How to disable restrictions on your own iPhone
If you set up Screen Time or Parental Controls on your own device and now want to turn them off, you can do this in Settings without needing anyone's permission. The process takes about two minutes and works the same way whether you're removing Screen Time limits, app restrictions, or content filters you put in place yourself.
Open Settings, then tap Screen Time. At the top of that screen, tap Turn Off Screen Time. You'll be asked to confirm — tap Turn Off Screen Time again. If you set a Screen Time passcode when you created the restrictions, you'll need to enter that passcode before the system will let you proceed. Once you confirm, all restrictions tied to that Screen Time profile disappear when ready.
If you don't remember your Screen Time passcode, you have two options. You can sign in with your Apple ID — the system will let you disable Screen Time using the same Apple ID you used to set it up. If you don't have access to that Apple ID either, you'll need to erase the device and set it up fresh, which removes all restrictions but also removes all your data unless you restore from a backup made before the restrictions were added.
Key Takeaways
- You can turn off Screen Time you set yourself by going to Settings > Screen Time > Turn Off Screen Time and entering your passcode or Apple ID.
- If a parent or guardian set up the restrictions and you don't have the passcode, you cannot remove them without their Apple ID or their permission.
- Erasing the device removes restrictions but also removes all data, and restoring from a backup made after restrictions were added will restore the restrictions too.
- Screen Time and Parental Controls are the same system on modern iPhones — turning off Screen Time removes both.
- If you're locked out and the person who set it up is unreachable, Apple Support can help verify ownership but cannot bypass the passcode.
When someone else set up the restrictions
If a parent, guardian, or another person set up Screen Time or Parental Controls on your device, you cannot remove those restrictions yourself — not through Settings, not through erasing the device, and not through any workaround. The restrictions are tied to their Apple ID, and only they can turn them off.
The only path forward is to ask the person who set them up to remove them. They need to go to Settings > Screen Time, tap their name at the top, then tap Turn Off Screen Time and enter their passcode. If they've forgotten their passcode, they can use their Apple ID to disable Screen Time instead. This takes about the same amount of time as the passcode route.
If the person who set up the restrictions is no longer in your life — a parent you no longer live with, a school that issued the device, a previous guardian — contact Apple Support with proof of ownership (your receipt, your Apple ID, or account information). Apple can verify that you own the device, but they cannot and will not bypass or remove a passcode set by someone else. What they can do is help you understand your options, which may include erasing the device if you own it outright.
What happens when you turn off Screen Time
Turning off Screen Time removes all restrictions at once: app limits disappear, content filters stop working, and any blocked apps become available again. The change is when ready — you don't need to restart the phone. Any data about your screen time history is erased, though your general usage data in Settings > Privacy > Analytics may still exist.
If you had set up Downtime (a scheduled period when only calls and messages work), that schedule stops running. If you had restricted certain apps or websites, those restrictions lift. If you had set content filters that blocked adult websites or certain types of content, those filters turn off. None of these settings are recoverable once you turn off Screen Time — if you change your mind later, you'll need to set them up again from scratch.
Turning off Screen Time does not affect your Apple ID, your iCloud backup, your contacts, your photos, or any other data on the phone. It only removes the restrictions system itself. Your phone will work exactly as it did before restrictions were added, except that any apps you had deleted because they were restricted will still be deleted — you'll need to reinstall them from the App Store if you want them back.
If you're trying to bypass restrictions without removing them
Some people look for ways to use restricted apps or bypass Screen Time limits without actually turning off the system. This doesn't work on modern iPhones. You cannot jailbreak an iPhone to bypass Screen Time, you cannot use a different Apple ID to unlock restricted apps, and you cannot change the system time to trick Downtime into thinking it's a different hour. Any method you find online that claims to do this either doesn't work, requires erasing the device anyway, or is a scam.
If the restrictions are too strict and you want to negotiate with the person who set them up, that conversation is more likely to succeed than trying to work around the system. If you're an adult and someone else controls your device, that's a separate problem — you may want to consider whether that arrangement is right for you.
Removing restrictions set by a school or employer
If your school or employer issued the iPhone and set up Mobile Device Management (MDM) restrictions, you cannot remove those restrictions yourself. MDM is different from Screen Time — it's a system that lets organizations manage devices remotely, and it overrides personal settings.
To remove MDM restrictions, you need to contact your school's IT department or your employer's device management team. They can unenroll the device from their system, which removes the restrictions. If you no longer work there or attend that school, you may still need to contact them — some organizations require formal unenrollment before they'll release a device.
If you own the device and the organization won't unenroll it, you can erase it and set it up as new. This removes the MDM profile, but it also removes all your data. If you have a backup from before the device was enrolled, you can restore from that backup after erasing.
Recovering a forgotten Screen Time passcode
If you set up Screen Time with a passcode and forgot it, you have two ways to turn off Screen Time without it. The first is to sign in with your Apple ID — go to Settings > Screen Time, tap Turn Off Screen Time, and when you're asked for the passcode, tap Can't Remember Passcode. You'll be asked to sign in with your Apple ID, and if it matches the one you used to set up Screen Time, the system will let you proceed.
The second way is to erase the device. Go to Settings > General > Transfer or Reset > Erase All Content and Settings. This removes everything on the phone, including the Screen Time passcode. When you set the phone up again, you can choose not to set up Screen Time, or you can set it up with a new passcode. If you have an iCloud backup from before you set up Screen Time, you can restore from that backup and keep your data — but if your backup was made after Screen Time was set up, restoring it will restore the Screen Time restrictions too.
Why Screen Time locks you out and what that means
Screen Time uses a passcode or Apple ID specifically so that someone can't just turn it off whenever they want. If you set it yourself, that passcode protects your own restrictions from being bypassed by someone else with access to your phone. If someone else set it, that passcode protects their ability to enforce the restrictions they put in place.
This design means there's no secret way to remove Screen Time without a passcode or Apple ID — not because Apple is hiding it, but because the whole point of the system is that you can't. If you're locked out of your own device, the legitimate paths are to use your Apple ID, contact Apple Support with proof of ownership, or erase and set up the device fresh. If someone else locked you out and won't unlock it, that's a situation you'll need to address directly with that person.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I remove Screen Time restrictions if I know the Apple ID but not the passcode?
Yes. Go to Settings > Screen Time > Turn Off Screen Time, and when asked for the passcode, tap Can't Remember Passcode. Sign in with the Apple ID that was used to set up Screen Time, and you can disable it without the passcode.
What if I erase my iPhone — will that remove the restrictions?
Erasing the device removes the restrictions, but if you restore from an iCloud backup made after the restrictions were set up, the restrictions come back. Only restore from a backup made before Screen Time was added, or set up the phone as new without restoring.
Can Apple Support remove Screen Time restrictions for me?
Apple Support can verify you own the device and help you understand your options, but they cannot bypass or remove a Screen Time passcode set by someone else. If you own the device and forgot your own passcode, they can walk you through using your Apple ID instead.
If my parent set this up, can I remove it without asking them?
No. Screen Time set by someone else is tied to their Apple ID and passcode. Only they can remove it. There is no technical workaround — the system is designed specifically to prevent that.
Does turning off Screen Time delete my photos, messages, or other data?
No. Turning off Screen Time only removes the restrictions system. All your photos, messages, contacts, apps, and other data stay on the phone. Apps that were restricted and deleted will still be deleted — you'll need to reinstall them from the App Store.