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Why can‘t I get parts for my iPad in Europe

I needed a new battery for my iPad 12,9“ 5th gen. It was not available in the EU store. Same goes for display and display adhesive strips. So I bought my stuff from some third party supplier. Only after I forced my browser to look on the US site I found out that these parts are well available on the US market.

Has ifixit now changed their policy from „right to repair“ to „right to protect market“? What is the sense of selling only into part of the world?

Answered! View the answer I have this problem too

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This question was migrated from https://www.ifixit.com/Answers.

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@udolupp this was moved to Meta since you are more likely on here to get an answer for the reasons why. I wonder if this is a Customs, Taxes, shipping issue.

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Dear Sandra, thank you for the answer wich sounds totally not logic for me: I get a lot of parts for other iPads in the EU store but especially for the type I try to repair: nothing! There must be other reasons, maybe Apple phases out repairability in general

Nonetheless, my repair is ongoing and if you want a comment on the design: the engineer(s) who designed the iPad pro 5th gen should be sent to the moon. The most probable part to break - apart from the display - are the batteries, and you have to literally empty the whole body, just to get this bl..dy flatcable out that runs underneath the mainboard! Shame on Apple‘s repairability

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@udolupp I know—the design is brutal. I had an iPad for years and replaced the display three times; each swap was a total ordeal, and I never managed to get the screen perfectly flush with the bezel—but I learned to live with it. Now I’m on a Samsung Galaxy Tab, and so far it hasn’t needed any repairs (fingers crossed 🤞). Next time, we'd better check these repairability scores before we buy:

https://de.ifixit.com/reparierbarkeit/ta...

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Plus the repair shop we used to have here at our local apple dealer was closed down due to „too few repairs“ - I wonder where all the non-breaking iPads have gone. I really think of getting rid of all the Apple stuff just because of their continuous negligence of repairability.

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I hear your frustration—this is a real pain point for a lot of repair-minded folks. iFixit’s mission is absolutely still about empowering people everywhere to fix their own stuff. We’re all about the Right to Repair, not restricting it.

The reason you’re seeing some parts (like the iPad 12.9" 5th gen battery, and adhesive) available in the US but not in the EU store isn’t about protecting markets—it’s usually due to legal, regulatory, or supply chain restrictions. Sometimes, manufacturers or local laws limit what we can import or sell in certain regions. Other times, it’s about sourcing: we might not have a reliable supplier for a specific part in the EU, or there are shipping and certification hurdles that make it tough to offer those parts outside the US.

We know it’s frustrating, and we’re always working to expand our global parts catalog. If you want to dig deeper into our stance and the challenges we face, check out our Right to Repair page and our collaborations with other repair advocates. Your voice helps us advocate for broader access and better repair options worldwide.

I'll make sure to alert our team about these specific parts you mentioned and see if I can help push this issue further. I hope your repair still went well - in case you haven't started, here are the guides for you:

https://de.ifixit.com/Anleitung/iPad+Pro...

https://de.ifixit.com/Anleitung/iPad+Pro...

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Udo Lupp will be eternally grateful.