Account Limitations: What You Need to Know

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PayPal Employee

 

Keeping your business and customers safer

To ensure PayPal remains a safer place for enabling payments, we regularly review all accounts. Sometimes, limitations may be placed on your PayPal account, which could restrict you from completing certain actions: such as withdrawing, spending, or receiving money. Limitations are in place to help protect all our customers, and in some cases to meet our regulatory obligations. Protecting your account and money is important to us.

 

Account Limitations: What might cause it, and how to help avoid it?

If your PayPal account is limited, you may be unable to withdraw, send or receive money. There are a number of reasons why your account could be limited:

 

Suspicious & unusual activity

  • We suspect someone could be using your account without your knowledge.
  • Your bank alerts us that someone has used your credit/debit card linked to your account without your permission.
  • There are unexpected changes to your selling activities such as a sudden increase in your typical sales volume.

In such cases, we do what it takes to protect you from potential fraud prompted by the unusual activity– through limiting your account, and investigating.

 

You can safeguard your personal information and help protect yourself against fraud through some simple measures.  For example, don’t enter your personal or financial details when describing items for sale or in response to emails, and log out of sites you’ve entered your personal information into.

 

Regulatory reasons or business is not compliant

Your account could be limited for regulatory reasons. For example, India PayPal sellers need to include additional information to be able to accept payments in their account. Also, reaching a certain transaction value in your account may trigger a limit, which can also be removed by providing information required to PayPal.

 

There are also restrictions on what a PayPal account can be used to accept (and make) payments for. For example, PayPal doesn't allow the sale of counterfeit goods or banned items. So, ensure that your business is compliant with PayPal’s Acceptable Use Policy .


Increased buyer issues

An increase of complaints, claims and chargebacks from buyers can lead to account limitations.

 

Following some simple guidelines can help you improve your performance and reduce the likelihood of limitations. Overall, communication is key. You should:

  • Provide detailed product descriptions and photos.
  • Be upfront about policies such as shipping and returns.
  • Ship orders promptly and track shipments.
  • Respond quickly to any messages from buyers.
  • Work to amicably resolve any problems.
  • Ship to the address provided in the transaction details page.
  • Use quality shipping materials to prevent damage.

 

Removing limitations

 If your PayPal account is limited, here’s what happens:

  1. We’ll email you to let you know –  we’ll ask you to log in to your PayPal account and go to the Resolution Centre for details on how to resolve the issue quickly, usually by providing information.
  2. Once you’ve submitted the information required, we’ll review and reply via email.
  3. We’ll remove the limitations once we have verified your account. At times, limitations can be removed by simply changing your security questions and password.

Here are the types of information and documents we may need from you:

- Supplier’s invoice with contact information

This helps us determine the inventory source and validate that you have the items that you’re selling in stock.

 

- Payment information

When an invoice is unavailable, we’ll review the following information about your payments:

  • The item or service that was sold
  • The buyer’s name and shipping address
  • Proof of shipment to verify that an order was delivered

- Shipping or Tracking information

This helps us to verify that customer orders are being fulfilled.

 

- Proof of business
This provides evidence of a valid business registration and business ownership.

 

- Information for India sellers
This is to comply with our India regulatory obligations. Provide a valid PAN, a local bank account and the purpose code in your PayPal account task board.

 

- Proof of address such as bank statement or utility bill, Proof of identity such as passport or driver’s license
This helps us verify your identity when there is unusual account activity or to comply with regulations.

 

Once you’ve submitted your information, look out for any more emails from us as we may need additional details. We’ll do our best to confirm your information and remove the limitation within 2 business days, but sometimes it can take a little longer.

 

Quick Tip: If your PayPal account is limited, don’t open a new account. It could be traced back to the limited account.  It’s always best to resolve the limitation. We will guide you through it and restore full access to your PayPal account as quickly as possible.

 

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1,050 REPLIES 1,050

Da13
Contributor
Contributor
No I meant escalating to FCA - quite frankly the PayPal system seems to be a series of robots with anodyne responses and no action. Just file an official complaint to PayPal using their channel then follow it up immediately in writing. The good news (for me at least) that they have within the last hour released my money. Complaining elsewhere may help google **bleep**-PayPal for email addresses. I did this and it may have helped.
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Da13
Contributor
Contributor

Sorry - same old, same old....standard automatic responses and no-one actually doing anything.  I’ve called customer services five times all the documents are there but they are not being reviewed.  Rather than just telling me what I can already see on my screen someone needs to DO something rather than jus5 trotting out the same irrelevant pre-prepared automatic responses. That would be some kind of customer service. 

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Stej
Contributor
Contributor

My Account was also limited 3 months ago due to sending money that I owed to a family member. 

 

I sent in all the relevant documents that they asked for - and so did my family member. Instead of dealing with our questions and helping us when we asked what needed to be done, they just closed 3 accounts and are holding £9,000 for what they tell me is in case of charge-backs. I don't have anyone who can make any charge-backs, because I have never sold anything.

 

We are over 90 days in and trying to get paypal to budge or send a real response, is like pulling hens teeth.

 

Instead of helping to sort things out when we asked, they also reversed money that I sent to the family member, who had already withdrawn the amount to their bank account, so now they have a minus balance and won't budge on bringing it back to 0.00 until paypal sort the mess that was created by them, unnecessarily.

 

Things have gotten so bad, that I have applied to the courts and also contacted a national news paper who are willing to help. 

 

Last night - I felt so low because of one of their response emails, I actually contemplated suicide - and emailed paypal to let them know just how I was feeling - I won't go into the ins and outs of that, but suffice to say, I had a police man knocking on my door this morning asking me if I need help. 

 

I explained things to him - and that in the end, I had realised that I am not and never have been a weak person, but paypal had made me feel so low because I have bills to pay etc, for that brief moment, I couldn't see any other option or way out.

 

Whilst I still feel very low, because of paypal and how they are treating me and other people, I am going to continue with the court case and hopefully make it public via the press. 

 

I really feel that it is time that paypal were regulated - and (stupidly) I thought that ending things would maybe open peoples eyes and let them see just what paypal are doing to people, but seem to constantly get away with it. 

 

I am not a high lord hand-waver, or anyone important, but where I can I am going to fight these b******s, they shouldn't be allowed to make people feel like this - and neither should we be reading in other forums that paypal have caused people to lose their business or home

 

Paypal should have independent people dealing with their appeals and should be regulated according to British law if they are trading in this country. 

 

 

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Da13
Contributor
Contributor

I agree wholeheartedly with what you are saying.  The behaviour is truly shocking and abysmal, I do not believe that the financial conduct authority can have any idea that this organisation behaves in this way.  Unfortunately you have to wait 8 weeks from filing a complaint with the company before escalation is permitted.  So, I suggest you join me and file a complaint in writing (I have done this) then after the required time escalate to the FCA - if they get enough complaints they will take action.  PayPal deserve the regulators attention and hopefully a hefty fine if they cannot put this right themselves.

 

all others in the same boat reading this please do the same - file a complaint then back it up with a complaint to the fca.

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Stej
Contributor
Contributor

Hi  Da13

 

When you say we have to wait 8 weeks to make a complaint for it to be escalated, did you mean to their escalations department?

 

I am happy to file a complaint with the FCA, but I have heard that it takes 6 months or more for them to do anything, I think this is why paypal think that they can get away with the 180 day period? It really does need changing - and I have seen others say, if this were a bank or any other financial company, things would be dealt with by the correct authorities, paypal however, seem to be a law unto them selves.

 

It really needs to be changed - and I am happy to join forces with anyone who wants their voice heard!

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Stej
Contributor
Contributor

Do you mind if I ask how long it took for them to release the money?

 

I will do as you suggested - and hopefully get this mess sorted out!

 

I think I am gonna set up a website entitled "regulatepaypal.com"

 

Thank's for your help and your reply!

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Danz17
Contributor
Contributor

well count me in, I can use your initial complaint to file one in my country ( UAE ), am sure I can shake their waters there with all the legit feedbacks am getting from everyone and my personal agony with them.

 

 

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sue351
Contributor
Contributor
I gog opposist problem they let sone one hack my account spend my money with out even informing me if the trasaction then once all is resoved they wount let me leave i know most go through paypal but now id rather go direct thro paypal js holding bank hostage
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themoon
Member
Member

My account is been limited cause i have to prove my business address. 

I am trying since month to submit all the documents requested from PayPal, different kind and all the time i receive the same e-mail that the documents i submitted are not acceptable...... So i sent several messages to PayPal customer service to know how i can solve the problem and if is not possible just to get back my remaining balance and in case close down my account..... Well i never get an answer from PayPal and i can't do any transaction so i have my money blocked without knowing how to solve the problem causing me many hard time.....!!

All i do with my PayPal account is honest and respecting the rules so i just need to know how to proceed and get back the use of my money!!!!!!!! I find illegal just to hold my money for such a long time without keep in touch with me to give me a way to solve the problem.

Please i need help!!

 

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JenerSilva
Contributor
Contributor

This is classic PayPal behavior and abuse of power. I think they ignore or make you wait as long as possible on purpose. Yes, they're really that bad! 

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