Katarzyna Petru
The first beta of iOS 26.3 reveals details of a new mechanism designed to prepare the iPhone for upcoming European Union regulations. This concerns the obligation to allow notifications to be sent to third-party devices – one of the more controversial provisions of the Digital Markets Act (DMA).
Apple has long criticized this requirement, pointing to potential threats to user privacy and security. The company argues that notifications can contain extremely sensitive data – the content of messages, emails, medical alerts, or other information that not even Apple applications currently have access to. Nevertheless, the company has been preparing its system to comply with the new rules for several months.
New Notification Forwarding Interface
In iOS 26.3, Apple added a new section Notification Forwarding in the system settings (Settings > Notifications). It is there that users will be able to specify a third-party device to which notifications from their iPhone should be forwarded.
This feature is based on a new public framework AccessoryNotifications, which has not yet been documented – Apple has not provided an official SDK for iOS 26.3. However, it can be assumed that accessory manufacturers will soon receive the tools needed to integrate with this mechanism. Once notification forwarding is enabled, users will be able – just like with the Apple Watch – to decide which apps can send their alerts to the external device.
Only one accessory at a time
The main limitation of the current implementation concerns the number of devices supported. Notification Forwarding works exclusively with one accessory at a time. Apple explicitly states that once this feature is enabled, notifications will no longer appear on the Apple Watch. This is a significant compromise – on one hand, it allows the company to meet EU requirements, while on the other, it limits access to sensitive data and minimizes the risk of further dissemination.
Data Scope Notice and Compliance with DMA
During setup, the system displays to the user information that the conveyed notifications include the application name and the entire content of the alert. However, Apple avoids presenting this feature as a threat to privacy or security, even though it has repeatedly raised this argument in discussions with regulators.
The new interface in iOS 26.3 shows that Apple intends to implement EU requirements in the most controlled manner possible – with clear limitations, strong user control, and without automatically sharing data with multiple devices simultaneously. This is another example of the "minimal compliance" strategy, where the company formally adheres to the provisions of the DMA while retaining as much influence as possible over how new features operate within the iOS ecosystem.
How this implementation will perform in practice – and how much accessory manufacturers will benefit from it – will only be seen after the final release of iOS 26.3 and the publication of official development tools.
