T-Mobile is expanding its Device Connection Charge (DCC) to include purchases made through Apple starting March 27, 2026. This move eliminates one of the last remaining exemptions to a fee that has become increasingly unpopular with customers across the carrier’s network.

According to The Mobile Report, the $35 fee will now apply to all Apple device purchases, whether customers buy in-store, online, or through the Apple Store app. The charge will appear on customers’ next month’s bill rather than at the point of purchase, since Apple’s system doesn’t allow carriers to add fees directly during checkout. This means iPhone buyers who complete purchases before March 27 can still avoid the fee, but anyone activating after that date will see the charge added to their April statement.

The change narrows the list of DCC-exempt channels significantly. Moving forward, only Samsung, Sam’s Club, and Costco purchases will remain free from the $35 activation fee. For customers who want to avoid the charge when buying through Apple, the only option is to purchase the device without connecting it to T-Mobile at that moment, though doing so means forfeiting promotional discounts that typically subsidize the phone’s cost.

The DCC has been a point of contention since its 2022 rebranding from the “Assisted Support Charge.” T-Mobile originally justified the fee by citing the personal assistance provided during in-store activations, but expanded it to online purchases and other channels in subsequent years. The carrier argues the fee reflects the cost of connecting devices to its network regardless of purchase channel, yet most customers view it as an unnecessary fee designed to increase revenue.

This latest expansion represents another step away from T-Mobile’s “Un-carrier” positioning, which the company built its brand on by removing customer-unfriendly fees and practices that plagued the wireless industry.

Source: The Mobile Report