SHOPLINE App Review Standards

1. Developer Guidelines

This guideline serves as a subordinate specification to the SHOPLINE Developer Service Agreement. In instances not addressed by these Guidelines, the 'SHOPLINE Developer Service Agreement' stipulations shall apply. You must comply with the applicable laws and regulations of the countries where SHOPLINE operates; while also respecting other developers' work.

2. App Review Process

2.1 Review Progress and Status

• After completing the creation, the App changes to the Draft status.
• After submitting for review, the App changes to the Reviewing status.
• After passing the review, the App will become Activated and Visible or Activated but Invisible, depending on the visibility option selected at the time of publication.
• If the review is not passed, the App status changes to Review declined.
• After submitting a material update for review, the App changes to the Draft status, but the online App status remains Activated.

2.2 Review Timeframe

• Working Days: Our review team conducts reviews from 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM (GMT+8) on weekdays.
• Review Cycle:
  1. Overseas: Considering time differences and regional variations, the review cycle is also 7 working days, but the specific time may be adjusted based on actual circumstances.
• Holidays:
  1. Overseas Holidays: For overseas regions, we will adjust accordingly based on local holidays.
• Special Circumstances: In special cases, such as a large number of review Apps, the review cycle may be extended. We will do our best to maintain review efficiency while ensuring quality.

2.3 Review Results

1. After Applying for review, you will receive an email titled: We have received your SHOPLINE App submission, indicating that your App has been successfully submitted for review. The review process will be completed within 7 business days.
2. If the App is Approved, you will receive an email titled: Your SHOPLINE App is now Approved! You will see the current App status as either Visible' or 'Invisible in the platform's App list, depending on the visibility setting.
3. If the App does not pass the review, you will receive an email titled: Your SHOPLINE App submission - update. We will detail all the reasons for the App's review failure in the email.
4. If your App is taken down for any of the reasons listed below, you will receive an email titled: Your SHOPLINE App submission - update. We will detail all the reasons for the App's review failure in the email.

2.4 Common Reasons for Rejection

1. The App fails to install correctly, triggering severe error messages during installation.
2. Critical errors or data loss occur during the App's operational phase.
3. The App does not implement vaild OAuth2.0 identity verification and redirects users directly to the merchant page for login.
4. The testing URL redirects with an error code, unable to open normally.
5. The test account cannot log in normally and is unable to assist the review team in performing App function testing.
6. The App lacks the mandatory Webhook required by GDPR.
7. The App does not provide a privacy policy.
8. The link in the privacy policy fails to jump.
9. The App does not provide an FAQ section.
10. The product features described in the App details are overly simplistic, failing to convey the product features.
11. The icons and preview screenshots uploaded in the App details do not meet the standards, are too blurred, or are stretched.
12. The App details contain brand terms from other exclusive e-commerce websites.
13. The services provided by the App do not meet SHOPLINE's inclusion criteria.
14. Other causes that violate the specifications or SHOPLINE terms.

2.5 Activated App Review / Resubmission / Decline

1. If the App does not make any calls to the SHOPLINE APIs within the 90-day monitoring period, we will determine that the App has entered an inactive state and will no longer be regularly updated and maintained. Accordingly, in order to ensure user experience and App security, we will remove the App from the SHOPLINE App Store.
2. Any significant modifications to information will require a resubmission, though your App has been Approved for publication. The review outcomes of the resubmitted version will not affect the availability or usability of the already activated version.
3. You may face a temporary delisting of your App if it fails to pass a secondary inspection, necessitating a resubmission of the revised version for review.
4. If you try to adopt a server-side manipulation strategy to temporarily disable specific illegal modules to pass the review and then resume it, in order to implement fraud, once it is detected by the SHOPLINE review team, the SHOPLINE review team will take immediate action to remove the App from the SHOPLINE App Store and freeze the relevant developer account. In this case, SHOPLINE will not re-review any form of App submitted from the freezed account.
5. After a second inspection or upon third-party reports, if SHOPLINE team founds that the developer's App contains acts of cracking, piracy, unauthorized use of copyrighted materials, or repackaging third-party Apps, SHOPLINE team will take down the App from the App Store immediately.
6. After a second inspection or upon third-party reports, if SHOPLINE team founds that the developer's App engages in unfair competition practices, such as falsifying or deceiving downloads by improper means, manipulating open platform comments, installing trojans, malicious plugins, or spreading viruses, SHOPLINE team will take take down the App from the App Store and freeze your developer account.

3. App Basic Information

3.1 OAuth2.0 Identity Verification

3.2 App Authorization

3.3 App Name

1. The App name cannot contain any trademarks or trade names that include the elements 'SHOPLINE,' or any similar variants or spelling errors that may easily confuse with SHOPLINE's trademark.
2. The App name must not exceed 40 characters and must not contain special symbols such as @#￥%……&*; the name must be related to the App's functionality.
3. The App name must not contain politically sensitive, pornographic, violent, or terrorist content, or any other illegal content prohibited by national laws and regulations; unauthorized use of the third-party trademarks, brand logos, or similar content is prohibited.
4. The App name must not duplicate or cause confusion with the names of other existing Apps on the platform. Additionally, it should not employ any meaningless terms, categorical suffixes, letters, symbols, or any other means to bypass or circumvent the platform's rules and regulations.
5. The App name and icon must be consistent with the name and icon after installation.
6. The App name must not use language that implies profit, exaggerates promotion, inflated marketing, or tactics that could mislead merchants/merchant users, which violates the Applicable laws and regulations.
7. The modification of the App name requires review, and under non-special circumstances, only up to 3 changes are supported within 1 year.

3.4 App Icon

1. The icon must be a 120x120px .JPG, .JPEG, or .PNG image and cannot exceed 2M.
2. The icon must be consistent with the actual App functionality.
3. The icon must be clear and visible, without compression, stretching, blurring, incomplete display, or inability to accurately present the actual content.
4. The icon must be uploaded with right angles. No display anomalies, damage, other watermark information, etc., are allowed.
5. The icon must not be highly similar or identical to the icons of Apps already listed, or use corner labels that are consistent with the content or form of listed icons, such as 'Official Version' or 'Genuine Version'.
6. The icon must not contain suggestive, sensitive, or vulgar content, and should not infringe upon the copyright or portrait rights of others.
7. The modification of the App icon requires review, and under non-special circumstances, only up to 3 changes are supported within 1 year.
8. Unauthorized use of official logos or logos involving other artists' images or well-known IPs is prohibited.

3.5 App Screenshots & Videos

1. App screenshots support .JPG, .JPEG, and .PNG images with a resolution of 1920x1080, and each image cannot exceed 5M.
2. Up to 9 images can be uploaded for App screenshots, and they must be in horizontal or vertical format. App screenshots should not be duplicated, blurred, stretched, compressed, incomplete, or inability to present the actual content.
3. App videos support YouTube video links and cannot exceed 3 minutes.
4. The content of the App screenshots, videos, and cover images must be consistent with the App functionality or introduction and cannot contain too many irrelevant elements.
5. It cannot contain icons, watermarks, text, etc. from other App Store.
6. It cannot contain infringement, plagiarism, or other behaviors (infringing trademarks, copyrights, or intellectual property rights, etc.). Unauthorized use of screenshots involving the artist’s image or well-known IPs is prohibited.
7. App screenshots and videos must not contain language that implies profit, exaggerates promotion, inflated marketing, or tactics that could mislead merchants/merchant users, which violates the Applicable laws and regulations.
8. It cannot contain suggestive, sensitive, or vulgar content.

3.6 App Introduction

1. The product feature description must be consistent with the actual functionality of the App. Company/personal information must match your own identity. If there is a discrepancy, SHOPLINE reserves the right to reject submission or require you to provide a clear explanation regarding the authorization relationship or provide authorization content documents with official seals or personal signatures.
2. The product feature titles, descriptions, and related content must not use indistinguishable languages.
3. The introduction should not contain content that could lead to infringement, plagiarism, piracy, or opportunistic actions that compromise trademarks, copyrights, or related rights.
4. The introduction should not contain content that could lead to unfair competition.
5. The introduction should not contain content that is suggestive, sensitive, vulgar, or otherwise non-compliant.
6. The introduction should not contain any trademarks or trade names that include the elements 'SHOPLINE,' or other brand names of independent e-commerce platforms.
7. The introduction should not contain information unrelated to the App, including but not limited to, the names or information of other popular Apps, functions that the App does not have, expiring events, or any other irrelevant descriptions.
8. The introduction should not contain social media accounts or other contact information, except for product descriptions and updated descriptions that require customer service contact information.
9. The introduction should not contain content that implies profit, exaggerates promotion, inflated marketing, or tactics that could mislead merchants/merchant users, which violates Applicable laws and regulations. Restrictive expressions such as 'Official', 'Genuine' are strictly prohibited.
10. The introduction should not contain names, introductions, quotations, icons, watermarks, or any other content related to the third-party App Store.
11. Avoid the use of excessive placeholder text, irrelevant characters, or any form of redundant phrasing.

3.7 Multi-language

1. SHOPLINE Admin supports 7 languages: Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, English, Malay, Thai, Vietnamese, and Japanese, providing tailored App detail pages based on the merchant's language environment at the time of accessing the App Store. For example, if the merchant is browsing in English, and the developer has configured an English version of the App details, the merchant will encounter the English introduction when visiting the App detail page.
2. You can set any language as the default. If the merchant's language is not included in the App language list, the App Store will default to the language chosen by your settings.

3.8 Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

1. Accuracy and Relevance: The content of the FAQ must be closely aligned with the functionality and services offered by the App. Ensure that the FAQ addresses users inquiries related to the App functionality, usage instructions, privacy policies, etc.
2. Format and Clarity: The format of the FAQ should be clear and easy to understand. Avoid using overly technical language to ensure that common users can easily comprehend the instructions.
3. Updating and Maintenance: Regularly update the FAQ content to reflect the latest features of the App and the issues users may encounter.

3.9 Customer Service

1. The App must provide an email address so that merchants can contact you if they need help with setting up or using your App.
2. Support contact information and content should be easily accessible and include clear instructions on how the App integrates with SHOPLINE.

3.10 Basic Information Modification

4. App Functions

4.1 User Interface

4.2 Login and Registration

4.3 Functional Requirements

1. The App's features must be fully implemented and operational without any incomplete functions. This includes ensuring that the App is not a test phase or comprised of informal versions where functionality modules are either underdeveloped or incapable of independent operation.
2. The App must not have issues that prevent it from functioning properly, such as failure to start up, crashing, unresponsiveness, or lack of network connectivity.

5. Law, Security and Compliance

5.1 Data Storage

1. Depending on the purpose of the App, it may be necessary to manage and store data related to merchants or their users. To protect user data and the privacy of merchants/merchant users, you must ensure that their Apps comply with the applicable data protection laws of the country where the App is distributed, including but not limited to the Personal Information Protection Law of the People's Republic of China, the Personal Data (Privacy) Ordinance' of Hong Kong, the General Data Protection Regulation of the European Union, the Personal Data Protection Act of Singapore, and any other applicable laws and regulations. Data collection from merchants/merchant users is only allowed in necessary scope with their explicit authorization, and data should be used within the scope of authorization. It is prohibited to sell, transfer, trade, disclose, or leak data that exceeds authorization. Data should not be provided to third parties.
2. If the App collects, stores, processes, or shares personal data, you are responsible for ensuring that it complies with privacy regulations and adheres to the principles of data collection and storage, including data minimization, data transparency, data consistency, etc.
3. You must include a link to the privacy policy in the App listing to convey how the App uses data and provide transparency. This privacy policy must be consistent with the merchant's download-end privacy policy and accurately reflect how the App handles personal information of merchants/merchant users during operation.
4. Regardless of the location of a merchant's users, SHOPLINE enforces GDPR regulations for all user data. Therefore, it is necessary to ensure that any App distributed through the SHOPLINE App Store complies with GDPR requirements, regardless of whether your App currently collects personal data.
5. SHOPLINE provides a mandatory Webhook to help you manage user data. If you do not provide the mandatory Webhook URL or if the App does not respond to these Webhooks as required, the App will be rejected. You must first resolve the identified issues and then resubmit the App for re-review.

5.2 Privacy Policy

1. You must handle merchants/merchant users' data with care and ensure that their Apps comply with the applicable privacy laws of the country where the App is distributed, including but not limited to the Personal Information Protection Law of the People's Republic of China, the Personal Data (Privacy) Ordinance of Hong Kong, the General Data Protection Regulation of the European Union, the Personal Data Protection Act of Singapore, and any other pertinent laws and regulations.
2. When handling the privacy of merchants'/merchant users, you must have a clear and reasonable purpose, informing the merchants and ensuring they obtain explicit and sufficient consent from users. It is strictly prohibited for you to collect user privacy data beyond the scope of this consent in any form, nor can you employ coercive measures that violate proportionality principles, such as compelling their connections.
3. You must handle sensitive data with even greater caution. Although user-sensitive data may differ between your App distribution countries, when dealing with general sensitive personal information such as personal biometric data, geographical location tracking, financial data, etc., you need to obtain or request the merchants to obtain explicit and separate consent from the users and must not use the above sensitive data for any promotional, marketing, smart analysis, or business improvement purposes unrelated to the main category of the development App.
4. Privacy Policy Guidelines and Standards: A privacy policy refers to the rules and statements regarding the collection, use, process, and safeguarding of user personal information on websites, Apps, or other online services. To ensure compliance with privacy regulations and to enhance users' faith in the way their data is handled, you must clearly display and link to a detailed privacy policy in the SHOPLINE App Store listing. This policy will outline the rules for using merchants' and users' data, ensuring transparency and adherence to regulatory frameworks.

To this end, we recommend that your App's privacy policy clearly includes the following key information:

1. What information may your App collect through SHOPLINE's APIs?
2. What information (including but not limited to contact information and customer information) will your App collect from merchants?
3. What information will your App collect from merchant's customers, such as the placement of cookies or the use of other tracking technologies on their devices?
4. How will you use the collected information? Besides providing App services, will you use this information for any other purposes?
5. How long will you store or retain the collected data?
6. Do you have a company established in Europe? Do you store or process information outside of Europe?
7. How can merchants contact you if they have other questions?

5.3 App Security and Intellectual Property

1. You must ensure the security of your Apps, ensuring that the Apps do not engage in malicious activities that disrupt the SHOPLINE SaaS platform, open platform ecosystem, or other systems. There must be no theft, extortion, or ransom-related activities that target merchants' or merchant users' financial accounts or other related financial crimes through the Internet. Additionally, there must be no phishing fraud attempts disguised as other Apps already activated in the SHOPLINE App Store.
2. You must ensure that the Apps do not infringe on any intellectual property rights in any form. This includes not infringing on trademarks, copyrights, patents, trade secrets, and other proprietary rights or other rights and interests. In the event of any intellectual property infringement complaints, we will handle them in accordance with our platform's handling rules and procedures. Please refer to:
   • SHOPLINE Intellectual Property Infringement Complaint Announcement
   • SHOPLINE Intellectual Property Rules

6. Advertisements

• Prohibited Popup Ads that Cannot Be Closed
  1. Apps that display ads in the user interaction interface must provide a clear and prominent option for users to close or exit the popup. It is not allowed to provide false, invalid, or indistinct close options.
• Prohibited Deceptive and Misleading Forced Click Redirects
  1. Ads in the App information window page that contains deceptive and misleading text, images, or video links are not allowed. For instance, advertisements must not impersonate other Apps' interfaces or system notifications—such as login prompts or alerts—that mislead users into clicking. You must clearly inform users about the App associated with each advertisement placement.
• Other Prohibited Inappropriate Advertising Behavior
  1. Ads related to the App must not damage or interfere with the normal operation of other Apps, ads, and stores.
  2. Ads must not contain malicious links that may cause harm, such as interface hijacking, installing malicious Apps, and personal information leakage.
  3. Ads must clearly indicate their advertising nature and should distinguish itself from non-advertising information to avoid user confusion.
  4. Ads must not contain false or misleading content and must not deceive, mislead, or induce users.
  5. Ads in the App information window page redirect or utilize third-party services without clearly indicating or obtaining the user's explicit and prior consent.
  6. Apps that provide Internet information services or products to users in deceptive, misleading, or coercive methods.
  7. Frequent pop-up advertisements that interfere with users' normal use.
  8. In-App activities automatically trigger downloads or bundled downloads without obtaining permission or consent.
  9. Force users to download other Apps through ads as a condition to use.

Appendix: Requirements For Special Category Apps

Prohibited Apps for Display in SHOPLINE App Store

• Apps that Require Downloading Independent Software for Local Computer Use: The public method of the SHOPLINE App Store is through web channels.
• Apps that Rarely or Do Not Use SHOPLINE's APIs: Apps submitted to the SHOPLINE App Store must effectively utilize the SHOPLINE API to function properly.
• Apps that Process Payments Outside the SHOPLINE Payment Range: SHOPLINE cannot guarantee the security of transactions outside the SHOPLINE Payment range.
• Multiple Apps with Duplicate Functions Under the Same Developer Account: If you list multiple Apps on the SHOPLINE App Store, each App must have significantly different functions from the developer's other Apps.
• Apps that Provide Loans: These types of services are challenging for SHOPLINE to monitor continuously and effectively. To avoid merchants from being harmed by unsound and illegal loan agreements and to protect merchants from unexpected risks, SHOPLINE prohibits the existence of such Apps.
• Embedded Apps that Do Not Use OAuth2.0 Authentication: Embedded Apps submitted to the SHOPLINE App Store must use OAuth2.0 authentication for identity verification. This authentication method will help protect the security of merchant accounts and data and improve the merchant experience.

Subscription-Based Apps

• Subscription Package Information Review
  1. Clarity of Package Content: The App must clearly list the specific content, service duration, and pricing of the subscription packages.
  2. Reasonableness of Pricing: Assess whether the subscription price is reasonable and whether there is any price fraud or overpricing.
• Subscription Process Review
  1. Subscription Notices: The App must provide adequate notices prior to the user subscription, including key information such as fees, billing cycle, and auto-renewal details.
  2. Subscription Cancellation Policy: The App should provide clear and straightforward instructions for canceling subscriptions, allowing users to unsubscribe as guided.
  3. Refund Policy: The App needs to clarify the refund policy explicitly, including conditions, processes, and time frame.
• Service Quality Review
  1. Service Consistency: The actual provision of subscription services should be consistent with the listed specific content.
  2. Service Stability: Ensure that the App provides stable services during the subscription period without unwarranted interruptions.
  3. Service Support: The App's Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) section must explicitly mention post-sales support related to subscription services, such as online customer service, email, or phone, and ensure that 7x24-hour service support is provided.

Utility Apps

• Your App's widgets must display correctly in the theme editor and online store without any loading errors.
• If your App adds visual components to the merchant's storefront, you must allow merchants to preview and edit changes before saving and publishing.

Sales Channel Apps

• App Review: Sales channels are a type of App, but it cannot be created directly. You need to pass the basic information review and publish the App first, and then Apply separately to convert it into a sales channel.
• Target Platform: Sales channels must introduce a target platform. For example, products must be published to platforms such as Amazon, eBay, or the merchant's own mobile App, and ultimately, customer must complete the product purchase on these platforms.
• Account Association: You need to obtain the merchant's authorization before associating the merchant's account information with the third-party channel.
• Product Publication: You must synchronize products to the third-party channel and complete the product publication on the third-party channel.
• Payment and Order Management: You need to generate orders for merchants on the third-party channel, complete the payment, and synchronize the order information to the SHOPLINE merchant management backend.

Dropshipping Apps

• The platforms linked by your App must not sell high-risk products. It is prohibited to sell products that violate local laws and regulations, such as those that may involve marijuana, alcohol, pharmaceuticals, weapons, and items that are prohibited for sale. This restriction should include all such products. Please refer to our prohibition and restriction rules for details: SHOPLINE Prohibited and Restricted Sales Items Rules

Payment Apps

• Settle transactions within 5 days.
• Redirect customers back to SHOPLINE.
• Process payments based on parameters specified by SHOPLINE.
• Payment partners must provide merchants with transparent and easy-to-understand explanations of the fee items.
• Payment partners cannot refer to any fees, expenses, or other costs as SHOPLINE fees on the invoices issued to merchants.
• Payment partners must allow merchants to terminate their merchant agreement within a 7-day notice period without any penalties, fines, or other consequences from the payment service provider.
• The App must legally and securely collect customers' payment information and comply with Applicable laws and any PCI requirements or market regulations, including securely storing customers' data.
• Use any SHOPLINE API other than the OpenAPI or GDPR Webhook allowed for the payment App.
• Store payment credentials for unauthorized projects. Payment partners can only use payment-related data for transactions or services approved by SHOPLINE.
• Without SHOPLINE's approval, it is prohibited to redistribute, share, transfer, or sell any API, SDK, or any functionality used in the payment App.
• The name of the payment App cannot contain marketing elements: for example, it is not allowed to use names like 'World's Best Payment Service Provider' or 'Get Access to the Top 100 Payment Methods in the World'.

Financial Apps

You may be required to present licenses or documentation to verify their capability to offer personal loans, and these proof files must be linked to your account. We may request additional information or documents to confirm that your account meets all local legal and regulatory requirements.

AIGC Apps

1. You must ensure that the AI-related App meets the qualifications required by the laws of the country where the App is distributed, or complete the registration requirements if necessary. A safety assessment report may be required under certain circumstances.
2. You must ensure the safety of merchants and align with SHOPLINE's policy scope, if an App uses AI to generate content, it must comply with SHOPLINE's existing developer policies. This includes prohibiting and preventing the generation of restricted content, such as content that facilitates deceptive behavior.
3. If an App uses AI to generate content, it must include a merchant reporting or flagging feature within the App, allowing merchants to report or flag offensive content without exiting the App. You should use merchant reporting information as a basis for improving the App's content filtering and management mechanisms.

For the purposes of this standard, AI-generated content refers to content generated by a generative AI model based on user prompts. Examples of AI-generated content include:

1. Generative AI chatbots that support text-to-text dialogue, with the core functionality being to interact with the chatbot.
2. Images generated by AI based on text, image, or voice prompts.