Apple Music charges card or available balance

You can use redeemed value from an iTunes gift card to buy from the following stores:

• iTunes music, movie and TV stores for iOS, Windows and Mac
• iBookstore on iOS
• App Store on iOS
• App Store on Mac OS

The only gift cards that are accepted at an Apple Retail Store are Apple gift cards. The Apple Retail Stores and the Apple Store online do not accept iTunes gift cards as forms of payment.

You can not use redeemed value from an iTunes gift card to buy an Apple gift card or anything else from the following stores:

• Apple Retail Stores
• Apple Store on the internet at http://store.apple.com
• iCloud yearly storage space increases
• iTunes Match service

Thanks for documenting the current state of play. Although most can buy gift cards from the store of your choice and load them into the App Store, if they truly are not easily available in your country just slowing down the cycling of cards you use for payment is the obvious choice out of this dilemma.