The APNSToken is not available for Firebase messaging on iOS 13 or older.

[Tiny-nx]

I am currently working on a Flutter project that includes the firebase_messaging package version ^14.7.20 and firebase_core package version ^2.27.1. According to the official Firebase documentation, push messages can be received successfully on Android without any issues. However, there seems to be a problem with iOS versions 13 or above as they are unable to retrieve the APNSToken and consequently cannot receive push messages.

[sumit-2007-git]

In firebase_messaging on iOS, getAPNSToken() returning null or failing to receive tokens typically happens for the following reasons:

1. Physical Device Required

iOS simulators do not support APNS tokens unless you are running on macOS 13+ with iOS 16+ simulator and full Apple Developer signing. If testing on older iOS versions (iOS 13-15), a physical iOS device is required.

2. Request Notification Permissions First

On iOS, the APNs token will not be generated until notification permissions have been requested and granted:

FirebaseMessaging messaging = FirebaseMessaging.instance;

NotificationSettings settings = await messaging.requestPermission(
  alert: true,
  badge: true,
  sound: true,
);

if (settings.authorizationStatus == AuthorizationStatus.authorized) {
  // Wait briefly for APNS registration callback
  String? apnsToken = await messaging.getAPNSToken();
  print('APNS Token: $apnsToken');
  
  String? fcmToken = await messaging.getToken();
  print('FCM Token: $fcmToken');
}

3. Xcode Capabilities Checklist

Open ios/Runner.xcworkspace in Xcode:

1. Under Signing & Capabilities:
   • Add Push Notifications.
   • Add Background Modes and check Remote notifications and Background fetch.
2. Verify your Apple Developer account has an Apple Push Notification Authentication Key (.p8) uploaded to the Firebase Console under Project Settings -> Cloud Messaging -> Apple app configuration.

4. Retry loop for APNS token

On initial startup, APNS token generation is asynchronous:

// Poll with a brief timeout if token is null immediately after requestPermission
String? apnsToken;
for (int i = 0; i < 5; i++) {
  apnsToken = await FirebaseMessaging.instance.getAPNSToken();
  if (apnsToken != null) break;
  await Future.delayed(const Duration(seconds: 1));
}