How to restore/reactivate a suspended user?

Restore a suspended user

As an administrator for your organization's Google Workspace or Cloud Identity service, you can restore suspended user accounts that were:

• Suspended by you or another administrator to temporarily block their access.
• Automatically suspended by Google systems for being at risk.
• Temporarily restricted from using their Gmail account for exceeding account limits (Google Workspace only).
• Automatically suspended from Gmail for potential spam abuse (Google Workspace only).

Once restored, users can sign in and access all their services and data.

Important: You can’t restore an account that was suspended for abuse or for breaching the ​Google Workspace​ or Cloud Identity Terms of Service.

Restore an individual user

• In the Admin console, go to Menu >  Directory > Users.
• In the Users list, find the user that you want to reactivate/restore.
• Hover over the suspended user and click More options > Reactivate.
  
  
  
  

• (Optional) You can also find this option on the user’s account page.
  • Click on the user's name and go to their user account page.
  • At the top right, click Reactivate.
    
    

If the Reactivate option isn't available, check the Suspension reasons and their recovery options below.

Suspension reasons and their recovery options

The reason why a user was suspended appears at the top of their user account page.

Suspension message	Definition	Recovery options
Suspended by admin	You or another administrator manually suspended the user.	To restore the user, on the user's account page in the top-right corner, click Reactivate.
Automatically suspended: The user is underage	The user signed up for an extra Google service (such as Google Pay) and entered a date of birth that didn't meet the minimum age requirements. In compliance with the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), Google will delete the user after 30 days. Note: Google Workspace for Education edition customers have different age requirements. If a student under the age of 13 has been suspended, admins should contact Google Cloud support ​​​​.	Method 1: Administrators can correct the user’s age directly. To update, on the user's account page in the top-right corner, click Update User's Birthdate. Method 2: If the user entered their date of birth incorrectly, they have 30 days to sign in at accounts.google.com and submit proof of age.
Automatically suspended: Unverified sign-in	There are two possible causes for the suspension: Cause 1: The user was suspended for engaging in abusive activity, such as phishing or spamming.	The user can recover their account by signing in at accounts.google.com and following the on-screen instructions. Depending on the type and severity of the abuse, the user is prompted to either clear a CAPTCHA or enter a verification code sent to their mobile phone.
	Cause 2: The user's account was added along with many other accounts within a short period, such as when you add multiple users at once using a CSV file or manually add many accounts quickly.	The user can activate their account by signing in at accounts.google.com and entering a verification code sent to their mobile phone.
Automatically suspended: The user might be at risk	The user was suspended after Google systems detected potentially suspicious sign-in activity.	Note: Before restoring the user, follow the steps in the Administrator security checklist. To restore the user, on the user's account page in the top-right corner, click Reactivate.
Automatically suspended: Didn't follow Google Terms of Service	The user was suspended for abuse by breaching the ​Google Workspace​ or Cloud Identity Terms of Service.	Such accounts are unrecoverable—they can't be restored by a Google administrator or Google Cloud support. Admins also can't delete a user account that's been suspended for abuse.

Restore users in bulk

You can restore suspended users in bulk by using a CSV file or the Admin SDK APIs.

->Use a CSV file

To restore multiple users using a CSV file, follow the directions in To edit several users at once.

In the downloaded CSV template, in the New Status [Upload Only] column, enter Active.

->Use the Admin SDK APIs

To restore multiple users using the Admin SDK APIs, follow the directions on the Users: update page. For each user, set the suspended boolean variable to False.

For the account suspended by Google:

If Google suspends a user's Gmail account for violating Google mail policies, you might be able to restore their email service in the Google Admin console.

While the user's account is suspended, they can't send or receive mail. But they can keep using Drive, Calendar, and other Google services.

Limit on restoring a Gmail account(Suspended by Google)

You can only restore the same Gmail account 5 times each calendar year. If an account gets suspended more often than that, no one can reset it, including Google Support. You must wait 24 hours for the account to be automatically re-enabled.

To help a user avoid getting their account suspended, show them Google mail policies.

Why can't I restore a Gmail account?

If you can't restore a Gmail account, it might be due to one of the following reasons:

• The same user's account has already been suspended 5 times during the same calendar year.
• In extreme cases, Google requires waiting 24 hours before restoring an account.
• The user's account was automatically suspended by Google for abuse.
• You're using the legacy free edition of G Suite.