Capture a domain in Apple School Manager
Overview
If an organization wants to own all Apple Accounts using their verified domain name, they can use a process called Domain Capture for any personal Apple Accounts which may have been created previously using the organization’s domain.
WARNING: Turning on Domain Capture can’t be undone. Sending notifications will impact all users with personal Apple Accounts across the domain you capture.
Domain capture process
When an organization turns on Domain Capture:
It locks the domain if it wasn’t previously locked.
Any user whose personal Apple Account is using the domain of the organization is notified and given 30 days to change their account. For notifications, the device must use iOS 18, iPadOS 18, macOS 15.1, visionOS 2.0, or later.
The email and notification present two options to the user:
Choose a new primary email address to continue using their Apple Account as an personal account.
Transfer the Apple Account and its data to the organization, which then converts it into a Managed Apple Account.
Note: The email also links to the Apple Support article If you are asked to transfer your Apple Account or keep it as a personal account.
This allows users to select the best option depending on how their Apple Account is used. For example, if the user has used it to store their personal data and to access services they use in a personal context, they can choose to keep the account as a personal account.
Alternatively, if they’ve created the Apple Account for work purposes using their organizational email address, they can choose to transfer it to the organization. This allows the user to benefit from streamlined collaboration features and account-driven enrollment flows while allowing organizations to keep their data secure.
Users have 30 days to choose one of these options; otherwise, the Apple Account remains a personal account and gets an automatically assigned account name. This allows the organization to use it as a Managed Apple Account.
The domain can now be used for federated authentication and (optionally, directory syncing).
Domain capture example
Eliza uses the Apple Account eliza@townshipschools.org. Township Schools requires that all Apple Accounts using @townshipschools.org be Managed Apple Accounts. Eliza can do one of the following:
Transfer the Apple Account eliza@townshipschools.org to Township Schools, making it a Managed Apple Account with associated data remaining with eliza@townshipschools.org.
Choose a new email address, such as eliza@icloud.com, to keep the Apple Account as a personal account and continue using associated data.
If Eliza doesn’t take any action, after 30 days the account remains a personal Apple Account and is automatically changed to eliza-townshipschools.org@temporary.appleaccount.com. At this point, eliza@townshipschools.org can be used to create a Managed Apple Account by Township Schools.
Capture a domain
In Apple School Manager
, sign in with a user that has the role of Administrator, Site Manager, or People Manager.Select your name at the bottom of the sidebar, select Preferences
, then select Managed Apple Accounts 
.In the Domains section, select Domain Capture next to the domain you want to capture.
WARNING: Turning on Domain Capture can’t be undone. Sending notifications will impact all users across the domain you capture.
Select Start Domain Capture, then review the following:
The number of Managed Apple Accounts currently used by this domain
Verification the domain is locked
The start of the 30-day time period