PayPal is easy to forget. It sits between the bank and the shops, it rarely sends post, and many people only remember it exists when a refund or a marketplace sale lands there. After a death it can hold money that belongs to the estate, a credit agreement that the estate owes, and a list of subscriptions quietly paying out every month.
This guide explains what happens to the money, what PayPal asks for before it will act, how to contact them, and what to do about PayPal Credit, automatic payments and business accounts.
Short on time? Departed Digital handles PayPal and every other platform for you, including the requests, the documents, and the follow up. Start a case from £149 → Checkout shows your local currency automatically.
What Happens to the Money
A PayPal balance is money, and money belongs to the estate. Once PayPal has confirmed the death and checked the paperwork, it closes the account and pays the balance to the person who is legally handling the estate, which is the executor named in the will, or the administrator if there is no will. The payment is normally made out to the estate rather than to an individual, so it goes into the estate's bank account, not yours.
Payments that were already on their way, such as a marketplace sale waiting to clear or a refund from a shop, are allowed to complete before the account is closed. Any open disputes are settled first.
Nothing happens by itself. PayPal does not know the person has died until somebody tells it, and an untouched account can sit for years. In some countries PayPal charges a fee on accounts that stay inactive, so it is worth sorting out rather than leaving.
Do Not Log In as the Person
It is tempting, especially if the password is written in a notebook. Do not. PayPal's terms forbid anyone else using an account, and its fraud systems watch for unusual activity such as a new device, a new location, or a sudden transfer out. The usual result is that the account is limited, which locks the money for longer and adds weeks of extra checks. Moving money out of a dead person's account yourself can also cause real problems with the estate later, even when the money was always going to be yours.
The official route below is slower than a login, but it is the one that actually releases the money.
What PayPal Asks For
A clear copy of the certificate. Some countries accept a certified copy only, so keep an original to hand in case PayPal asks.
A passport or driving licence for the person making the request, so PayPal can match you to the paperwork.
In the UK, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand this is the grant of probate or letters of administration. In the US it is letters testamentary or letters of administration from the probate court. If the estate is small and no grant is being applied for, PayPal may accept the will naming you as executor, or a document showing that you are the next of kin. PayPal decides case by case, so send what you have and ask what else it needs.
The email address on the PayPal account, the person's full name, and their address. If you do not know the email address, search the person's inbox for messages from PayPal, or look for PayPal on a bank statement.
How to Contact PayPal
Open the PayPal help centre without logging in, choose Contact us, and use the message option or the phone line for your country. Say plainly that the account holder has died and that you are the executor, administrator or next of kin, and ask how to send the documents. PayPal opens a case, gives you a reference number, and tells you how to send the paperwork, which is usually a secure upload link, occasionally post or fax.
Keep the reference number and a copy of everything you send. If the person lived in another country from you, the case may be passed to PayPal's team for that country, and the documents it accepts can differ.
PayPal Credit and Debts
PayPal Credit is a separate credit agreement, not part of the PayPal balance. Money owed on it is a debt of the estate, which means it is paid from the estate if there is enough in it, and it is not the family's personal debt. Tell PayPal Credit about the death separately and ask for a final statement. Stop using the credit line even if you know the login, because new spending after the death is a different matter entirely.
Automatic Payments and Subscriptions
Many people pay for subscriptions through PayPal, so a bank statement shows one line, PAYPAL, where there are really five services behind it. If you can see the account, the list is under Settings, then Payments, then Automatic payments. If you cannot, closing the account ends every one of them. Our subscriptions guide explains which services need cancelling properly and which stop on their own.
Business, Seller and Charity Accounts
A PayPal business account in a sole trader's name is part of their estate and follows the same process. A business account belonging to a limited company or a charity belongs to that organisation, which needs to appoint a new person to run it rather than close it. If the person sold on eBay, Etsy or another marketplace, the marketplace account and the PayPal account are separate, and both need attention.
Timeline and What to Expect
From first contact to money paid out usually takes between two and six weeks, longer if the estate paperwork is still being issued. PayPal may ask for a document twice, or ask for a clearer copy. That is normal and not a refusal. If a case goes quiet for more than two weeks, reply on the same case with the reference number rather than opening a new one.
Or Let Us Handle All of It
Departed Digital manages the whole process for families: PayPal, Amazon, Facebook, Instagram, Google, Apple, Microsoft and any other platform, in one case. You send the documents once, we run every request and chase every silence until each account is closed or memorialised, and you receive a written record of everything for the family and the estate.
Packages start from £149, checkout shows your local currency automatically, and we work with families in the UK and internationally.
Let us handle it. One case covers PayPal and every other platform, with documents, requests, and follow up included. Start a case →