What happens to a Microsoft Ads account when someone dies
Microsoft publishes no process specific to a deceased person's account; the request starts by phone.
Microsoft decides what happens to a Microsoft Ads account after a death case by case; its terms promise no transfer.
Microsoft publishes no process specific to a deceased person's account; the request starts by phone. The request takes 7 documents.
How to request a transfer
- •Ask a co-manager, agency or existing user with authorized access to pause them inside the account.
- •Without such a person, call Microsoft Advertising support at 800-518-5689 and ask that the campaigns be paused.
- •The line is open Monday to Friday 6am to 6pm PT, and chat is available 24/7.
- •Check every account in a manager-account hierarchy; each linked account runs separately.
- •Card or PayPal: an estimated 1-2 business days
- •Bank or wire transfer: an estimated 10 business days; check: 4-6 weeks
- •SEPA direct debit, check or wire funding: contact support to start a manual refund to the bank account
- •Tell support before the refund is attempted if the original card or bank account has been closed.
Required Documents
- Copy of the death certificate: Microsoft's deceased-account page names a copy of the death certificate for customers in Germany and China, and does not ask for a certified copy.
- Proof of legal authority: Letters testamentary, letters of administration, or power of attorney.
- Government-issued photo ID of the requestor
- The Microsoft Advertising account number
- The Microsoft account email address that owns the Microsoft Advertising account
- Valid non-criminal subpoena or court order served on Microsoft's registered agent: in the United States, before Microsoft will consider releasing account content tied to the Microsoft account login
- Bank account details: for a manual prepaid-balance refund where the account was funded by SEPA direct debit, check, or wire transfer
What Microsoft Corporation's terms say at death
- Section 18 (General)
“You will not assign this Agreement either in whole or part without our consent, and any assignment in violation of this Section 18 is null and void. Subject to the foregoing, this Agreement will bind and benefit the parties' successors and lawful assigns.”1
What Microsoft Corporation says happens10
- Closing the account
Microsoft's bereavement page tells survivors they do not need to notify Microsoft of a death, and that anyone holding the credentials can close the Microsoft account.2
- Court orders and legal process
In the United States, Microsoft "must first be formally served with a valid subpoena or court order" on its registered agent before it will consider releasing any account information.2
The subpoena or court order is a non-criminal one served on the registered agent in the requesting party's state or region; faxed or emailed legal requests are not accepted, and service does not assure release.2
- Passwords and login
Microsoft will not provide the password, reset credentials, or transfer the account; access is not granted, and only content may be released.2
- Subscriptions and billing
Nothing about a death stops the advertising: campaigns keep showing ads and billing the payment method on file, or drawing down the prepay balance, until they are paused or the account is deleted.3
Pausing the campaigns stops ads showing and stops new charges accruing, but "there may be billing data still pending," so the balance may increase slightly until all billing data is accounted for.3
Auto-recharge adds funds to a prepay account "whenever you reach 20% of the recharge amount," so a decedent's card can keep funding the account without anyone touching it.4
Postpay billing charges the payment method on file when charges reach the billing threshold or on the monthly billing date, whichever comes first; the monthly billing date is the monthly anniversary of the sign-up date.4
Postpay billing thresholds "start out low (for example, if your account is billed in US dollars, the billing threshold starts at $50) and will automatically increase when you make successful payments," so each posthumous charge can grow.5
- Balances, payouts and refunds
Microsoft issues credits and refunds "If your account is deactivated and you have a positive prepay balance or a negative postpay balance." A refund can take up to 90 working days, posting in 1-2 business days for a card or PayPal, 10 for bank or wire, and 4-6 weeks by check.6
Where a deactivated account has a refund-eligible transaction, Microsoft attempts the refund automatically to the payment method used for the original transaction; SEPA direct debit, check or wire funding needs Support to start a manual refund to the bank account, received in about 5 business days.6
- How requests are reviewed
Refund eligibility is Microsoft's determination, and where Microsoft deactivates an account itself it "reserves the right to issue refunds for payments made at its sole discretion."6
- Inactive accounts and expiry
Microsoft deactivates an account that has had no spend for 15 months and deletes it 30 days after deactivation. On deactivation the owner is notified by email and can still access account information and download campaign data.7
- Restoring a deleted account
Support can be contacted within 30 days of deactivation to request account reactivation.7
- Deletion and data retention
On deletion, "All account information and data are deleted and cannot be restored," any remaining charges are made to the primary payment method, and no billing adjustments are available.7
- Continuing a shop, channel or listing
Where the business continues, Microsoft's consent to an assignment is the mechanism the Agreement itself names for moving the account; delegating user access during life is the practical equivalent.1
Not in Microsoft Ads's published guidance7
- A Microsoft Advertising process for a deceased advertiser
- A mailing address for a written request
- A form for estate requests
- An estates email address
- A deceased-advertiser assignment process
- A timeline for deceased-account legal requests
- Death or estate terms in the Advertising Agreement
Sources7
- 1.Microsoft Advertising Agreement, United States edition v.2026-09-01
- 2.Accessing Outlook.com, OneDrive and other Microsoft services when someone has died
- 3.Pause, enable, or delete your campaigns
- 4.What are my billing options? Pay now or pay later
- 5.What is billing threshold and how does it work?
- 6.About credits, refunds, and adjustments
- 7.If an account is deactivated or deleted
A written request to Microsoft can ask it to preserve the account while the estate is opened, refund an unspent balance, provide purchase and transaction records for the estate inventory, close the account and transfer the accounts to the estate.
Digital Assets Recovery Letter for Microsoft Ads drafts that request from the estate's details.
Sources
Data sourced from Microsoft Corporation primary sources (13 pages reviewed). How we research.
Microsoft Ads estate claims
Deceased or incapacitated user access (Microsoft account)
Website
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