Apple, but is not part of Apple. That may sound logical, but it often happens that we are approached by users who want to know where their money has gone. We cannot help you with refunds and we cannot look into Apple’s payment systems. If the tips in this article don’t work, you’ll need to contact Apple Support. Hopefully they can help you further.
#1 Patience is a virtue
It is best to be patient and wait a day or two before sounding the alarm. There may be a malfunction or a delay between your bank and the payment provider that Apple uses. Sometimes payment orders are not processed on weekends and public holidays.
#2 Log out and log in
What you can also do is log out for a while. You can log out via Settings > [jouw naam] at the top of the screen > Log out. Then log in again at the same place with your Apple ID and password. Wait a moment until your iPhone has loaded everything and check whether your credit is now included.
#3 Contact Apple
You could possibly contact Apple after a while to see where the money has gone. Based on your proof of payment for the transfer, Apple should be able to determine the cause. It is advisable to immediately provide Apple with clear information about your payment, such as a statement from the bank.
#4 Contact your bank
You could also contact your bank, but they often do not know more than that the money has indeed been debited. Why the money has not yet been transferred to your Apple ID is a question that only Apple’s bank or payment provider can answer.
Tip: When transferring an iDEAL payment, you can receive a transaction confirmation by email from many banks (including ING and Rabobank) containing the transaction number and other details. These can be useful if Apple wants to know more details about the transfer. This saves you another phone call to your bank.
Other problems with iDEAL and Apple credit
Even more problems may occur if you want to use iDEAL in the App Store. Below we discuss three common complaints and problems:
- iDEAL is not suitable as a payment method for Family Sharing. If you already use Family Sharing, you will not see the option for iDEAL. If you later decide to set up Family Sharing, you’ll also need to set up another payment method that works, such as a credit card or PayPal.
- iDEAL can only be used to increase your balance. You cannot therefore authorize iDEAL once, whereby each individual purchase is debited from your account. It is only possible to increase your balance. If you want to pay per app and not deposit credit in advance, it is better to use payment via your telephone bill, which is offered by some providers (including Vodafone).
- iDEAL option not visible. Don’t see the option for iDEAL? Then check whether you are logged in with a Dutch Apple ID. As we indicated above, iDEAL does not work if you use Family Sharing.
We explain how to set up iDEAL as a payment method for the App Store in the tip below.
You can also pay in the Apple Store with iDEAL. The Apple Store is the (web) store where you can buy products and accessories and is therefore different from the App Store.
