Facebook ads can be a powerful marketing tool for businesses, allowing you to reach large audiences and drive traffic to your website or online store. However, like all forms of advertising, Facebook ads come at a cost. So what happens if you use Facebook ads but don’t pay the bill?
Your Ads Get Paused
If you fail to pay your Facebook ads invoice by the due date, the first thing that will happen is your ads will be paused. This means your ads will stop running until you bring your account balance current.
Facebook will try to notify you multiple times as your payment due date approaches, through both email and notifications within your Ads Manager account. However, if you still have an outstanding balance when the due date passes, Facebook will automatically pause your campaigns so no further ads are served.
This prevents you from racking up additional charges when your account is past due. However, it also means you immediately stop getting any benefit from your ads until you pay what you owe.
Ads Remain Paused Until Balance is Paid
Your ads will remain in a paused state until you pay off the overdue amount. You won’t be able to reactivate or edit the paused campaigns until your account is back in good standing.
In most cases, Facebook will let you pay your outstanding ads balance directly through your Ads Manager account, and your ads will be resumed shortly after your payment processes. However, if you have a history of late payments, Facebook may require a security deposit before reactivating your account.
Longer Delays for Large Overdue Balances
If you owe a substantial amount of money (generally over $50), it may take Facebook longer to review and process your payment. In these cases, you may experience a delay of up to 48 hours between when you pay your overdue ads invoice and when your account is restored to active status.
Facebook will send you an email notification when your payment has been processed and your account is back in good standing. At that point you can go back into Ads Manager and resume your paused campaigns.
Your Account Privileges Get Restricted
In addition to pausing your ads, failing to pay your Facebook ads bill can result in restrictions applied to your ad account and your business Facebook Page.
These restrictions are imposed as a risk management measure when an account has an overdue balance or a history of policy violations. The goal is to limit your ability to incur additional charges until the issue is resolved.
Limits on Creating New Ads
Once your account has an overdue balance, Facebook will not allow you to create new ad campaigns and ad sets. You will see an error message if you try to launch new ads:
“Your ad account currently has an outstanding balance and new ads cannot be launched until payment is made. Please submit payment for your outstanding balance.”
Advertising Privileges Removed from Page
If you manage ads under a Facebook business Page, that Page will have its advertising privileges revoked once your ad account has an overdue balance. This prevents other admins on that Page from running new ads until the balance is paid.
Advertising capabilities will only be restored to the Page after you bring your ad account up to date and have it reactivated out of its paused state.
Limits on Changing Existing Ads
Your ability to edit existing active ad campaigns and ad sets will also be limited once your account status becomes past due. You may see errors if trying to make changes like:
- Increasing budgets for active campaigns
- Changing targeting for active ad sets
- Adding new creatives to active ad sets
You will still be able to make changes like pausing campaigns or lowering budgets on active ads.
Your Account Gets Disabled
If your Facebook ads balance remains unpaid for an extended time after your campaigns are paused, your account may be completely disabled. This is typically a last resort after multiple failed attempts to collect payment.
When your account is disabled, you will lose access to your ad account and campaigns until you pay the amount owed. Ads Manager will show this notice when you try to access a disabled account:
“Your account has been disabled for non-payment. Please submit your outstanding balance immediately to restore your account access.”
Reactivating a Disabled Ads Account
To reactivate a disabled Facebook ad account, you will need to pay the full past due amount. Facebook may also require a security deposit before allowing you to resume advertising.
It can take up to 72 hours after payment for a disabled account to be restored. Once your access is reinstated, you will receive an email confirmation from Facebook.
Potential for Permanent Account Closure
If the ads balance remains unpaid for a very long time (typically several months), Facebook may permanently close your disabled account instead of keeping it in recoverable disabled status. This is very rare, but can happen in severe cases of non-payment.
If your account is permanently closed, you will lose access to the account and all its advertising data and assets. You will not be able to recover anything from the closed account – Facebook will require you to open a brand new ad account if you wish to advertise again in the future.
Risk of Collections Activity
For very large overdue ad account balances (generally $500+), Facebook may turn the account over to a collections agency to recover the unpaid funds.
If your account gets sent to collections, the agency will begin attempting to collect through actions like:
- Phone calls demanding payment
- Letters mailed to your business address
- Potential damage to your business credit score
To avoid collections, it’s important to pay your Facebook ads invoice promptly each month. If you anticipate having trouble making a payment, proactively communicate with Facebook’s billing team to discuss payment plan options.
Legal Action is Possible
For very substantial overdue amounts (generally $10,000+), Facebook has the right under its Terms of Service to pursue formal legal action for recovery of unpaid advertising charges.
This would involve Facebook filing a lawsuit against you to obtain a court judgment for the past due amount. To avoid court action, you would need to settle the debt in full.
Lawsuits over unpaid Facebook ads are not incredibly common, as most advertisers and agencies ultimately pay their overdue balances before things progress to that stage. But legal action is something all Facebook advertisers should be aware is possible in cases of egregious non-payment.
Impact on Your Reputation
In addition to the direct impacts within your Facebook ad account, failing to pay your Facebook ads bill can also hurt your business reputation.
If Facebook disables your account or sends you to collections due to non-payment, that information will likely become known to others in your industry.
Vendors talk among themselves, and if you gain a reputation for not paying Facebook ad invoices, other advertising platforms and publishers may be less willing to work with you in the future.
Poor payment history can also hurt your chances of obtaining business loans or investment capital needed to grow your company. Maintaining a reputation for prompt payments is critical for any business.
Damage to Personal Reputation
If you manage Facebook ads under your personal name rather than a business name, having an account sent to collections or disabled for non-payment can directly hurt your personal credit rating and reputation.
Many individual entrepreneurs advertise on Facebook to promote their personal brands, services, and creative projects. Just like with a business, it’s important to keep your personal advertising accounts in good standing.
Strategies to Avoid Payment Issues
To avoid having your Facebook ads disabled and the other negative impacts of non-payment, here are some strategies you can use:
Carefully Monitor Your Spending
Log into Ads Manager frequently and closely watch how much you are spending. Make sure to pause or adjust campaigns at the first sign they will exceed your budget before the next billing cycle.
Load Up Prepaid Ad Credits
Facebook allows you to prepay for ads by purchasing ad credits or vouchers. This helps limit your maximum monthly spend to only what’s prepaid.
Set Account Spending Limits
Use the spending limits feature in Ads Manager to cap your daily/monthly spend at a defined amount. Get alerts when you approach the cap so you can adjust.
Save Payment Info for Automatic Billing
Store a credit card or PayPal account in your Facebook billing settings. This allows invoices to be paid automatically each billing period.
Pay Promptly Each Billing Cycle
Review and pay your Facebook ads invoice as soon as it generates each month. Extended delays increase risk of account restrictions.
Keep Communicating with Facebook
If you anticipate difficulty making a payment on time, get in touch with Facebook right away to discuss plans for keeping your account current.
| Scenario | Impact if Unpaid |
|---|---|
| Monthly ads invoice under $50 | Account disabled after 60 days past due |
| Monthly invoice $50 – $500 | Sent to collections after 90 days past due |
| Monthly invoice over $500 | Legal action possible after 120+ days past due |
Conclusion
Failing to pay your Facebook ads bill can have serious consequences, including paused campaigns, restricted account privileges, complete disablement of your account, and even potential legal action if amounts owed are substantial.
To maintain access to Facebook advertising, it’s critical for both businesses and individual users to closely monitor their ad spend and pay all invoices promptly each billing cycle. Proactive communication with Facebook’s billing team can also help resolve any payment issues that arise.
With responsibility and diligence, advertisers can avoid non-payment scenarios and continue harnessing the power of Facebook ads to drive results.