Yes. Apple lets you request expedited App Review for extenuating circumstances, and a critical bug fix is one of its two named examples. Include the steps to reproduce the bug on your current version. Approval is not promised, so plan for normal review time too.
What Apple says
Apple's App Review page lists two cases for an expedited request: fixing a critical bug in your app, and an app tied to an event you are directly associated with where the event is close. For a bug fix, Apple asks for steps to reproduce the problem on the current version. For an event, it asks for the event name, date and your link to it.
The same page gives general timing: App Review typically reviews at least 50% of submissions in less than 24 hours and 90% in less than 48 hours. It also warns that incomplete submissions may be delayed or fail review. Apple does not publish a faster turnaround for expedited requests, so do not promise one to customers.
Does an SDK problem count?
Apple does not define "critical bug" on that page, so this is a judgment call. A third party SDK that crashes your app at launch, breaks sign in or payments, or leaks data is a defensible case, because you can show the failure on the live version. A routine version bump for a low severity advisory is not. If you cannot reproduce a user visible problem, use normal review.
How to write the request
- State the symptom in one sentence, for example "App crashes on launch on iOS after the November SDK update."
- List the reproduction steps on the current App Store version.
- Name the build you are submitting and say it contains only the SDK change.
- Keep the release small. A tiny diff is easier to review and easier to defend.
- Do not bundle new features into an urgent fix.
While you wait
- Pause the phased release if the broken version is still rolling out. See the post on pausing a bad release in the first hour.
- Consider server side switches that turn the faulty SDK feature off for affected users, if you built one.
- Prepare release notes that say what changed, in plain words.
- Check that signing, privacy answers and required upload settings are current, because a rejection costs more time than the request saves.
What it will not change
Expedited review shortens the queue. It does not skip rules. The build still needs to meet current upload requirements, and your privacy answers still need to match the SDK you ship.
Try it yourself
Click through it at your own pace, or open it full screen. Notice how a fixed version is identified, which is the first thing the review request should name.
Safeguard offers dependency scanning and fix pull requests (off by default, with every category on Manual), which helps you find the patched SDK version quickly. A free scan is available.
Quick check
Is there a form I must use for an expedited request?
Apple's App Review page links to its expedite request guidance. Follow that page and check it before submitting.
Will expedited review always be approved?
Apple does not promise approval or a turnaround. Treat it as a request.
Sources
Last reviewed: 19 October 2026.
