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How To Transfer Your App From One Google Developer Account To Another
How To Transfer Your App From One Google Developer Account To Another
Tim Tietz avatar
Written by Tim Tietz
Updated over a week ago

How To Transfer Your App From One Google Developer Account To Another

In this article we’ll go over what you will need to do in order to transfer an app from one Google developer account to another. The reason for doing so can vary from a change in ownership of an app, to making an app more compliant with Google’s latest app store guidelines.

What Are The Steps You Need To Follow In Order To Transfer Your App To Another Google Developer Account

When you’re ready to transfer an app from one Google Developer Account to another, make sure to follow these steps:

Step 1: Review Google’s Policy Guidelines

Make sure that both the original Google Developer Account that the app is currently in, and the new Account that the app is going to be transferred to both adhere to Google’s current Policy Guidelines.

Step 2: Download The Reports You May Need Later (Optional)

When you transfer an app to a different account, the apps' users, download statistics, ratings and reviews, content ratings, and store listing information are all transferred to the new account.

But the bulk export reports, payout reports, and earnings reports won't transfer with the app, so you may want to download any reports you'll need later. New versions of these reports will be created once the app transfers to a new account.

Step 3: Make Sure Both Developer Accounts Are Currently Registered & Active

Before you can submit a transfer request from your original Google Developer Account to another Account (known as the Target Account), both accounts need to be registered and active. To confirm that both accounts are active, make sure:

  • You’re able to sign in to the Original Account

  • The registration is complete for the Target Account. If you see the message "Why can't I publish" in the app header, review the information provided to resolve any missing information.

Note: When creating a new Target Account, a $25 USD registration fee will need to be paid. After the transfer is complete, if you want to close the Original Account, you can reach out to Google’s support team who can refund the registration fee for that account.

Step 4: Locate The Required Information For The Original Account and Target Account

In order to transfer an app from one Google developer account to another Google developer account, we will need the following information for both accounts:

  • The Developer Account Names

  • The Owner's Email Addresses Associated with the Accounts

  • The Accounts’ Transaction IDs

Note: The Transaction ID is included in the Receipt sent to the account owner by Google when they first enrolled in the Google developer program. To find the transaction ID, search in your email inbox for “developer registration fee.”

If you can’t find the Transaction ID email receipt:

  1. With mail address of the account that you need to get the Transaction ID for, sign in to Google Payments.

  2. On the left menu, select Activity.

  3. Find and select the transaction for the developer account registration. If you have a lot of transactions you can search in your transactions for “Google Play Developer.”

  4. Your Transaction ID is listed near the bottom of the transaction details.

Registration transactions IDs are typically in one of the following formats:

  • 01234567890123456789.token.0123456789012345

  • 0.G.123456789012345

  • Registration-1234ab56-7c89-12d3-4567-8e91234567f8

  • PDS.1234-5678-9012-3456

Additional Requirements If Your App Is A Paid App Or Has In-App Purchases

If you're transferring paid apps or apps with in-app purchases, the Target Account needs to have an active payments profile.

If you're looking to transfer an app into an account that’s using a different default currency on your Original Account, here are two conditions that apply in order for you to be able to transfer:

  • In-app purchases only: The owner of the Target Account will need to add a price in the new default currency for each in-app product. After the app is transferred to the Target Account, the app will be unpublished until the owner of the Target Account publishes it again. Once the owner of the Target Account has verified the new prices in their account, they can publish the app again.

  • Paid apps: The default currency changes will be automatically applied to app prices.

Tip: If you're only transferring free apps and have completed the previous steps, move on to the next step.

Step 5: Submit The Transfer Request

Once you have completed the steps above, you’re ready to submit your Transfer Request.

Google’s support team will review and reply to the transfer requests within 2 business days. Once the transfer request has been approved Google will complete the rest of the transfer process.

Still have questions? No problem! Reach out to us and we’d be happy to help!

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