Which settings are permanent?
Currency and time zone. Google states that time zones cannot be changed and treats the currency as permanent, on ordinary accounts and on manager accounts alike. Payment mode, payment methods, users and campaign structure are all adjustable; those two are not.
| Setting | Changeable | What it affects |
|---|---|---|
| Currency | no | How the account is billed and reported |
| Time zone | no | Which day spend and reporting land on |
| Business country on the payments profile | in principle | Taxes, available payment methods, and reviews if changed |
| Prepay or postpay | yes | Whether a threshold exists at all |
| Payment method | yes | Watched closely on an account with history |
| Users and access | yes | Who can do what, and who can remove whom |
What do currency and time zone actually do?
The currency decides what the account is billed and reported in. The time zone decides which day each day's spend belongs to, in both reporting and billing. Neither is cosmetic: a report built on the wrong time zone is wrong on every row, every day, forever.
Why this is on a billing site and not a settings guide. These two fields are the reason accounts are not interchangeable.
Two accounts with identical spend history are different products if one is in dollars and the other is not.
What do you check before buying?
- Currency — must be what you settle in. Stock here is USD.
- Country on the payments profile — must be what you expect. Stock here is Kazakhstan.
- Prepay or postpay — a prepay account has no threshold to inherit.
- Outstanding balance — it transfers with the account.
- Open verification requests — they transfer too, and are rarely resolvable by the new holder.
A mismatch here is a reason to walk away, not to negotiate. Currency and time zone cannot be corrected after the fact, and no discount compensates for an account that bills in the wrong money.
Common questions
Can the currency be changed on an existing account?
No. Google treats the currency as permanent on both advertising and manager accounts. If an account's currency does not suit you, the answer is a different account rather than a settings change.
Can the country be changed?
The business country associated with the payments profile is not something to treat as freely editable, and changing payment country on an account with history is one of the changes most likely to attract a review. Buy the geography you need instead of planning to change it.
Say which currency and country you need
If stock does not match, you will be told that rather than sold something adjacent.
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