Seeking Advice: Unexpected Permanent PayPal Account Limitation

[askunhandel]

I'm in dire need of advice and support regarding an unexpected and troubling issue with my PayPal business account. Recently, I was informed by PayPal support that my account has been permanently limited due to an unidentified "potential risk associated with it." This decision seems final, leaving me in a frustrating and challenging situation.

I want to highlight that I infrequently used this PayPal business account. Despite this, I took all necessary steps to ensure compliance with PayPal's guidelines and verified my business bank account, which is already associated with the PayPal account.

The sudden and permanent limitation occurred when I received an invoice from another PayPal user and attempted to pay the amount using my verified business bank account. I adhered to standard practices and intended to make a legitimate payment, yet this resulted in the account being permanently limited.

Regrettably, when seeking clarification from PayPal's support team, I received a response indicating they could not reverse or provide specifics about the risk associated with my account.

This unforeseen limitation is not only disrupting my ability to conduct business transactions but also causing potential financial losses and damaging my professional reputation.

I'm eager to resolve this issue swiftly, regain access to the funds tied up in the account, and resume normal business operations. If anyone in this community has encountered a similar situation or has advice on how to navigate this effectively, I would be immensely grateful for your insights.

Additionally, if there are alternative steps I can take to escalate or address this limitation, your guidance would be invaluable.

Thank you all for your time and support. Any help or suggestions you can provide will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

[kernowlass · Accepted solution]

@askunhandel 

Most common reasons for an account limitation are:-

1. You have a previously limited account (temporary or permanent) and you have tried to open a new account and not resolved the issues with the other account first.
2. Using a VPN.
3. Not living in the country where you opened your Paypal account.
4. Being under 18 / minor account.
5. Having 2 Paypal accounts or more of the same account type.
6. Not having your legal name on your Paypal account.
7. Selling items (often virtual or digital) that Paypal consider a high risk of disputes/chargebacks.
8. Using the friends/family option for sales transactions to try and evade Paypal fees and risk of disputes.
9. Too many disputes/claims.
10. Violating their acceptable use policy as per link.
https://www.paypal.com/us/legalhub/acceptableuse-full?locale.x=en_US

Normally you can't appeal a permanent limitation however if its none of the above reasons then you could try and contact customer services to appeal however as you have already done that it sounds as if the decision remains final.

[askunhandel]

Hi @kernowlass,

Thank you for your prompt response. Upon conducting thorough research about the situation, I suspect the reason behind the account limitation might be due to my current circumstances. Presently, I am outside of the country where my PayPal account is registered, and I have been accessing my account from this location.

Upon further investigation, it appears that PayPal might view accessing an account from a different geographical location as a significant risk factor. I am confident that I can address this issue by providing the necessary documents and information to confirm the legitimacy of my access from this new location.

[kernowlass]

@askunhandel 

Unfortunately even if you do as paypal is country specific you should not use it in another country.

If you move countries then you have to close one paypal account and open one in the correct country where you now reside.