> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://www.dropfans.io/developers/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Apps & approval

> Personal keys work immediately; apps that connect other people’s creator accounts need a one-time approval.

- Source: https://www.dropfans.io/developers/concepts/apps-and-approval
- Section: Concepts
- OpenAPI: https://www.dropfans.io/developers/openapi.json

## Two ways in

- **Personal keys need no approval.** A creator (or you, on your own test account) can generate one right now and script against the full API at the personal rate tier.
- **Apps** are for software other people’s creators connect to. You apply once; after approval your app appears in the key picker every creator sees, and keys generated for it run at the higher app tier.

## Applying

Apply at [/developers/apply](https://www.dropfans.io/developers/apply) — you need to be logged in to a Dropfans account. The form asks what the app does, which parts of the API it uses, how many creators you expect, and how you store creator keys. You can have at most 3 applications under review and 10 apps in total.

What we review: that the use case is a real product, that keys are stored responsibly (encrypted, server-side), that the website checks out, and that the capabilities you ticked match the story. Capability choices are for review only — **keys are not scoped**; an approved app’s key still grants the full surface.

## Statuses

| Status | Shown as | What it means for requests |
| --- | --- | --- |
| `PENDING` | Under review | No keys can be generated for the app yet. Personal keys keep working. |
| `APPROVED` | Approved | The app is in every creator’s key picker; keys generated for it work at the app tier. |
| `REJECTED` | Not approved | No keys can be generated. The decision email and your [status page](https://www.dropfans.io/developers/apply) say why; you can reapply after fixing the issue. |
| `SUSPENDED` | Suspended | Every request with a key bound to the app returns `403 { "error": …, "code": "app_suspended" }`. Keys are not deleted — they resume unchanged if the app is reinstated. |

## What approval unlocks

- A listing in the key picker under Vault → API Connect, with your name, logo and description — plus a connect link you can send creators: `https://www.dropfans.io/dashboard/vault?apiConnect=1&app=<your-slug>`.
- The app rate tier: 300 requests/minute and 50,000/day **per key**, instead of the shared personal budget. Higher per-app overrides are available on request.

## Decisions

Every decision — approved, rejected, suspended, reinstated — is emailed to the contact address on the application, and your current status always shows at [/developers/apply](https://www.dropfans.io/developers/apply).

Next: [Rate limits](https://www.dropfans.io/developers/concepts/rate-limits.md) or [Connect a creator to your app](https://www.dropfans.io/developers/get-started/connect-a-creator.md).

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