Apple's Independent Repair Provider program is set to be available in upward of 200 countries this year. That's virtually every country in which Apple products are for sale. According to an Apple press release, there are now more than 1,500 Independent Repair Provider locations that are available to customers in the United States, Canada, and Europe.

Apple only launched this repair program in the U.S. in August 2019, making its expansion worldwide incredibly fast. It expanded to 32 additional countries in 2020. That makes this latest expansion by far the biggest one for the Independent Repair Provider program.

Giving Repair Businesses the Tools They Need

The program grants smaller repair businesses access to the same genuine Apple parts, training, and resources, like repair manuals and diagnostics tools, that are available to Apple Stores and Apple Authorized Service Providers.

This is so that they can carry out out-of-warranty repairs, such as fixing cracked displays on iPhones, and other common problems. From a customer perspective, it means that there are more places than ever where they can receive Apple-approved repairs that meet the standards of the Cupertino company.

"Being a part of the Independent Repair Provider program has been a huge benefit to my business, employees, and customers," said Scott Baker, owner of Mister Mac, a repair shop in Wimberley, Texas, quoted in Apple's press release. "Since joining, we've received great support from Apple, and we're able to deliver that same level of service to our customers. It has even brought genuine excitement to our town."

All of the participating repair shops benefit from free training from Apple. There's no cost involved in joining the Independent Repair Provider program. Repairers simply need to agree to have an Apple-certified technician carry out the fixes.

New Countries on the List

New countries that will start offering the chance to become an official Independent Repair Provider the week commencing March 29 include:

Afghanistan, Australia, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Brazil, Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Cook Islands, Fiji, Guam, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Laos, Macao, Malaysia, Maldives, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, New Zealand, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand, Tonga, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, Vanuatu, and Vietnam.

A large number of others---listed on Apple's website---will launch later this year. This should mean that users everywhere can find a consistency of Apple service, at least when it comes to the quality of repairs, wherever they go in the world.

That, in turn, should hopefully help to extend the life of your pricey Apple gadgets.