If you have received an email notifying you that your Google Business Profile has been suspended due to policy violation, usually due to deceptive content and behavior or misrepresentation or account restriction/not in good standing, or you were unaware of the issue until you saw the following message in your GBP dashboard: “Your access has been suspended because this profile doesn’t follow the guidelines. Edit your business info and learn how to regain access.”.

Your alarm bells have gone off, but you need to stay calm and not appeal right away because there are some steps you need to take first, such as checking the guidelines and gathering the necessary evidence because when you start the appeal process you have a time limit to submit the evidence (60 min!).

To help you, I have created this comprehensive guide that I hope will help you get your suspended business profile back on Google. If you are having trouble with the reinstatement, you can check out my affordable Google Business Profile Reinstatement service.

Google Business Profile Suspension Emails and Dashboard Message

Step 1 – Check Common Google Business Profile Suspension Reasons

Below are the main reasons advised by Google that led to your Google Business Profile being suspended, and in the next section I’ll go into detail about the most common reasons and policy violations.

• Deceptive content and behavior – Content that violates Google’s policies on deceptive content and behaviour isn’t allowed. Deceptive content intentionally misleads or deceives others.
• Misrepresentation – Content that violates our policy on misrepresentation isn’t allowed. Misrepresentation includes misleading representations or omissions for the purpose of gaining improper benefit.
• Turned off Posting – Google has turned off posting for this Business Profile to prevent edits that violate Google’s policies. It’s a strange reason, but it’s another way of saying that the “content” or information on the profile violates the policies.
• Account restriction – Your account has been restricted due to policy violations. Business Profiles you manage will be suspended and you won’t be able to create or claim other profiles. It means your Google User account cannot manage Google Business Profiles, but other Google Services are not affected.
• Google Account associated not in good standing – “A Google Account associated with this Business Profile has been placed under restriction. Business Profiles associated with that account have been suspended.” Similar to account restricted, however, your Google User Account has been suspended or disabled from all Google Services.

Step 2 – Google Business Profile Policy, Guidelines and User Account Common Violations Your Profile May Be In Violation Of

• Editing important profile information (Business name, Address, Service Area Business, Phone number, Primary Category)
• User(s) reported the business profile on Google through the “Suggest an edit” feature – Google AI suspends your business profile if it believes the report is justified
• User(s) reported your business profile through Google’s redressal form – manual suspension by a Google Support Agent
• False positives – Google has a built-in fail-safe that suspends some profiles to maintain the data integrity of Google Maps and Google Search. In some industries where spam is prevalent, Google uses this fail-safe more often to make sure they belong to real locations.
• Several edits were made in one single session
• The owner’s Google User Account was suspended
• Keyword stuffing your business name, you have to use your correct business name.
• Changing to a business address other than the one used for verification.
• Using a P.O. Box or UPS store or virtual office address – not acceptable by Google.
• If you use a co-working space as your business address, there are specific strict rules that must be followed.
• Your business is a service-area business but your profile is showing a physical address.
• You have an online-only business – not normally eligible.
• You are in a high-risk business category, like lawyers, plumbers, HVAC, locksmiths, electricians, rehab centers, etc.
• Similar business(es) shares the same address.
• You have made a bunch of changes/edits to your Google Business Profile in one go.
• The URL you added to your business profile forwards/redirects to another website or links to a social media page.
• If you changed your profile from a Storefront to a Service Area Business (SAB), by removing the address.
• Your address or hours don’t match what is listed on your website or other online business directories/citations.
• Your business hours are 24/7 and your business does not provide an emergency type of service (plumbers, locksmiths, etc)
• An owner user (sometimes a manager) on your profile has had their user account suspended, and Google will also suspend your business profile.
  • Suspended from another Google service (Google Ads, YouTube, Workspace, etc)
  • Spammy Behavior on Google Business Profile
  • Using the same user to suggest edits to competitors profiles
• Multiple profiles for the same business at the same address or nearby (duplicate profiles).
• Photos, Posts, Services, Business Description spammy or against Google’s policies.
• Google AI is not sure if the profiles are eligible, especially new profiles on high-risk categories like lawyers, plumbers, HVAC, locksmiths, electricians, rehab centers, etc.
• Finds conflicting information about your business on the web (directories, social media, your website)
• Found one or more duplicate profiles of your business profile

Step 3 – Appeal Process To Reinstate Your Suspended Google Business Profile

1.  Open the Google Business Profile appeals tool. This is your dashboard for working on your appeal and checking the status of your appeal. Check this page for the full guide
2. Make sure you’re signed in to the Google Account associated with your business profile by verifying that the email is the correct email you use to manage the suspended GBP listing account, and then click Confirm.
3. Find and select the Google Business Profile you want to reinstate. If you only have one location, only the suspended location will appear, but if you’re an agency or have multiple Business Profile locations, you’ll need to select.
4. On the next screen, the Google Business Profile Appeals tool displays the date and reason for the suspension or disabled action (under “Decision”), with a link to the guidelines. At the bottom right, select Next.
5. On the next screen, you click Submit Appeal. After this screen, you will have exactly 60 minutes to assemble your business proof and upload it as per the warning message
6. The next screen confirms that the appeal has been requested and asks you to add evidence to support your appeal. To add evidence, click the “add evidence” button.
7. Upon pressing the add evidence button, the evidence form opens, you will see that it is pre-populated with your email address, business name, address and Google Business Profile ID. There are two file upload options available and text box for additional context.
8. Google will review your appeal and send you an email with a decision. You can check the Appeals tool from time to time to see if the status has changed to Approved or Not Approved.

» Expert Google Business Profile Reinstatement Help

Unfortunately, Google Support cannot help you reinstate your suspended business listing because Google is afraid of inadvertently helping spammers. But I can help you!

I am a Google Business Profile Product Expert and a specialist in reinstating suspended/disabled profiles and having reinstated over 800 listings in the last 13 years.

Even when Google denies your reinstatement request advising your profile is not eligible or the appeal has not been approved, I can help you. Through my years of experience, I know all the issues that prevent your profile from being reinstated and what we need to provide Google Support Team to reinstate your profile.

Google Business Profile Suspended FAQ

How long it takes for Google to review your reinstatement request and reinstate your suspend business profile

Google advises in their help articles that they will review and respond to your reinstatement request within 2 weeks.

First-time requests take an average of 24-72 hours. It depends on how busy Google Business Profile Support is, if your profile is still out of compliance, and if you need to appeal after your reinstatement is denied.

What To Do If Your Appeal Has Not Been Approved

If Google Support advises that your profile isn’t eligible or your appeal has not been approved, you have one more chance to have your request reviewed. You must follow this appeal process:

• Double-check your suspended business profile against the guidelines and correct any issues.
• Get further evidence
• Fill the “Request additional review of a denied appeal” form

You be able to find more on this article about the appeal process.

You should receive a response to your appeal within 24-72 hours, sometimes they will reply by asking you to contact the specialist team.

Google Business Profile Suspension Types

There are 2 types of suspension: soft suspension and hard suspension.

Soft suspension: it is called this because your profile is still visible, but you cannot manage/edit it, so you cannot reply to reviews, post, receive messages, change business information, etc. So you can still receive leads but you cannot control the profile. Typically, this type of suspension happens when the business is well known locally and Google believes it’s real but has violated policies.

Hard suspension: In this case, the profile isn’t visible, it’s the worst case scenario, meaning either the violation was very serious, multiple violations, or Google isn’t sure your business is real.

What not to do if your Google Business profile is suspended

Even though the reinstatement process can be very frustrating, you should never:

• remove the profile from the dashboard (you will lose all the reviews);
• create a new profile (high chances of getting suspended, even if Google support tells you to do it);
• Submit multiple reinstatements yourself (will only delay your case).

How long does a Google Business Profile suspension last?

Forever, if you don’t request reinstatement. Even if you edit the business information to comply with the guidelines, you still need to apply for reinstatement.

How to Prevent Future Google Business Profile Suspensions

These are my tips to avoid future suspensions of your Google Business Profile:

• Avoid making changes to your business name, primary business category, and address unless absolutely necessary
• Only give manager access to third parties like employees and agencies
• Don’t use a premium phone number
• Protect your website
• Make sure the content you upload (photos, videos) or post is within the content policies
• If you want to report your competitors, use a different Google account that is not associated with your profile

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