Apple has made a major change to how the App Store works, finally giving users the ability to migrate purchases between Apple Accounts.

Until now, users who purchased apps via the App Store could not transfer them to another account, leading to doubled-up purchases in many cases. This was especially true in cases where individuals created a new Apple account and wanted to move their purchases to the new one. Apple has finally addressed the issue, as outlined in a new support article.

You can choose to migrate apps, music, and other content you’ve purchased from Apple on a secondary Apple Account to a primary Apple Account. The secondary Apple Account might be an account that’s used only for purchases. You’ll need access to the primary email address or phone number and password for both accounts, and neither account should be shared with anyone else. Learn more about how to migrate purchases.

• At the time of migration, the Apple Account signed in for use with iCloud and most features on your iPhone or iPad will be referred to as the primary Apple Account.
• At the time of migration, the Apple Account signed in just for use with Media & Purchases will be referred to as the secondary Apple Account.

When the transfer occurs, payment methods from the secondary account migrate to the new account. All “apps, music, movies, TV shows, and books” also migrate to the primary account, as do any active subscriptions.

This feature is long overdue and a welcome improvement for many users.