Android 12+ BLE permissions: BLUETOOTH_SCAN, BLUETOOTH_CONNECT and the neverForLocation trap

What changed

If the app derives physical location from scan results, it still needs ACCESS_FINE_LOCATION on Android 12+.

Manifest that works on both

<!-- Android 11 and lower -->
<uses-permission android:name="android.permission.BLUETOOTH" android:maxSdkVersion="30" />
<uses-permission android:name="android.permission.BLUETOOTH_ADMIN" android:maxSdkVersion="30" />
<uses-permission android:name="android.permission.ACCESS_FINE_LOCATION" android:maxSdkVersion="30" />

<!-- Android 12 and higher -->
<uses-permission android:name="android.permission.BLUETOOTH_SCAN"
    android:usesPermissionFlags="neverForLocation" />
<uses-permission android:name="android.permission.BLUETOOTH_CONNECT" />

Request BLUETOOTH_SCAN and BLUETOOTH_CONNECT at runtime before scanning or connecting.

The trap: neverForLocation hides beacons

With neverForLocation, Android filters some BLE beacons out of scan results. That's fine for an app that talks to its own peripheral. It breaks beacon, asset-tracking and "find nearby tags" apps without an error: they simply see fewer devices.

If you need beacons: drop neverForLocation and request ACCESS_FINE_LOCATION as well.

Symptoms of getting it wrong

• SecurityException when calling connectGatt() or getName() without BLUETOOTH_CONNECT.
• Scans that return nothing, silently, when a permission or Location Services is missing on older versions.
• Works on the developer's phone, fails on another Android version: test on 11 and 12+.