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Microphone and Accessibility permissions

Why VocType asks for the Microphone and Accessibility permissions, how to turn them on, and what to do when macOS keeps blocking them.

Last updated · October 22, 2026

On a Mac, VocType needs two permissions. Notifications are optional.

  • Microphone, so it can record what you say.
  • Accessibility, so it can paste the text into the app you are using. VocType does not need Input Monitoring or Automation.

Turn on the microphone

During setup, click Allow on the Microphone step and accept the macOS prompt. If you clicked Don't Allow, the recording pill shows "Microphone access blocked" with an Open Settings button. To fix it:

  1. Open System Settings, then Privacy & Security, then Microphone.
  2. Turn on VocType.
  3. Quit VocType from its menu bar icon and open it again.

Turn on Accessibility

Without Accessibility, VocType still records and transcribes, but it copies your text instead of typing it: press Command-V to paste. The Home screen shows "VocType is copying, not typing" until it is on. To fix it:

  1. Click Turn on on that banner, or open System Settings, then Privacy & Security, then Accessibility.
  2. Turn on VocType. If it is not in the list, click the plus button and add it from Applications.

It is on, but macOS still blocks it

macOS ties each permission to the copy of the app you approved. If that copy has been replaced, for example by reinstalling over a much older version, the switch can stay on while macOS still blocks the new copy. Turning the switch off and on does not fix this.

For Accessibility:

  1. Quit VocType.
  2. In System Settings, open the Accessibility list, select VocType and click the minus button to remove it.
  3. Click the plus button and add VocType again from Applications, then turn it on.
  4. Open VocType again.

The Microphone list has no plus or minus buttons. For Microphone, or if Accessibility still does not work, quit VocType, then reset its permissions in Terminal and set them up again:

tccutil reset Microphone com.voctype.desktop
tccutil reset Accessibility com.voctype.desktop

Open VocType again and it asks for both permissions. Text still not pasting? See Text doesn't paste.

Still stuck?

Email support@voctype.com and tell us what you tried. We aim to reply within 2 business days.

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