Why did Meta restrict my ad account or profile right after I verified it, and how do I get it back?

TofuAnswer by the Tofu team · checked

Meta may ask you to verify when it notices unusual activity, and finishing that check doesn't always end the restriction: Meta says you're either reinstated or given further steps. To get it back, open Business Support Home on a computer, click the restricted account under Account status overview, and do what the What you can do section asks: confirm your identity, start verification, secure your account with two-factor authentication or request a review. Only an admin can request a review. Meta says reviews usually take 48 hours, you get a limited number of them, and the decision is final.

As of October 2026.

Restricted after connecting an AI tool or agent? See whether connecting an AI agent can get your Meta ad account banned. Account fine but ads rejected? See why Meta rejects ads that ran fine for months.

Before you start

  • Admin access. Meta only lets an admin on the account request a review. Business verification needs full control of the business portfolio.
  • A computer. Meta's troubleshooting steps for Business Support Home start on a computer.
  • What Meta may ask for: the email address on your account, your mobile phone for an SMS text, a photo of your ID (such as a passport or driver's license) and the payment method on the account.
  • Two-factor authentication on your Facebook profile. Meta may require it to publish ads, including for people in some business portfolios more than 90 days old, and says it may restrict or remove advertising access without it.
  • Time. Once you start confirming your identity, Meta says you may need to finish within a set timeframe.

Step 1: Find out what Meta restricted

Go to Business Support Home, choose Account status overview, and open the Outstanding tab under Recent account issues. Meta can restrict four things, and each one hits differently:

What's restrictedWhat Meta says it means
Personal profileYou can't advertise or create new ads. Ad accounts where you're the only user may also be disabled, but other people on the business portfolio, ad account or Page may still be able to advertise.
Ad accountThe ad account, its ads and some of its advertising assets are disabled.
Business portfolioThe portfolio isn't allowed to advertise.
PageThe Page isn't allowed to advertise.

Step 2: Understand why it came right after verification

Meta doesn't publish a link between finishing verification and a new restriction. Its help pages do say how verification and restrictions fit together:

  • The verification can be part of the restriction. Meta says that when it notices unusual behavior, it may ask you to confirm it's really you. After you confirm, your account is either reinstated right away or you get further steps. If the restriction is still there after you verify, Meta says to go back to What you can do and follow the next recommended step.
  • Verification is one check among several. Meta lists other reasons it may restrict advertisers: breaking its Community Standards or Advertising Standards, a business portfolio it suspects was hacked, missing two-factor authentication, unusual payment or account activity, and high rates of failed or disputed payments. Its pages don't say that passing an identity check clears any of these.
  • Details that don't match. If you give false or misleading information, or try to verify a business you aren't authorized to represent, Meta says it may refuse verification, remove it "or take additional action on the account." If you edit your business details after verifying, you have to verify again.
  • Mistakes happen. Meta says its enforcement isn't perfect and "both machines and people make mistakes."

Check the notice is real first. Meta says you can confirm in Business Support Home's account overview whether emails, texts or calls about account issues are genuine. It also says its staff never ask for your password or payment details by chat, text, email or phone, and that its emails come only from its own domains, such as facebook.com, fb.com and meta.com.

Step 3: Do the step Meta asks for

Click the restricted account and look at What you can do. Meta shows one or more of these:

OptionWhat it involves
Confirm your identityOn-screen steps that may ask for your email, an SMS code, an ID photo or your payment method. Meta says this is needed in most cases before it reinstates an account.
Start verificationShown when Meta notices unusual behavior. It may ask for your email, an ID photo or your payment method. The account "may be reinstated" when you finish.
Secure your accountTurn on two-factor authentication, click a link Meta sends to the email listed in your business portfolio, then ask someone with full control of the business to approve your access.
Request reviewFor restrictions over a policy violation. See Step 4.

If Meta checks a video selfie or ID photo with face recognition, it says that when its system finds a match, it "usually takes 1 minute to verify you." If there's no match, or you decline face recognition, your selfie or ID may go to a person for review, or you may be asked to verify another way.

Step 4: Request a review if it's a policy restriction

  1. In Business Support Home, select Account status overview in the left menu.
  2. Select the restricted account.
  3. In What you can do, select Request review.
  4. Complete the on-screen steps.

What Meta says about reviews:

  • You must be an admin on the account.
  • Reviews typically finish in 48 hours but can take longer.
  • You can request an advertising restriction review only a limited number of times, and once the review is done, "the decision is final." Asking for a review won't hurt your standing.
  • If the restriction is lifted, ads that were running don't restart on their own. Turn them back on in Ads Manager.
  • If an ad account is disabled for a policy violation and stays ineligible for 6 months, unused prepaid services may be forfeited where the law allows, and the account can't be reinstated after that.

Fix what you can before you ask. If an old failed payment caused it, Meta says the ad account stays disabled until you pay the amount due: go to Billing & payments, select the ad account, click Payment methods, then Pay now.

Step 5: If your business verification was rejected or is stuck

  • Where to look. Your status is in Security Center in Meta Business Suite, or in the tool where you started (such as Commerce Manager).
  • How long it takes. Meta says a decision may take up to 14 business days.
  • Why Meta rejects. It lists false or misleading information (or suspicion of it), claiming a business portfolio you don't own or can't represent, trying to get around its review, and a website that doesn't load, isn't HTTPS or links to an error page.
  • What to fix. Your legal business name, address, phone number and website must exactly match your legal entity. If no record matches, Meta may ask for a business license, articles of incorporation or a similar document. If you were rejected, Meta says you may be eligible to appeal; check Security Center.
  • Monthly invoicing shortcut. If you pay by monthly invoicing, Meta says you can verify with your credit line details instead of documents.

Business verification isn't Meta Verified, which is a paid subscription with a badge and enhanced support.

Step 6: If your personal profile was disabled

Meta's Transparency Center says you'll see a message that your account is disabled when you try to log in, and that Meta tells you "whether you can request another review if you believe we made a mistake." For most violations, Meta disables an account only after repeated warnings and restrictions, but it says a violation "may be severe enough that we'll disable your account after one occurrence." Follow the steps shown in that message.

In December 2025, Meta said its appeals process "is now faster and easier, with fewer steps and AI assistance for eligible cases." In March 2026, it started rolling out its Meta AI support assistant in the Facebook and Instagram apps and in the desktop Help Center, in countries where Meta AI is available.

While your profile is down, other admins can keep the business running, so no business portfolio should rely on one person. Add a second admin before trouble starts: restrictions for unusual activity can block adding admins, partners or users, and creating ad accounts.

Step 7: Don't make it worse while you wait

  • Don't open new profiles, Pages or ad accounts to keep advertising. Meta's Account Integrity policy covers accounts "created or repurposed to evade a previous account or entity removal" and accounts "owned by the same person or entity as an account that has been disabled."
  • Keep a record. Save every notice, its date and any case number for support.

Common problems

ProblemWhy it happensFix
No Request review optionYou aren't an admin on that account, or the restriction isn't a policy oneAsk an admin to request it, or do the other step Meta shows
"You can't request another review"You've used your reviews, or Meta's message on a disabled profile says no further review is possibleMeta treats the decision as final; other people on the business portfolio, ad account or Page may still be able to advertise
Verification under review for weeksMeta allows up to 14 business days, and some checks run outside Security CenterCheck Security Center and the tool where you started; look for an email from Meta
Error #1815010 on payments even with full accessAdvertisers on Reddit report this error code; Meta's help center doesn't explain it. It does say a failed payment disables an ad account until the amount due is paidCheck Billing & payments for an unpaid balance and pay it, then click Contact support at the bottom of Business Support Home
Sources (17)

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