What happens if the primary owner Google Account is deleted

Is this your situation?

Do this first

Which situation is yours?

• Primary owner account deleted by you: channel is deleted too.
• You want to act before the primary owner account is deleted.
• Unsure if account is deleted: verify the account status first.
• Deletion recently happened: a recently deleted Brand Account may be recoverable.
• Consider adding another owner to your Brand Account besides the primary owner.
• You want another owner to confirm the account status.
• Restoring a deleted Brand Account: tap Deleted accounts, then Restore this Brand Account.

How YouTube handles this

• If you delete the primary owner account linked to your channel, the channel will also be deleted.
• A recently deleted Brand Account may be recoverable.
• Restoring a deleted Brand Account requires tapping Deleted accounts, then Restore this Brand Account.
• A restored Brand Account will show up in the list of Brand Accounts.
• It is the channel owner's responsibility to know their Brand Account's ownership details.

Which recovery path is yours?

1. Is the primary owner Google Account already deleted? If you delete the primary owner account linked to your channel, the channel will also be deleted.
2. Was the deletion recent? A recently deleted Brand Account may be recoverable.
3. Are you trying to restore the account? Restoring a deleted Brand Account requires tapping Deleted accounts, then tapping Restore this Brand Account.
4. Did the restore succeed? A restored Brand Account will show up in the list of Brand Accounts.
5. Do you have another owner on your Brand Account? It is recommended to have at least one other owner associated with your Brand Account in addition to the primary owner.

What not to do

• Deleting a Google Account without checking channel links first Deleting the primary owner account deletes the channel linked to it.Why it happens: You want to close an unused account and don't think to check the channel first.
• Assuming restoration is always possible Only a recently deleted Brand Account may be recoverable.Why it happens: You assume a deleted account can always be brought back.
• Having only one owner on the account It is recommended to have at least one other owner associated with your Brand Account in addition to the primary owner.Why it happens: You set up the account alone and never add anyone else.Already happened: Add a backup owner now to close this gap.

What to have ready

• Account status Confirm whether the primary owner Google Account still exists.
• Deletion timing Note how recently the deletion happened, if it has.
• Other owners Check whether any other owner was added to the account.
• Primary owner role Check whether the Brand Account has one primary owner.
• Backup owner Check whether at least one other owner is associated with the account.
• Restore window Check whether the Brand Account is recently deleted and may be recoverable.
• Restore steps Check for the Deleted accounts option and the Restore this Brand Account action.

Stop this happening again

Quick reference

Keeping track of who has access