How to request ownership of a Google Business Profile someone else controls

If you own the business but someone else owns its verified Business Profile, go to business.google.com/add, enter the business name and address, choose your business and select Request Access, then fill in the form and select Submit. Google emails the current owner, who has 3 days to respond. If they don't respond, you may get the option to claim the profile, but Google says that option isn't always available.

This page is for the business that is locked out of its own profile, for example by an old agency or a former employee, and for the local agency helping it. If the old agency simply needs to be removed and you are still an owner, you don't need any of this: see removing an old agency's access.

Check who owns it now

Before you request anything, find out where you stand:

• You can sign in to the profile. Open the profile, select More > Business Profile settings > People and access. Google says users of a profile can see the names and email addresses of its owners and managers. If you are an owner but not the primary owner, you don't need a request: the primary owner can transfer primary ownership to you.
• You can't sign in, or the login is lost. If the profile was verified with your business's own Google Account and you have lost the sign-in, Google points to its Accounts troubleshooter to recover it. Recover that account rather than requesting ownership from it.
• Search shows no Claim or Own button. Google says that if you can't find the "Claim this business" or "Own this business" button, you might already be the owner.
• The profile is not verified. Google says you can claim and verify it, and that you own it once verification is complete.

Ownership request or agency access request?

Search results mix up two different Google flows:

• Requesting ownership is for a business owner whose verified profile is owned by someone else. It is described on this page.
• Requesting access is for an agency with an organization in Business Profile Manager. It asks to manage a profile the business keeps, under Manage invites > Request access. See how to give an agency access to a Business Profile.

An agency that only needs to work on a client's profile should not request ownership. Google's guidelines say an agency must never claim a profile without the business owner's express consent, and must, whenever possible, encourage the owner to own the profile and add the agency as a manager.

The quickest route: ask the current owner

If you know who the owner is and they will cooperate, no request is needed. Google's steps for them:

1. The owner adds you: More > Business Profile settings > People and access, select Add, enter the address of the business's Google Account, choose Owner under "Access" and select Invite.
2. You accept the invitation.
3. The primary owner transfers primary ownership to you: on People and access, select you, select Edit next to "Access", then Primary owner > Save.

Only the primary owner can transfer primary ownership, and only to an existing owner or manager. Google says transferring primary ownership to the new owner keeps your business info, like reviews. Google also says new owners and managers wait 7 days before they can remove other owners or managers, or make themselves or someone else the primary owner.

Google's transfer article is not consistent on one point: next to "only the primary owner can transfer primary ownership", it says co-owners upgrade themselves to primary owners. So if you are an owner and the primary owner stops answering, look for the Primary owner option on your own entry once your first 7 days have passed.

Request ownership

When the owner can't be reached or won't cooperate, Google's request ownership article gives these steps for a storefront or hybrid business:

1. Go to business.google.com/add.
2. Enter the name and address of your business.
3. Choose your business from the list.
4. You get a message that says "Someone else may manage this Business Profile."
5. Select Request Access.
6. If you're authorized to manage the business, Google lets you request ownership from the current profile owner.
7. Fill out the form.
8. Select Submit.

Two other cases, from the same article:

• A service-area business with no shop or office the customer visits contacts Google instead. In the "Tell us what we can help with" field, enter Transfer ownership of listing, and select Transfer ownership of listing as the issue when you submit.
• A bulk-verified account can request ownership of existing profiles with the bulk upload spreadsheet.

Send the request from a Google Account that belongs to the business, not to a person who might leave: it is the account that gets to manage the profile if the request succeeds.

What happens next

• Right away: you get an email confirming the request. The current owner is notified by email and has 3 days to respond. You can check the status by signing in to your Business Profile or with the link in your confirmation email.
• Approved: you get an approval email and can manage the profile. The 7-day limits for new owners apply.
• Denied: you get a rejection email. Google says you can still suggest an edit to the profile and can try to appeal the decision.
• No response after 3 days: you may have the option to claim the profile. Open the confirmation email, select View request, then Verify, and follow the instructions to verify your business. You can also sign in to your Business Profile and look for a "Claim" or "Verify" button. Google says the option to claim a profile isn't always available.

Don't create a second profile while you wait. Google allows one profile per business, and a profile it treats as a duplicate doesn't show on Search or Maps.

Your old agency owns the profile

Here Google's guidelines help as much as the form. Google calls an agency that manages a profile it doesn't own an authorized representative, and its ownership guidelines say such representatives must:

• never claim a Business Profile without express consent from the business owner
• always respond to management access requests promptly
• always transfer Business Profile ownership to the business owner immediately upon request

Google adds that failing these can lead to suspension of the profile or the Google Account, and that ownership may be revoked when the business confirms the agency is no longer authorized to manage it.

In practice:

1. Ask the agency in writing to add your business's Google Account as an owner and then make it primary owner, with the steps under "The quickest route" above.
2. If it does not, send an ownership request as above. The agency, as current owner, has 3 days to respond.
3. Once you are primary owner, and after the 7-day wait, remove the agency's users under People and access with Remove person, or keep it as a manager if it still works for you.

Our Business Profile access guide explains why a manager role is enough for an agency's day-to-day work.

Someone is requesting ownership of your profile

Google's article says the current owner is notified by email and has 3 days to respond, and that the person asking may get the option to claim the profile if there is no response. It does not describe the owner's screen, so start from that email, and don't leave it unanswered:

• You know the requester and they should have it (for example, the business owner, if you are the agency): approve it, or transfer primary ownership with the steps above.
• You don't know them, or they should not own it: deny it within the 3 days. Then check People and access to see who else is an owner or manager.
• It is your agency asking for ownership to do its work: add it as a manager instead.

When a new agency starts, the access checklist lists what to give it, who at the business can give each item and what level to ask for, so ownership stays with the business from the start.