We know that the sooner you get your app published to the Windows Store, the sooner customers can discover, acquire, and enjoy it. To help make sure your app gets published as quickly as possible, we've put together the following info to help you avoid common certification failures.
If your app fails certification for a reason not listed here, check out Resolving certification errors. It might have info that can help.
Here are some guidelines to help you get your app through the certification process quickly.
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Submit your app only when it's finished. If your app contains incomplete sections, links to webpages that are under construction, or anything else that would give a customer the impression that your app is incomplete, it is likely to fail certification. (See certification requirement 1.2 for more info.)
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Test your app with the Windows App Certification Kit before you submit your app.
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Test your app on several different platforms to ensure that it's as stable as possible. (See certification requirement 3.2 for more info.)
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Make your app's description as detailed as possible. We have some info that can help you write a great app description, if you need some assistance. (See certification requirement 6.5 for more info.)
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Don't use your app's listing page to promote your company or other products. (See certification requirement 2.3 for more info.)
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You're welcome to use your app's description to highlight upcoming features. However, if these upcoming feature give the impression that your app is incomplete, it is likely to fail certification. (Again, see certification requirement 1.2 for more info.)
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If your app connects to a network, you must make sure your app includes a privacy statement in your app's metadata. Customers must also be able to access the privacy statement from the Settings charm when they open your app.. You must provide access to your privacy policy in the Description page of your app, as well as in the app’s settings as displayed in the Windows Settings charm. (See certification requirement 4.1 for more info.)
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Most apps should have a rating of 12+. If you're having trouble deciding between two age ratings for your app, choose the higher one. Remember that apps never fail certification for having too high a rating. (See certification requirement 6.2 for more info.)
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Be consistent with localization and make sure your screen shots clearly illustrate that you've localized your app. (Keep in mind that languages are not the same as markets.) See globalizing your app for more help.
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If your app uses the Windows Store commerce APIs from the Windows.ApplicationModel.Store namespace, make sure to test the app and verify that it handles typical exceptions. Also, make sure that your app uses the CurrentApp class (not the CurrentAppSimulator class, which is for testing purposes only). And make sure that your app doesn't crash if there's no network connectivity!
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Don't declare your app as accessible unless you specifically engineer and test it for accessibility scenarios.
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Desktop app developers: during the app-submission process, you have the option to select a release date for your app. This date refers to the date on which your app will appear in the Store, not the date that your app will go through manual certification. If your release date is in the future, please ensure that your acquisition page and other web links are working correctly before your app is submitted for Store certification. If the links do not work correctly, the app will fail certification.
Build date: 3/19/2013
