Google Ad Grant Suspended? Find the Cause, Fix It and Get It Back

If Google suspends or deactivates your Ad Grant, your ads stop until you fix the cause and ask Google to turn the account back on. Google's own policy pages name the usual causes and the fix for each, so most of the work is finding the cause that hit you and fixing all of it before you file Google's reactivation form.

Suspended or deactivated: what Google means

Google uses two words, and both stop your ads. Its account management policy says an account that misses certain rules will be temporarily deactivated, and it lists the steps to bring each one back. Its program pages add that any account found in violation of program policies is subject to automatic suspension without notification.

You come back from either one the same way, by fixing the account and then asking Google to reinstate it. Google also reserves the right to grant or deny an organization's participation at any time, for any reason, so send that request only after the whole account meets the rules.

Google says it primarily uses in-product notifications to tell you about compliance problems. So start inside Google Ads, and then check the email address on the account, because that's where the rest of Google's messages land.

The five causes Google names, and the fix for each

Google's account management policy pairs every reason for deactivation with the steps to come back.

Two more rules aren't on that list, and breaking either one can also stop a Grant. Google's website policy says your nonprofit must own the domain your ads point to and serve the entire site over HTTPS. Google's eligibility page says your organization must hold valid charity status in your country, so a lapse in your status reaches the Grant too.

Cause	What Google checks	What to fix before you ask
Click rate	A 5% click-through rate each month across the account. Two months in a row under it can lead to a temporary deactivation.	Raise the click rate on your keywords, then confirm it in the keyword total.
Conversion tracking	Valid conversion tracking that records at least one conversion a month.	Set tracking up the way Google's Ad Grants guide describes, and confirm a conversion records.
Bidding	A bid strategy the program allows.	Turn on conversion tracking and switch to a strategy like Maximize conversions.
Account setup	Location settings that show ads where your services help people, and at least 2 unique sitelinks.	Fix the location settings and add the sitelinks.
Program survey	A reply to the program survey Google sends from time to time.	Make sure Google's emails reach an inbox someone reads, then answer the survey.

How to raise a low click rate without gutting the account

Google's compliance guide says single-word keywords aren't permitted, apart from your own brand words, recognized medical conditions and a few other cases. It rules out overly generic keywords like "e-books" or "today's news". It also says you must pause or remove any keyword with a Quality Score of 1 or 2.

The guide then suggests pausing keywords that get lots of impressions and few clicks. We fix those keywords before we cut them, because a keyword your mission depends on is worth the work. We rewrite the ad so its headline repeats what people searched, point the keyword at the page that answers it, and add negative keywords for searches that have nothing to do with your work.

Google's guide has you check the fix by setting the dates to the last 7 days your ads ran, opening the Keywords page and reading the click rate in the row marked Total: filtered keywords. Keep working until that row reads at least 5%, and then send your request.

The tasks only your own team can do

On the Grants we manage, we run the ads, but Google sends a few tasks to the organization itself, often to whoever signed up first.

In the year to September 2026, 19% of our Grant clients who wrote to us had a thread about a Google task only their organization could do, like advertiser verification or a Google for Nonprofits login. Each one needed someone from that client's own team. If that person has left, the task sits in an inbox nobody reads, and an unanswered survey turns into a deactivation.

• Answer the program survey. Google emails it to the address on the Grant account, so keep that address on an inbox someone reads every week.
• Keep two admins in Google for Nonprofits. Use work email addresses, and when someone leaves, add the new person before you remove the old one.
• Prove who you are when Google asks. Use the exact legal name on your nonprofit papers, and have someone from your team sign in to do it.
• Tell Google when you change. A new name, address or tax status goes into Google for Nonprofits right away.
• Own your domain. Keep it in your organization's name, on a login your team holds, with auto-renew turned on.

What we do on the Grants we manage

We run 35+ Grant accounts for nonprofits, churches and pregnancy centers, and our system checks each one against Google's rules. The Compliance Watch: every Grant ad checked for disapprovals every hour, around the clock.

Our Account Standing promise reads like this: If your Grant account is suspended or throttled for a compliance cause we monitor, we work at no fee from the day it happens until the day it is reinstated and back at full daily deployment.

Google's FAQ says Grant funds don't roll over if unused, so you lose the credit for every week your ads are off. Once an account is live again, we work to put as much of the credit to work as Google allows. Our Google Ad Grants guide covers how we do that, and our pricing page shows what we charge.

If your Grant has stopped, or you'd like a second set of eyes before it does, book a call with Miguel. He'll go through what Google's notice says, which rules your account meets today and what it would take to get your ads running again.

Questions people ask

Can a suspended Google Ad Grant be reinstated?

Google gives you a way back. Its policy says accounts that fall out of compliance can fix the issue and request reinstatement, and its compliance guide links the reactivation form. Google also reserves the right to grant or deny participation, so fix every open issue before you ask.

Why was my Google Ad Grant deactivated?

Google's account management policy names five reasons: a click rate under 5% for 2 months in a row, missing conversion tracking, a bidding setup the program doesn't allow, missing location settings or sitelinks, and an unanswered program survey. Website and eligibility problems can stop a Grant too.

How long does Google Ad Grant reinstatement take?

Google's Ad Grants policy pages don't give a timeline. The best way to avoid a second wait is to fix every rule on the list before you file the reactivation form, and to say exactly what you changed.

What is the 5% CTR rule for Google Ad Grants?

Google asks Grant accounts to keep a 5% click-through rate each month, measured across the account rather than keyword by keyword. Google's policy says an account under 5% for 2 months in a row can be temporarily deactivated. The ads stay off until you fix the rate and ask to be reinstated.

Do we lose Grant money while the account is suspended?

Google's FAQ says Grant funds don't roll over if unused. The credit from the weeks your ads were off doesn't come back, so a fast, complete fix matters.

See how we manage Google Ad Grants

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