If you plan to release a book on Apple Books between 23 November and 4 January, Apple wants the book delivered two to three weeks before release day. If it arrives late, it may not be there on the day you planned.

This week, find your release date in Apple’s list below and write the matching delivery date on your calendar, with a reminder a week before it.

What Apple says

Apple Books Partner Support posted Holiday season delivery schedule on 14 October 2026 (checked 21 October 2026). It opens: “If you plan on releasing a book on Apple Books between November 23, 2026, and January 4, 2027, remember to check the following delivery deadlines.”

  • Release 23 November: deliver by 9 November.
  • Release 30 November or 7 December: deliver by 16 November.
  • Release 14 December: deliver by 30 November.
  • Release 21 December: deliver by 7 December.
  • Release 28 December or 4 January 2027: deliver by 14 December.

Apple’s page writes dates the American way, month first, so 11/09/2026 means 9 November.

The same page adds three points worth reading slowly.

  • Late is a risk, not a refusal. “Books delivered after these deadlines may not be available on the desired release date.”
  • It is not only new books. Apple asks you to “submit any important content, pricing changes, or clearance changes by the respective deadlines.” A new file, a new cover or a holiday price all count.
  • A quiet week. Apple says it does “not recommend making changes between December 21 and December 28, 2026.” That is advice, not a ban, but it is good advice to take.

Before you start

Apple’s dates are for the book reaching Apple. If you send your ebook to Apple through a distributor such as Draft2Digital, the file has to reach the distributor first, so check their timing too and leave extra days.

If your ebook is in KDP Select, it is not on Apple Books right now. KDP’s page How to enroll in KDP Select (checked 21 October 2026) says the ebook “must also be exclusive to the Kindle Store” for the 90-day enrollment period.

Five steps for this week

  1. Find your row. Match your Apple Books release date to the list above. If your date falls between two rows, Apple’s page does not say which deadline applies, so use the earlier delivery date.
  2. Write the delivery date down. Put it on the calendar you actually look at, and add a reminder one week before it.
  3. Finish everything first. Final manuscript, cover and description should be ready before that reminder, not on the deadline itself.
  4. Make price changes early. If you want a holiday price, submit it by the deadline that matches the date you want it to show.
  5. Leave the book alone from 21 to 28 December. If you spot a typo that week, write it down and fix it afterwards.

Save Apple’s page and your delivery confirmation in your rights folder, so the dates are easy to find next year.

A small example

This one is made up. Helen has a Christmas novella on Apple Books with a release date of 14 December. Her row says deliver by 30 November, so she writes that on the kitchen calendar with a reminder on 23 November. Her files are done on 20 November and she delivers them that week. She wants a lower price for Christmas, so she sets it in November too. On 22 December she notices a small typo. She writes it on a sticky note and fixes it on 29 December.

For a holiday release on Apple Books, the date that matters is the delivery date, so put that one on your calendar first.