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Guides & insights
Who owns your ad account? Access and handover checklist
Separate ad account ownership from user access, billing and asset permissions. Prepare a practical handover checklist for Google, Meta and TikTok.
The short answer
What to know before you begin
Being able to run ads does not establish ownership or guarantee that an account can be transferred. Confirm the account holder, permissions, billing responsibilities and asset access separately. Agree a handover plan before funding, not only when you want to leave.
Who this is for
Businesses onboarding an agency account service or preparing to change their advertising support team.
Record four things that often get confused
Account ownership, user permissions, billing responsibility and asset access answer different questions. A person may run campaigns without controlling billing or being allowed to transfer the account. A payment receipt identifies a transaction; it does not, by itself, establish account ownership.
On a narrow screen, scroll the table sideways to compare.
| Record | What to confirm |
|---|---|
| Advertiser account | Account ID, business represented and the holder or owning organization. |
| User and partner access | Who may view, edit, administer and approve permissions. |
| Billing arrangement | Who pays the platform, approves funding and reconciles charges. |
| Connected assets | Who controls pages, profiles, pixels, catalogs and measurement access. |
Check each platform rather than assuming portability
For Google Ads, check the advertiser account separately from a linked manager account. For Meta advertising, identify the business portfolio, ad account and the page, profile or data assets required by the campaign. For TikTok, check Business Center roles and the permissions on each account and asset.
TikTok documents conditions for eligible account transfers, and connected assets do not necessarily move with the account. A transfer guide is not proof that your arrangement is eligible. Have the authorized administrator confirm the current platform rules and your service terms before promising a transfer.
Make the access arrangement part of onboarding
Write down the account reference and the named contact responsible for access changes. Confirm what your buyer can see and edit, how reporting is provided and what happens if that person leaves. AdsGorilla access and any handover depend on the reviewed setup and agreement; do not assume every service includes ownership or full administrator access.
- Verify the intended permissions from your own authorized login.
- Keep credentials personal; use approved user or partner invitations.
- Record who can approve access changes and how to contact them.
Prepare a handover record before changing access
List the accounts, active campaigns, asset references, reporting period, outstanding work and people responsible for each item. Agree what can be exported and what, if anything, can be transferred. Obtain the required approvals before removing the current team; otherwise you may lose a route to complete the handover.
- Account and asset IDs, destination URLs and current operating contacts.
- Permitted campaign/report exports, access checks and measurement responsibilities.
- Final funding references, outstanding charges and unused-credit review status.
Verify access and finance separately at the end
A handover is not complete just because an invitation was sent. The receiving user should confirm the correct account and permitted assets are accessible. Separately reconcile final spend and credit with the agreed contact. Remove obsolete permissions only after approval and the necessary access checks.
If the account cannot be transferred, ask what reporting exports and alternative approved arrangements are available. Do not imply that copying a campaign also moves its account history, billing relationship or connected assets.
Official platform references
Platform features and service agreements are different. Confirm the actual account requirements and service scope during onboarding.