Apple is making a major change to its education discount program in the United States. Customers who want to buy Apple products online at educational prices now need to prove that they are eligible.
The company is once again using Unidays, a third-party verification service, to check whether buyers are students, parents, or teachers. A new message on Apple’s education store now directs eligible customers to verify their status through Unidays before completing a purchase.
Apple already uses this verification system in several other countries, including the UK. According to Apple Insider, the same requirement is also being expanded to customers in Canada, Australia, Hong Kong, Turkey, and Chile.
To verify eligibility, customers can use a school email address, photo ID, or another valid document from an educational institution through the Unidays app or website.
This move brings Apple’s online education store closer to its physical retail stores, where customers already need to show proof before buying products at education prices. Apple also says customers can complete Unidays verification in advance to make in-store purchases faster.
The change appears to be aimed at stopping misuse of Apple’s education pricing. Previously, anyone in the US could access Apple’s online education store and buy discounted products without much verification.
This is not Apple’s first attempt to bring Unidays verification to US education purchases. The company briefly introduced the requirement around four years ago, but later removed it.
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Apple has also made another notable update to the program. For the first time, Apple Watch models are now included in education discounts. Eligible customers can save up to 10 percent on models like the Apple Watch Series 11, Apple Watch SE, and Apple Watch Ultra 3.
