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The issue is connected to another related account/accounts – Google Ads
Gianluca Catinella, Director, Ad Restore LtdPublished on 7 min read
We have determined that the issue is connected to another related account/accounts.
Advertisers quote Google’s reply to their appeal as “…after the investigation we have determined that the issue is connected to another related account/accounts. In order to resolve the Google Ads suspension you first need to ensure all of your linked (or previously linked) and all related accounts comply with our policies, as outlined in our Terms of Service. As soon as you ensure these conditions are met, please raise another Google Ads suspension appeal using this form.”
This is Google’s answer to an appeal on an account that’s already suspended. It means Google has looked at your appeal and decided the issue is connected to one or more other accounts it treats as related to yours. Google’s suspensions overview sets the same condition: “Before appealing, ensure that all linked (or previously linked) and all related accounts comply with Google’s policies”. In our experience, that other account typically has its own suspension, and the fix starts there, not with yours.
Advertisers have posted this reply in Google Ads Community threads since at least 2024. One quotes the first sentence, another the second, and the full text appears in a Shopify Community post from February 2025. Several say they have no other account. One wrote: “I don’t have any other related account / accounts.”
Checked against Google’s help pages on 22 September 2026. Google changes them without notice, so check the linked page before relying on a detail.
At a glance
A reply, not a new suspension
Google sends it after reviewing an appeal. The wording advertisers quote doesn’t say which account.
Old links count
Google’s wording covers “linked (or previously linked)” accounts.
Typically a shared card
In our experience, the same business card on two accounts links them directly.
Unlinking doesn’t fix it
In our experience, you have to deal with the other suspension first.
Sometimes it lifts itself
If the link is the same identity documents, Google says your account comes back once the other accounts are successfully appealed.
On this page10 sections
What the reply means
Google’s suspensions overview says accounts related to the suspended account may be suspended. Google’s billing and payment suspensions page gives examples: “accounts using the same email or payment method, or accounts linked to the same manager account”.
The reply asks you to make those accounts comply first. “Previously linked” means a link that has ended can still count.
How it relates to Circumventing Systems
The reply doesn’t name a policy, but Google says the original suspension email identifies all policies you were suspended for. Google’s Circumventing Systems policy has a section on multiple account abuse, and one of its best practices fits this reply: if you’re connected to other accounts that have been suspended, “those suspensions need to be successfully reinstated through the appeal process”. If your notice names Circumventing Systems, read our Circumventing Systems guide.
What links accounts
Google’s own pages name these:
- The same email or payment method, and the same manager account, from Google’s examples of related accounts.
- The same identity documents. Google’s overview covers accounts verified using the same identity documents.
- A linked Merchant Center account, in one direction. Google’s Merchant Center help says that when a suspended Google Ads account is linked to a Merchant Center account, the Google Ads suspension must be fixed first before the Merchant Center suspension can be reviewed. We haven’t found a Google page that spells out the reverse, a suspended Merchant Center account leading to this Google Ads reply. That comes from what advertisers report, below.
In our experience, it’s typically shared cards: a business uses the same card on more than one account, and that links the accounts directly. Our suspicious payment activity guide covers how Google looks at cards. If your payments profile itself is suspended, see Your payments profile is currently suspended.
We also see links through an agency’s manager account, or through someone else helping you, for example with Merchant Center. On the Community, one advertiser’s Google Ads and Merchant Center accounts were suspended at the same time, the Merchant Center one for misrepresentation. The Merchant Center review cleared, but the Google Ads appeal got this reply. Asked whether the business’s second website had a Merchant Center account, they said that if there was one, a former employee had set it up.
Which account is the problem?
In our experience, it’s typically the one that’s suspended: another account with its own suspension. We talk to the client directly to understand what’s being used, and what’s directly linked to something else. The links we see are:
- a shared card: the same business card used on another account;
- an agency’s manager account;
- someone else helping you, for example with Merchant Center.
Google’s wording covers previously linked accounts too, so include links that have ended.
What Google asks you to do
Read your original notice.
Note the policy it names.
List every linked, previously linked and related account.
Use the list above. Google’s wording includes links that have ended.
Deal with the other suspension first.
Google says to submit a separate appeal for each suspended account. If an agency runs your account, Google’s advice is to reach out to them about this suspension.
Then appeal your own account again.
The reply itself asks you to “raise another Google Ads suspension appeal” once the conditions are met. Google’s appeal tip: share how you resolved those issues. Send one appeal at a time: Google says it may not process too many for the same suspension.
When it comes back on its own
Google’s suspensions overview names one case where your account comes back by itself. If your account was suspended because other accounts verified using the same identity documents were suspended, “your account will be automatically reinstated once those other accounts are successfully appealed”.
Google doesn’t say how you’d know that’s the reason. Either way, the other accounts’ appeals come first.
Can it be fixed?
In our experience, it’s hopeless when you don’t address the underlying suspension first. You’re not going to be able to unlink the association: the other suspension has to be addressed.
Google says something similar for Merchant Center: removing or unlinking the suspended Google Ads account from your Merchant Center account won’t resolve the Merchant Center issue. One advertiser had deleted a suspended Merchant Center account, and every appeal still came back with “Linked accounts must comply with policy.”
That isn’t a promise either way: only Google decides. Our guide to when a suspension can’t be fixed covers the harder cases.
Don’t open a new account, or delete or unlink the other one, to get round this.
Google says any new accounts that you create will be automatically suspended, and its Circumventing Systems policy names creating new accounts to re-enter the system after a suspension as a violation. Google’s appeal condition counts previously linked accounts, so cutting a link doesn’t take an account out of the picture. Read why a new account makes things worse.
The appeal route
- Another Google Ads account is suspended? It’s appealed from its own notification, using the Contact us link. Each suspended account needs its own appeal.
- A linked Merchant Center account is suspended? Read its status first. If it says “Linked account suspension”, Google says the Google Ads suspension comes first. If it names a policy such as misrepresentation, see our Merchant Center suspension guide.
- Your own account. Once the other suspension is dealt with, raise another appeal and explain what you resolved.
Before you write it, read what the appeal form asks.
Frequently asked questions
Which account is Google talking about?
The reply advertisers quote doesn’t say, and advertisers report asking Google which account it is without an answer. In our experience, it’s typically one that’s already suspended, linked to yours through a shared card, an agency’s manager account or someone helping with Merchant Center.
I only have one Google Ads account. Why am I getting this?
Google’s examples of related accounts include accounts using the same email or payment method, or linked to the same manager account, and its condition counts previously linked accounts. So a related account doesn’t have to be a second Google Ads account you opened yourself. In our experience, it’s typically a shared card.
Will unlinking or deleting the other account fix it?
In our experience, no: the other suspension has to be addressed first. Google makes a similar point about Merchant Center: removing or unlinking a suspended Google Ads account won’t resolve the Merchant Center issue.
My agency’s manager account is the link. What do I do?
Talk to the agency. Google’s examples of related accounts include accounts linked to the same manager account, and its advice is to reach out to whoever manages your account about the suspension.
Can I open a new account instead?
No. Google says new accounts you create will be automatically suspended. Deal with the related suspension, then appeal the account you have.
