Android developers need to review three major Google Play requirements. App updates containing native code must support 16 KB memory page sizes, new apps and updates must target Android 16 (API level 36) by August 31, 2026, and apps using Google Play Billing Library 7 must migrate to a supported version before its submission deadline. Apps that do not support 16 KB page sizes are not automatically removed solely for this reason, but non-compliant updates may be blocked.

Google says that after the extension deadline, app updates must be compatible with 16 KB page sizes. It does not state that existing apps are automatically removed solely because of this requirement.
If your last Play Console upload triggered a warning about "16 KB page sizes," "target API level," or "Billing Library," you're not looking at a future problem. Part of it already happened.

Here's what's actually going on, broken into three separate deadlines that Google has bundled together in developer messaging—which is exactly why most teams misread them.

16 KB Page Size Support — Deadline Already Passed

Starting November 1, 2025, new apps and updates to existing apps submitted to Google Play and targeting Android 15 or higher were required to support 16 KB memory page sizes.

Eligible developers could request an extension until May 31, 2026. After the applicable deadline, app updates must be compatible with 16 KB memory page sizes.

This does not mean that an existing app will automatically be removed from Google Play solely because it does not support 16 KB page sizes. However, the developer may be unable to publish further updates until the app becomes compliant.

Google’s documentation says that the November 1, 2025 requirement applied to both new apps and updates to existing apps targeting Android 15 or higher. The May 31, 2026 date was an extension deadline.

This one catches teams off guard because it's not a code change you make—it's a rebuild.

If your app ships any native library, including:

• A React Native native module

• A Flutter plugin with native bindings

• An old NDK dependency

• A third-party SDK that hasn't been updated

...that library has to be recompiled with 16 KB alignment.

You can't patch your way around it.

If a vendor SDK you depend on hasn't shipped a 16 KB-compatible build, your app is stuck until they do—or until you replace it.

If you haven't specifically tested your app on a 16 KB page size emulator image, don't assume you're fine because your last build went through.

Google's rollout has been staged, and the warnings get stricter as more devices ship with 16 KB pages as the default.

Official Google documentation: developer.android.com/guide/practices/page-sizes

Target API Level 36 — Deadline: August 31, 2026

This is Google's standard annual requirement:

New apps and updates must target Android 16 (API level 36) by August 31, 2026.

This one is more familiar territory—most teams have been through a target SDK bump before.

The risk is assuming it's "just a version number change."

Raising targetSdkVersion changes default behavior around:

• Permissions

• Background execution

• Notification handling

• Storage access

Apps that haven't updated their target SDK in two or three years often discover multiple features silently break during this bump—not after release, but during internal testing (assuming they're testing properly).

Official Google documentation: support.google.com/googleplay/android-developer/answer/11926878

Google Play Billing Library 7 — Deprecated August 31, 2026

If your app sells subscriptions or in-app purchases, check which Google Play Billing Library version it currently uses.

The standard submission deadline for Billing Library 6 was August 31, 2025. The standard deadline for submitting new apps and updates using Billing Library 7 is August 31, 2026. Developers using Billing Library 7 may be eligible for an extension until November 1, 2026.

Apps still using Billing Library 6 should be migrated immediately. Apps using Billing Library 7 should be migrated to a currently supported version before the applicable deadline.

Google’s official table lists August 31, 2025 for Billing Library 6 and August 31, 2026 for Billing Library 7.

Migrating isn't a drop-in dependency bump.

Between major versions, changes affect:

• Purchase flows

• Purchase acknowledgment logic