Yes. With enhanced conversions for leads, you can upload offline conversions with a hashed email address or phone number instead of a GCLID, and Google matches them to signed-in Google accounts. Google still requires the GCLID if your website tag doesn't collect user-provided data from your lead form, so set that tag up first.
Classic offline conversion import depends on the Google Click ID (GCLID) that auto-tagging adds to your landing page URL. You store it with the lead in your CRM and send it back when the deal closes. If the GCLID gets lost on the way, the conversion can't be imported.
Enhanced conversions for leads removes that single point of failure. Google describes it as an upgraded version of offline conversion import that uses user-provided data, such as email addresses. Google compares the hashed data with hashed data of signed-in Google accounts and attributes the conversion to the ad interaction. Google now calls the GCLID-only file import a legacy feature.
What do you need instead of a GCLID?
- A tag that collects user-provided data on your lead form. Turn on enhanced conversions for leads in Google Ads and set it up with the Google tag or Google Tag Manager. Google's help center says the GCLID is required if you are not using a tag to collect user-provided data. The tag also collects GCLIDs automatically.
- An email address or phone number on each conversion you upload. These are the identifiers Google lists for enhanced conversions for leads.
- The conversion date and time. Data Manager marks this field as required.
- An upload method. Google recommends Data Manager, which hashes the data with SHA-256 for you. If you upload through code: as of June 15, 2026, Google Ads API offline conversion uploads fail for developer tokens that sent no such uploads between December 17, 2025 and June 15, 2026, and Google points developers to the Data Manager API instead.
Should you still send the GCLID when you have it?
Yes. Google says to include GCLIDs whenever possible to maximize accuracy, and to send every event that has user-provided data, even when it has no GCLID. The API docs put it plainly: conversions that include only user-provided data are still useful.
One catch for iOS traffic: some clicks carry a GBRAID or WBRAID instead of a GCLID. When Google Ads uses one of those identifiers because the GCLID field is empty, it ignores any user identifiers on that conversion.
Here's how I handle it: capture the email or phone number at the form, keep the GCLID whenever it exists, and upload both together. That way you don't depend on any single identifier surviving your CRM.
What are the limits?
| GCLID file import (legacy) | Enhanced conversions for leads | |
|---|---|---|
| Main identifier | GCLID | Hashed email or phone, plus GCLID when available |
| Upload deadline | 90 days after the last click | 63 days after the last click |
| Matching | The click itself | Signed-in Google accounts |
The shorter 63-day window matters for long sales cycles. And because matching works through signed-in Google accounts, a lead with no GCLID that doesn't match any account can't be attributed, so don't expect every closed deal to show up in Google Ads.
For setup details, see my enhanced conversions tutorial, the difference between enhanced conversions for web and for leads, and how long imported conversions take to show up.
Sources
- Google Ads Help: About enhanced conversions for leads - https://support.google.com/google-ads/answer/15713840?hl=en
- Google Ads Help: Guidelines for importing offline conversions - https://support.google.com/google-ads/answer/15081888?hl=en
- Google Ads Help: Import conversions from ad clicks into Google Ads using files (legacy) - https://support.google.com/google-ads/answer/7014069?hl=en
- Google Ads Data Manager Help: Prepare your data for import - https://support.google.com/google-ads-data-manager/answer/14184381?hl=en
- Google for Developers: Manage offline conversions (Google Ads API) - https://developers.google.com/google-ads/api/docs/conversions/upload-offline