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How do I get my Google Ads account unsuspended?

Rokas Golcas · Updated

You get a suspended Google Ads account back only through an appeal: fix the cause first, then click Contact Us in the suspension notification in your account and submit the appeal form, completing advertiser verification if Google asks. You have at least 6 months to appeal. Don't open a new account meanwhile, because it may also be suspended.

A suspension stops every ad in the account, and you can't advertise from it again until Google reinstates it. The only way back is an appeal, so the real work is finding the cause and fixing it before you write a word.

Why was the account suspended?

The notification at the top of your account names the reason. Google groups suspensions into three kinds:

  • Policy violations. Repeated violations lead to a suspension after a warning. Egregious ones suspend the account at once, without warning. Google's egregious list includes circumventing systems, counterfeit goods, malicious software, unacceptable business practices and coordinated deceptive practices.
  • Billing and payment issues. Unpaid balances, suspicious payment activity, chargebacks on legitimate charges, and selling promotional codes or using more than one on an account.
  • Other reasons. Unauthorized activity in the account, a Google Account that doesn't meet age requirements, or breaking Ad Grants policies.

If the notice says circumventing systems, read what a circumventing systems suspension means first. Google treats those cases far more strictly.

How do you appeal?

  1. Fix the cause. Change the ads, website or business practice the policy is about, or settle the billing problem: pay the balance or verify the payment method, as the notification asks. Google also wants all linked, previously linked and related accounts to comply before you appeal.
  2. Open the appeal form. In Google Ads, click Contact Us in the suspension notification at the top of the screen. The form opens on the right.
  3. Explain each policy. Give specific context for every policy listed, say what you changed, and add proof such as partnership documents where it applies.
  4. Complete advertiser verification if asked. Some advertisers must pass it before they can appeal. If Google can't verify your identity after 3 attempts, you can't appeal. See which documents verification needs.
  5. Wait for the email. Google emails you the outcome once the appeal is reviewed.

In my experience, the appeals that work are short and concrete: what was wrong, what you changed, and where Google can see the change.

How long does it take, and what if Google says no?

  • Deadline. You have at least 6 months from the date of the suspension to appeal.
  • Review time. The suspension overview gives no timeline. Google's standalone appeal form for suspended accounts says a specialist should reply within 3-5 business days.
  • Rejected appeal. You can appeal again the same way. If you file too many appeals for the same suspension, Google may not process them, and if it sees signs of misuse it stops processing certain appeals for 7 days.
  • New accounts. Don't open one while you wait. Google says new accounts you try to create may also be suspended, and creating accounts after a suspension is listed as circumventing systems.

Accounts related to the suspended one can be suspended too. If you run several accounts, or an agency runs them for you, check all of them, not only the one in the notification.

If your ads stopped but there is no suspension notice, the cause is probably elsewhere: see 17 reasons why Google Ads is not spending. The policy mistakes that often lead to a suspension are in the most common Google Ads mistakes.

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