I already have an Apple ID with my GT Bank debit card attached and it works quite alright but just of recent, I realized a lot of things in Apps Store are unavailable for Nigerian residents. Googling out an application and seeing in it on Google search result page but getting to Apps Store to be told it’s unavailable in your country can be pretty annoying. I had to create another US account. There are basically three benefits of having a US Apple ID:
1. You get more free Apps to download as some contents are restricted to US residents only
2. You can open an account without attaching a credit or debit card
3. You get more payment options. For example, in Nigeria, you don’t get the Paypal payment option and I prefer using my Paypal account for my App Store purchases.
For an exisiting Apps Store account
1. Start iTunes then click on Store > View my account. You may be required to enter your password, go ahead and do that.
2. Click on Change country or region and select United States on the next page
3. Accept the boring terms of agreement and proceed.
4. You should see a lot more options and more tabs should appear at the top right after that.
4. If you already have a debit or credit card attached to your existing account, you must select a valid payment method. Selecting Paypal prompts you to login to your Paypal account but if your funding source isn’t from the United States, you may not be able to use your Paypal account.
I think the best alternative is to sign out of Apps Store, create a new Apple ID and select NO PAYMENT METHOD, that’s what I did.
For new users
1. Search for a free application, you my try Opera Mini, Instagram, Google Chrome, Skype or any other free app you know.
2. Click on the download link and you should be prompted to log in to your account. Select Create Apple ID
3. Accept the terms and condition, fill in your details and be sure United States is selected as your region even if you’re not from the US. This is the only way you can have an Apple ID with no payment method attached.
4. On the Billing information page, select NONE as your mode of payment. You can choose a US address from yellow pages to complete the process.
If you previously selected a different region, you may not see as much payment options and there probably won’t b an option to select NONE. That’s all you need to do, now you can download all the free applications in Apps Store without having a valid credit card attached to your account. Besides, you can now have access to contents restricted to US citizens only.