Why was my new Etsy shop Suspended?

This question gets asked all the time. If you are sitting at home, scratching your head, wondering ‘Why was my new Etsy shop Suspended?’ then worry no more. This article will outline why new Etsy shops may be suspended, and what to do if your shop is suspended.

New Etsy shops being suspended is something that happens all too often. It can be a scary, confusing situation for new shop owners.

To make matters worse, Etsy shops will be suspended with no email, and no explanation of what to do if your store is suspended. Just look at the Etsy subreddit or any Etsy seller Facebook group.

I have also written an article for those placed on an Etsy payment reserve if this applies to you, rather than a suspension.

Please note that this article only contains information for new shops which are ‘suspended without reason’. If your shop has been suspended due to violations of Etsys seller policy, then this article is not for you.

Why was my new Etsy shop suspended?

If your new Etsy shop has been suspended, don’t worry! It happens to a lot of new sellers, and even to established sellers opening a second shop. Etsy will suspend shops as a way to verify your account details. They use this suspension as a way to double check ID documents, tax information and banking details.

For this reason, it is crucial that you open your new Etsy shop using your full legal name, tax information, home or business address and banking details. Any inconsistencies in this information will lead to a permanent suspension – meaning you are no longer eligible to sell on Etsy even if you open a new shop.

Etsy will also look for things like whether you are using a VPN to mask your true location/IP address, and check whether you have been permanently suspended before. If everything is in order, you are eligible to be reinstated!

The only other reason new sellers may be suspended, is due to an overdue balance. Despite having very few upfront fees, you will still need to pay listing fees as a new seller, whether you manage to sell products or not. Some new Etsy shops may be automatically suspended, if your payment method fails for your listing fees.

How do I know if my new Etsy shop is suspended?

As a seller, Etsy makes it quite clear that your shop is suspended. Inside your Etsy shop manager, you will get a big red notice saying ‘Your account is currently suspended’.

All of your listings will also be automatically suspended with the message ‘Deactivated by Etsy’. Customers who visit a suspended shop on Etsy will see a banner saying “[SHOP NAME] is currently not selling on Etsy.

What to do if your new Etsy shop is suspended?

If you’ve received an email from Etsy about your account status, you should resolve the issue(s) stated in the email and respond to it directly, letting them know that you have fixed the issues.

This may include things such as providing a scan of your Identification documents or verifying your bank account using plaid or manually. You must make sure that you do exactly as the email says before responding. If they re-assess your account and find the same problems, this may lead to a permanent suspension.

If your new Etsy shop is suspended with no email, I suggest reaching out to Etsy support. Etsy does not give much instruction in this process, but from what I have seen, reaching out to support is the best way to get a new shop reinstated. Etsy will systematically go through your new shop and investigate whether everything is in order.

If your Etsy shop was suspended due to a payment failure, you’ll need to pay your amount due to reinstate your account. After you pay your balance, your account should be automatically reinstated.

How long does it take Etsy to review a suspended account?

From my time spent on Etsy forums and Facebook groups, I have seen this process take as little as 6 days from first contact with Etsy support, up to over 3 weeks. One thing you can always count on, is the lack of communication in the process.

Etsy will rarely reply to support emails, and if they do, it will be a generic, automated message. Some suspended shops are reinstated without any communication with Etsy, while others will receive an email. 

The best thing to do in the meantime, is to continue creating products, while regularly checking your Etsy account to see whether the suspension banners have been removed.

What happens if my new Etsy shop is permanently suspended?

If Etsy finds some inconsistencies in their review, it will lead to a permanent shop suspension. Inconsistencies may include things such as lying about which country you are in, or your banking details not matching your legal information.

If you have been dishonest in your account setup, it is very unlikely that Etsy will reverse this decision. Other violations of Etsy’s seller policies may also lead to this suspension.

If your new shop is permanently suspended on Etsy, they do have an appeal process. In all honesty however,  I very rarely see anyone be successful in this process. Almost all sellers will get the same email, stating:

• Items listed for sale don’t meet our handmade, vintage, or craft supply policies
• Items violate Etsy’s Prohibited Items Policy
• Shop violates Etsy’s Intellectual Property Policy
• The account owner’s information is inconsistent, incorrect, or closely associated with an account previously removed from Etsy

How to appeal a permanent suspension on Etsy

If your shop is permanently suspended, it is still worth giving the appeal process a go. To appeal a permanent shop suspension:

1. Go to Etsy Help Center‍
2. Scroll down to ‘Contact Etsy support’
3. Click on ‘Selling on Etsy’
4. Resolve any open cases against your shop and Pay any outstanding balance in your account
5. Click ‘Appeal suspended account’
6. Read all linked information, then click ‘File an Appeal’

How to write your Etsy suspension appeal message

Your appeal message will be unique to your situation, and the violations you committed. If you have an email from Etsy, they should tell you why you were suspended. Some guidelines for writing this message:

• State the reason for your appeal.
• Admit to and apologies for your mistakes
• Write an action plan about how to intend to resolve those violations
• State that you have read the seller policies
• Ensure that you will not violate these policies in the future

You will only have one chance to appeal your suspension, so do it right the first time. Any further attempts will be faced with the same automatic message.

What to do if your Etsy suspension appeal is rejected?

If your appeal is rejected, you are out of luck on are banned from selling on Etsy. This means you are not allowed open another shop with Etsy. Any attempt to open a new store will end in the same outcome.

Getting banned on Etsy is not the end of the world. In fact, Etsy’s strict policies is one of the reasons I always recommend having multiple streams of income. The good news is, there are dozens of other ways you can make money online by selling digital products.

If you want to see all the platforms I use to sell digital products, you can check out my 2022 income report. Getting banned on Etsy is not the end of the world. Some platforms I recommend include:

• Shopify
• WordPress + Woocommerce
• Gumroad
• Creative Fabrica
• Amazon KDP
• Amazon Merch

Conclusion

New shops getting banned on Etsy is extremely common. If you have done nothing wrong, and stuck to Etsy rules you have nothing to worry about. After contacting Etsy support, your shop should be back up and running in no time.

If you have made any violations while creating your shop, your best hope is to apologise and file an appeal.

If this appeal should fail, it is time to move onto other platforms. Just be sure to read over the terms and conditions of each new platform before starting your new shops.