I'm having a problem verifiying my listing(s).

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I'm having a problem verifiying my listing(s).

Go through our step-by-step troubleshooters to find Help articles that can assist with your issue. And if we still haven't answered your question, fill out the short form at the end of the questions to get in touch with us. We'll get back to you via e-mail once we investigate.

Please note that newly verified listings, as well as updates to your existing listings, will take a few days to appear on Google Maps, even though they show within your dashboard right away. If you've waited a week for your newly verified listing or new information to appear, then please use the incorrect information troubleshooter.

Please also note that verified listings in your Places dashboard will source their corresponding local Google+ pages, even though those pages may not display any owner-verified badge. To submit your email address for updates on Google+ Local verification, please fill out this form.

Which verification method did you try?

I tried PIN verification for a single listing.
I tried verifying a bulk upload.

What is the status of your listing?

The status is Needs Action .
The status is not Needs Action .

A listing marked as Needs Action cannot show on Google in its current state. Further action is necessary on your part. Below, learn more about specific status messages and what you can do to activate your listing.

Needs Action

Not yet published

What does this mean? Your listing has not been verified yet.

What can I do? Verify that you are the owner of this listing by completing the PIN verification process. Learn more about PIN verification.

Needs Action

This listing does not comply with our policy of allowed terms.

What does this mean? After a manual review, we determined that your listing uses a term or exhibits a behavior that is unacceptable in the context you've provided.

What can I do? Consider whether Google Places for Business is an appropriate place to promote your business. Ensure that your listing adheres to our Google Places for Business quality guidelines. If possible, edit your listing to remove the questionable content or behavior.

Needs Action

Rejected

What does this mean? Your listing did not adhere to our Google Places for Business quality guidelines and has been deactivated. If enough listings do not adhere to our guidelines, this may result in account suspension. At that point, all listings will be marked as Needs Action and a red banner at the top of your account will read Account Suspended.

What can I do? Edit your listing so that it adheres to our guidelines, then request reconsideration of your listing within your account.

Note: Reconsideration is not currently available in all accounts. Users without reconsideration recourse may create a new listing that adheres to our guidelines. If your account has been suspended, you may use the contact form below.

If you’ve already submitted a reconsideration, it’s best to wait for a response. In addition, if you've requested a PIN for verification, it may take a couple of weeks for your PIN to arrive by mail. However, if you are still having problems verifying your listing, please call us or email us using the form below:

What is the official email address used to manage this business on Google Places for Business? Please note that the given email address must be your official Places for Business email address. Any followup will be sent to this email address. *

What is the complete title and address of the listing which shows as Needs Action

? *

Which ‘Needs Action’ message is showing for your listing? *

* Required field

Which verification option did you most recently use?

Postcard
Phone
SMS
I did not have a verification option.
There is a verification option unavailable to me that I would like to try.

Have you waited 15 days?

Please either call us or complete the following form:

What is the complete physical address of the listing in question? *

What problem did you have with postcard verification? *

If you have received a PIN, what is it?

* Required field

Your postcard may take 2-3 weeks to arrive. Thank you for your patience.

What type of phone number did you use to verify your listing?

My phone number was for a business line.
My phone number was for a personal line.

Does your business phone use a phone tree?

Please either call us or complete the following form:

What is the complete physical address of the listing in question? *

What is a phone number where we can reach an authorized representative of your business during working hours? *

Please list the name of the individual(s) who will be considered points of contact for your business. *

* Required field

If you are having problems either receiving the PIN or verifying using the PIN, please either call us or complete the following form:

What is the complete physical address of the listing in question? *

What is a phone number where we can reach an authorized representative of your business during working hours? *

Please list the name of the individual(s) who will be considered points of contact for your business. *

* Required field

If the phone number you entered was for a personal line, try changing it to a business line phone number and verifying again. Using a personal line will cause that phone number to appear in our search results.

Was the number you provided for a landline?

Is SMS the only verification method available to you?

Please either call us or complete the following form:

What is the complete physical address of the listing in question? *

What is a phone number where we can reach an authorized representative of your business during working hours? *

Please list the name of the individual(s) who will be considered points of contact for your business. *

* Required field

If SMS did not work, you can also try verifying with the Phone or Postcard options. Click on a verification method below for more information.

Verification by phone

With phone verification, you’ll receive an automated phone call to the phone number listed in your Google Places for business account. Have a pen and paper ready because you'll get a phone call immediately after you click Submit. During this call, you'll be prompted to enter the unique PIN in a box next to the business that requested verification. Please wait one minute after you receive the PIN before you enter the PIN into the box so our system records the PIN. When verification is complete, business information changes will show up on Google.

If you're unable to receive a phone call at your business while attempting to verify, return to Google Places for Business later and verify by phone then.

If you try to verify your business listing by phone and it doesn't work, this could be for one of several reasons:

You have an automated phone system or phone tree.
The phone number you submitted was incorrect or invalid.
You encountered phone systems issues, like a bad connection.
Someone at your number may have asked not to receive further calls from Google Places for business.
You aren't using a touch-tone phone.
Our system can't verify your PIN.
You didn't recognize a call from Google Places for business, or indicated that you didn't request a call.

If you encountered any of the reasons above, please request the PIN to be sent to you by mail. It may take 2-3 weeks, but it is a more sure way for your business to be verified on Maps.

Verification by postcard

You can choose to receive a PIN by regular postal mail at the business address you submitted to Google Maps. Once you've received your PIN, you can then use it to verify your business listing in Google Places for business.

It generally takes 2-3 weeks for a PIN by postcard to arrive. If you've been waiting longer than this, visit Google Places for Business to request a new postcard. Keep in mind that only one PIN by postcard is valid at a time, so requesting a new postcard will make the previous PIN invalid, even if you do end up receiving it. Similarly, if you also request a PIN by phone while waiting for your postcard, you must enter the PIN of the most recently attempted method.

To make sure your PIN by postcard reaches you, check that your contact information is correct. You can also add a contact name to your postcard by logging into Google Places for business and adding a name in the 'Provide a Contact Name' field. Note that you can only receive a PIN at the business address you've submitted to Google Maps. This way, we can verify ownership of a business in part by validating who received the PIN at the business address.

If you enter an incorrect PIN 5 times, you'll receive a message indicating that your verification failed, and you will no longer be able to verify the listing. When this happens, you'll need to delete that listing from your Google Places for business account and start the process again, creating a brand new listing.

If SMS did not work, you can also try verifying with the Phone or Postcard options. Click on a verification method below for more information.

Verification by phone

If you're unable to receive a phone call at your business while attempting to verify, return to Google Places for Business later and verify by phone then.

If you try to verify your business listing by phone and it doesn't work, this could be for one of several reasons:

You have an automated phone system or phone tree.
The phone number you submitted was incorrect or invalid.
You encountered phone systems issues, like a bad connection.
Someone at your number may have asked not to receive further calls from Google Places for Business.
You aren't using a touch-tone phone.
Our system can't verify your PIN.
You didn't recognize a call from Google Places for business, or indicated that you didn't request a call.

If you encountered any of the reasons above, please request the PIN to be sent to you by mail. It may take 2-3 weeks, but it is a more sure way for your business to be verified on Maps.

Verification by postcard

It generally takes 2-3 weeks for a PIN by postcard to arrive. If you've been waiting longer than this, visit Google Places for business to request a new postcard. Keep in mind that only one PIN by postcard is valid at a time, so requesting a new postcard will make the previous PIN invalid, even if you do end up receiving it. Similarly, if you also request a PIN by phone while waiting for your postcard, you must enter the PIN of the most recently attempted method.

Does your account have duplicate listings?

Duplicate listings may create verification problems. There should only be one listing per business location, both in the Google Places for business account and in search results. If you have duplicate listings for your business either in Google Maps search results or in your Google Places for business account, try following the instructions below to remove the additional listings.

Do multiple results for your business appear in Google Maps search results?

If so, you can fix it by following these steps:

duplicate business in search result

Make sure you've claimed one of the listings in Google Places for business. Verify that there’s only one active listing in your account by signing in to your Google Places for business account.
1. If there's more than one listing in your account for the same business, you’ll first need to fix that problem by following the steps in the section below.
2. If you don't have a listing for it at all, you should claim your business.
For every extra result for your business, go to its Place Page, click the Report a problem link, and select Place has another listing. If you can, include a link to your claimed Place Page in the comments section.
Google will review these reports and fix duplicate business listings.

Are there multiple listings in your Google Places for business account for the same business location?

duplicate listing

When you sign in to your Google Places for business account, if you have multiple listings for the same location, that can be a violation of the quality guidelines. You should avoid having duplicates in your account. Here’s how to ensure you have only one listing per business location:

Choose the listing that you'd prefer to keep in your account.
1. Make sure that you have all your enhanced content (photos, business hours, description) attached to this listing.
2. Make sure that its status is Active.
Delete all other listings for the same business from your account. Choose the "Remove this listing from my Google Places account" option. These changes can take several weeks to appear.
If there are multiple results for your business in Google’s search results, follow the instructions above.

Note that once duplicate listings have been removed, you should combine photos and other information into the single listing.

Please either call us or complete the following form:

What is the complete physical address of the listing in question? *

What is a phone number where we can reach an authorized representative of your business during working hours? *

Please list the name of the individual(s) who will be considered points of contact for your business. *

* Required field

To accurately represent ownership and maintain the quality of listings shown on Google, not all verification options are available to all listings. Please try to verify your listing with the options available to you.

I am awaiting verification.
I am having problems completing my bulk upload.

Have you waited longer than 1 week to receive a response regarding your upload?

Please complete the following form:

What is the date that you requested bulk verification? *

* Required field

It may take up to a week for us to respond to your bulk verification request. Please also remember that once verification occurs, it can take 2-4 weeks for your listings appear.

Bulk verification for Places listings can take around 2-4 weeks, but errors or quality guideline violations may delay the process. When you upload a data file to Google Places for business, you may encounter errors that can cause listings to be disapproved. See the list below for common issues that delay the verification process.

Email addresses not containing the official domain name of the business will require additional steps toward verification and may take longer to process.

Common issues that delay the bulk verification process

Business Name:

Capitalize appropriately. Make sure the business name reflects the same capitalization as it does in real life.
Use the same business name used in real life.
Include only the business name, and not any additional information about the business, such as as its speciality or location. (For example, if Joe's Coffee has 10 stores in one city, the business name for each listing would simply be "Joe's Coffee," and not "Joe's Gourmet Coffee Store North Beach.")

Business Location:

Only include existing physical locations.
Multiple listings at the same physical location are not permitted within one feed. Please consolidate multiple services or businesses under one title.
Storefront addresses should be listed. P.O. boxes should not be used.
Only precise and accurate addresses should be entered in Address Line 1. Other location identifiers (such as shopping center names, business park names, or cross streets) should be entered in Address Line 2.

Website & Phone:

Use a local phone number instead of a call center number whenever possible.
Use direct phone numbers and URLs to the business listed, rather than redirects.

Ineligible Business Models:

All of the listings in your bulk upload need to be for the same business. Accounts should not have multiple different businesses within the same account.
Only businesses that make in-person contact with customers qualify for a Google Places for business listing.
Businesses that are under construction or that have not yet opened to the public are not eligible for a listing on Google Places for business.
Rental properties or properties for sale, such as vacation homes or vacant apartments, are not eligible for a listing on Google Places for business. You should create a listing for the central office that processes the rentals or sales, rather than the individual rental or for sale properties.
Businesses that hold temporary events and that rent out other facilities for certain periods of time may not list these facilities as their own Places listings.
Businesses that operate in a service area, as opposed to a single location, should not create listings for the different areas they service. Businesses that operate in a service area should create one listing for the central office or location and designate service areas. Learn how to add service areas to your listing.

Common Formatting Issues:

Zip codes are not correct or are incomplete. Sometimes spreadsheet software can cut off leading zeros, which will cause locations with those zip codes to be disapproved.
All listings must include telephone numbers that are formatted correctly. Google Places for business requires telephone numbers to be in specific formats. Please see the error message under details to see the correct phone format needed for your listing.
Country codes are not valid. Please visit here for more information about formatting the country codes.
There are too many characters in one or more of the fields.

Common Uploading Errors:

Make sure your feed has data in it.
Be sure to include at least ten locations in your feed. If you have less than 10 locations you can add and verify them individually.
If you are using optional attributes in your feed, make sure these are named properly. Additionally, if you are defining your own custom attributes, be sure that they are formatted properly.

If you are still having problems completing your bulk upload, fill out the contact form:

What is the official email address used to manage your listing(s) on Google Places for Business?
Please note that the given email address must be your official Places for Business account address. Any followup will be sent to this address. *

Briefly describe your issue: *

* Required field

We need you to be logged in to your Places for business account in order to continue. If you don't have a Places for business account, you may create one. Please login or create an account at places.google.com and return to this page.