Why can't I activate my payment method on my new store?

Payments + Shipping & Fulfilment

Topic summary

Topic: New owner of a purchased Shopify store cannot activate Shopify Payments (Shopify’s built-in payment processor).

Key issue and error:

  • Activation fails with: “Could not activate Shopify Payments — Name has already been taken / you must disable Shopify Payments to use this provider.”
  • A staff member notes this often occurs if the business address/location was changed to a different country in Settings > Store Details.

Support and actions taken:

  • Community advises that only Shopify Support can fix this; use the support portal for 24/7 live chat/phone/email.
  • The owner opened a ticket, then tried live chat; received replies but no resolution yet. Asked for escalation and potential refund due to store being unusable.

Policy context and constraints:

  • Support staff cannot access accounts or escalate via the forum. Typical escalated response time is 3–5 business days, sometimes longer.
  • Support reportedly cited the Terms of Service: a new owner may be ineligible for Shopify Payments.

Current status:

  • Unresolved/ongoing. Owner remains frustrated; another member asks if it was solved.
  • Open questions: confirmation of eligibility for Shopify Payments post-transfer, and any escalation path beyond standard support timelines.
Summarized with AI on February 3. AI used: gpt-5.
4

Hey @SK5 !

This error message you are seeing usually appears when the business address or location has been changed to a different country inSettings > Store Details. As mentioned by both @Anindita and @iDevTsek our live support teams would need to have a closer look at this for you in order to get it resolved. You can reach out to our 24/7 live support via phone, chat, or email by following this link here.