Changing Main Acct Name

[Mrscott23]

I have changed my legal name and have tried everything in the app to reflect. However, it shows new correct name everywhere except when scheduling a clients appt it still shows it’s “with” my old last name. There has to be a way to update this, other than closing current account and opening a new one, which is all I have found in threads. Please help! Seems like a big hassle to add clients & all info back in to a whole new account  just to change one little name. I’ve had this acct for years. Thank you! 

[Joe · Accepted solution]

Hi there, @Mrscott23! Thanks for taking the time to add your question here on the Seller Community. We are happy to have you.

As of now, the ability to change the name of an account holder associated with a Square business is considered a feature request. This is a known limitation and our Engineering and Product Teams are working in conjunction to bring this request to fruition. We understand that this can cause some headache for our Sellers, and we do appreciate your patience while we make this capability a reality. 

I will note that currently, customers are only able to see information on digital receipts and scheduling confirmations that is editable within the Square system. It might be worth checking to ensure that both your Business Name settings as well as your Receipt Information are both listing your desired name. 

If this doesn't seem to resolve the issue, I would reach out to our Support Team for further troubleshooting. They will assist in ensuring all designated fields reflect your information correctly.

Let me know if you have any questions! I am here to help. 

[EcoCarCafe]

As the seller community we need a way to escalate this issue immediately! This is a HUGE time & resource waste for any business which has change to its ownership structure.

Please is there any way as business owners we can petition or use User Voice to track the number of accounts affected by this. From reading the forms it seems like this is a fairly common occurrence & we should have a way to address this even if it is an exception process for the time being.

For a modern day SaaS company it is completely unacceptable that this is not an option & is making me question my relationship with Square considering there are many alternative options.

[hazeicecream]

Hello Joe,  you mention in 2019

" As of now, the ability to change the name of an account holder associated with a Square business is considered a feature request. This is a known limitation and our Engineering and Product Teams are working in conjunction to bring this request to fruition. We understand that this can cause some headache for our Sellers, and we do appreciate your patience while we make this capability a reality." 

Has there been any development since you posted that regarding this functionality?

[nin9ja]

Are there any updates on this yet?

I would love this to be fixed as well! Seeing my ex's name everyday is a reminder of how much of a dumb ass I was to get married to that fool in the first place- however I started my own business and am killing it now.

I just would love to no see that old name anywhere on my new chapter. This is something I think we don't think about when we take someone else's name, nor do the writers of software like square.

Much thanks!

[MisScorpioGirl]

Same!!! 
my square card also in a name I do not use. 
so frustrating and embarrassing!!!

[LOWCAdmin]

Same here. The owner of our account left our office 2 years ago. I still can't change the account name to myself. Is there a way to fix this please Square???

[PawTender1]

Same problem I have, both with name on my account and on the square card!  So annoying to see that name ALL THE TIME!!!

Square needs to fix this!

[RobynR]

Hey @PawTender1 

Welcome back to the Community.

Check out the best answer about changing your account name. Feel free to also share your suggestions in our Ideate Room here: squ.re/ideate - Our Product Team keeps an eye on this forum as they are constantly improving our products based on feedback like this.

Let me know if I can assist you with anything else.

[MisScorpioGirl]

This is also an issue for me. I have a square credit card that in in the wrong name, I have no identification to that last name. Now I see there is mobile checking which will also be an issue since no checks are written to a name I do not use and haven’t for over 10 years. 
It seems pretty crazy if I show legal documents for a name change that a company that has grown and added so many features can’t change and verify my new name in their system. 
I have an active loan too so also how could I deactivate my account then just open a new one. 
Seems pretty crazy so much work for one name change. 

[Excel2022]

I would like to be reactivated or sign up for a new account. How can I do that?

[JJ_]

If you wish to reactivate a Square Account that you deactivated in the past, you would need to contact our Support Team and they will be able to assist with the matter @Excel2022

[azmasterworks]

How can this be the best answer when it doesn't solve the problem??  Having persons -- and their SSNs! -- no longer  associated with the company still on file as owners is absurd.  Yes, it's a "feature request" -- one that you have not fixed in three years.

[SSMM]

Lets' escalate this to a "Feature DEMAND!" We pay if not through subscription then certainly through payment processing fees. To have a business set everything up and need to change the name as indicated in this whole thread, and the only way to do that is to start over again is beyond ludicrous. It's shear stupidity in the extreme. It's no easy task to set square accounts up in the first place, Square folks are only fooling themselves if they think it's easy. To have to go through the whole process again is maddeningly idiotic. The more I work with Square the lower my opinion of the system becomes. This issue with names, as outlined in this thread, just further lowers my opinion of Square.

[MayaP]

Hi @SSMM & @azmasterworks,

Thanks for reaching out with that feedback. There has actually been some updates with this request. You can transfer account ownership:

If you are the existing Square account owner:

Log in to your online Square Dashboard and go to Account and Settings.

1. Scroll to Account Owner and. click Start Account Transfer.
2. Fill out the form to verify your identity, including your legal name, date of birth, and last four digits of your SSN.
3. Enter the new account owner’s email address. Square will send an identity verification form to the new owner.
4. Check the box for Transfer of Account Agreement, then click Agree & Continue.
5. Read the Transfer of Account Agreement and click OK.
6. Check your email inbox for the automated Transfer Account Confirmation email.
7. Click Confirm Transfer. Note: You cannot undo an account ownership transfer. Once the transfer is complete, the only way to regain ownership of the account is to complete another transfer.

There are eligibility requirements, here is more info. 

[azmasterworks]

Thanks for your response Maya, but unfortunately it does not solve my problem.  The person who is the registered owner is no longer with the company.  I already tried the Account Transfer process before my original post on this thread. When I get to "Are you the current owner of this Square account"  and click "No", I get this:

Account transfer not available

Sorry, but only the account owner can initiate a transfer of ownership. 

I do not have the registered owner's full legal name, date of birth, and SSN.  If I can even find that person I'm sure they no longer have login access to this business account, and I'm pretty sure they don't want to tell me their DOB and SSN.

So you see, the problem remains -- for me and for all the other current Square account holders in my position.  Please inform the powers that be at Square, while I research non-Square options for on-premise box office sales platforms, that this crucial flaw still exists.

🙁

[MayaP]

Aw man, I was hoping this would work out for you @azmasterworks 

I completely understand businesses change all the time, and we should have a easier to transfer over that account ownership. 

I am hoping since we made a little progress with this feature we will be coming out with a way around having the old owner information. But because we have to verify every person's identity, for compliance reasons. This is why that is not possible right now. But again hopeful, we will have resolution for that shortly! 

Thanks again for the valuable feedback! 

[ats_x_evo]

Any update to this feature request?

It's honestly ridiculous that Square makes it so difficult to change the business owner on an account. Businesses (esp. larger businesses) generally have a lot of turnover and changes in org/ownership structure and Square should have a way to easily accommodate this. 

[woodburycofair]

The former secretary for the Woodbury County Fair Association is no longer with the Association and not available.   I do not want to put the account in my name because I am retiring next week.  We would like to change the name on the account so that the Assoiation has access to our account.  I do have the username and password for the account, but cannot find the information I need.  When I called for help the gentleman said he could not give me the information I need because my name is not on the account.

[JJ_]

Hello @woodburycofair

At this time, all Square accounts require a business as well as an individual to be declared the Account Owner. This Owner can be changed via a Transfer of Ownership every time it changes however both the current and the expected owner will need to get involved in the process. 

Alternatively, you can open a new account and have the expected Account Owner (or handler) enter their details for the identity verification process. And whenever they are stepping down they will need to initiate the Ownership transfer before leaving the role. 

I hope this information is helpful!

Also, welcome to the Seller Community!

[azmasterworks]

Not helpful at all, same old story.  Useless when the original “owner” is no longer accessible to “get involved in the process.”

So the solution is for me to go through all the hassle of creating a new account, without Square fixing the actual problem?  What a crock.

If I’m forced to create a new account, I’ll be looking elsewhere than Square to do so.