T-Mobile closes popular $35 fee loophole when purchasing through Apple

When T-Mobile customers upgrade their smartphone or add a new line, they're typically hit with a $35 Device Connection Charge (DCC).

However, there are a few loopholes. If the device a customer was buying was an iPhone, a popular loophole was simply to purchase the smartphone through Apple. This would avoid the $35 DCC fee at T-Mobile.

Until now.

According to a document shared with The Mobile Report, T-Mobile has now closed this loophole. As of March 27, T-Mobile has begun charging the $35 fee directly to customers' phone bills, removing the loophole.

The T-Mobile fee has existed since 2022; however, many iPhone users found they could avoid the $35 charge by purchasing either in-store or online with Apple. The loophole existed because Apple lacked a mechanism to charge users T-Mobile's specific fee in its system. Now, T-Mobile has decided to charge the fee directly to customers by adding it to their bill for the following month's service.

T-Mobile users who insist on avoiding the $35 DCC fee still have at least one loophole intact, though. As a paid membership perk, Costco and Sam’s Club still waive the $35 fee for purchases made through their stores. However, there is one catch. An iPhone purchased through Costco or Sam’s Club will be locked to T-Mobile and not an unlocked version that can be used with any carrier.

With Apple looking to unveil the new iPhone 18 lineup and the rumored foldable iPhone by the end of the year, perhaps T-Mobile realized that many customers may plan to upgrade, which could result in a significant sum in DCC fees.