Etsy Holding My $7,000+ for 6 Months – No Resolution from Etsy Support

[#1]

Hi fellow Etsy sellers,

I’ve been selling on Etsy for about two years without any issues, but for the past 6 months, Etsy has been holding more than $7,000 of my earnings without providing a clear resolution. I’m hoping to share my experience and see if anyone has had similar issues—or found a way to resolve them.

The issue:

• I changed my bank account six months ago to a new bank account I opened up to help manage my small business finances.
• Etsy required me to verify my bank account/s, which I've done successfully (more than 10 times now).
• Each time Etsy attempts to deposit my funds, I receive an email that it failed, and the funds are returned to my Etsy balance.
• My bank has confirmed multiple times that there are no issues on their end, and I've been successfully receiving payments from other selling platforms (like Shopify).
• Etsy support has been completely unhelpful—they keep telling me to wait to see if my funds are deposited (after already months of waiting), re-enter my details, try a different bank account, and repeat the process. They now end chats abruptly and cut me off when I try to contact support and explain my situation.
• They say there's no manager I can speak to, and that the higher team can only be contacted by email, however emails go unanswered and I receive generic responses that I've received multiple times before. Actually, one of the first times I contacted support, they raised the issue to Etsy's Trust and Safety team, and I DID receive an email from them (even though it told me to do the same thing the support agent told me to do - which was try a different bank account). I replied to the email which was never replied to. I emailed them a few more times after that, but never heard back.

This isn’t just a minor delay—I have been waiting half a year to access money that I have earned (don't even mention the cut that Etsy takes from each sale). As a small business owner, this is severely impacting my finances and ability to pay for basic living expenses such as rent and groceries. Etsy’s lack of proper seller support and refusal to resolve this is completely unacceptable.

What I've tried so far:

• Repeatedly verifying my bank details (successful each time - until the most recent time, they have not verified my account and it has been almost a month now).
• Contacting Etsy support dozens of times.
• Asking for a higher-level escalation (denied).
• Confirming with my bank that the issue is not on their end.
• Considering legal action and filing complaints with the ACCC (Australia), the BBB, and the FTC (USA) but I'm not sure how to do this and would definitely prefer not to.

Has anyone else been through this ??

If you’ve been through a similar situation, how did you resolve it? Does anyone have recommendations for getting Etsy to take action?

If Etsy doesn’t resolve this soon, I'll have to further escalate this situation

Thanks for any advice or insights you can share!

[madebysandyy]

Yep definitely! I only have one name, no middle name or nicknames.

[ACertainFeel]

I would be petrified to change my bank account-that seems to ALWAYS be a problem.  You have been kind and accepting to this point but it is in your interest to escalate this NOW. Go to social media, send a certified letter to Brooklyn headquarters. It’s just NOT right they are dragging this out. Scour forums for others who finally prevailed. Wishing you the best. 

[SugarTaffySoap]

@madebysandyy  Did you check to see if the bank you are using is connected with the payment center Etsy uses? 

[madebysandyy]

Yep it's the most common bank in Australia and is definitely connected with Etsy's payment centre! I used to be able to receive payments through the account too before it got messed up.

[SugarTaffySoap]

@madebysandyy  I'm really surprised a moderator community specialist hasn't read your post yet and escalated to a team.  They have been quick to escalate. It's usually ModKenneth or ModAngie. 

[Amaradorn]

When you changed the bank account did you receive the small deposit from Etsy in order to verify the new bank account? 

• If you did then it's clearly an Etsy issue (IMO). If they were able to send the test deposit then they should be able to send the rest.
• If you didn't then perhaps there is another problem concerning the new bank account or that step has been missed.

I would avoid changing or updating your bank details any more, as each time you do that it starts the verification process again. There's also a hold on deposits after the account is changed which will slow things down. Sorry I can't offer any other insights but I hope someone at Etsy gets back to you soon.

[SugarTaffySoap]

@Amaradorn  OP says she was able to receive deposits in the past.

[ModKenneth]

Hello! We're sorry to hear you're experiencing issues with your account. We've forwarded your concerns to a specialist team. Thank you! 

Please know we handle support inquiries privately per our Community Policy – we’re closing this thread, so you can get the support you need from us directly.