Google Merchant Center return policy requirements

A clear returns policy answers four questions before anyone pays: how long, in what condition, who pays postage, and when the refund lands. Google’s Merchant Center pages ask for those answers on a page anyone can open, and for the same answers everywhere else you mention returns. Legal fog impresses nobody, least of all a shopper standing at the post office counter.

Critical5 min read

By Edvinas Ivanauskas How the guides are reviewed

Why this matters

Google’s account guidelines ask for a policy that explains the return process, eligibility, return window and refund timing. State your position clearly even when you do not offer returns or refunds. Give shoppers the terms they need before they buy.

The return policy setup page, “Set up your return policies for Shopping ads and free listings”, asks for “clear and conspicuous refund and return information on your website” and spells out what that means: policies “applicable not just to defective products, but also to more general cases, such as buyer’s remorse”, a policy “accessible to all users visiting your online store, without having to log in, sign up, or enter any personal information”, and return policies “consistent in Merchant Center and across your website, for example, in the footer, returns page, and web banner.” A returns page is not a legal essay. It is the page a shopper opens when something has gone wrong, so write it for that moment.

Google’s Misrepresentation and Editorial policies both flag missing or unclear return and refund terms. Check that shoppers can find the policy and understand the conditions before purchase.

Product Experts on Google's Merchant Center Community add the practical test: every policy should describe how the business really operates, and it should open on any browser and device. A policy borrowed from a bigger shop fails that on day one. Each piece has its own guide: the return window, who pays return postage, the return address, refund timing and a no-returns policy.

To check the published fix, open the returns link from a product page and again from checkout. Compare the return window, starting point, condition rules, postage and refund terms in both places with the settings you maintain in Merchant Center. StoreVerifier cannot see those account settings. Find what to fix on your store for public-page findings; affected pages, captured evidence and specific fixes are part of the paid report. Use the misrepresentation fix guide to work through the rest of a suspension.

Typical evidence

Diagram: the free scan reads your policy pages, checks that a returns page exists and its link works, and that it states the return window, who pays return shipping and when refunds are paid, then reports each check — What the free scan checks on your returns page, by the names the report uses.

Four boxes to state, one at a time

A usable returns policy is not clever — it is complete. State the window, condition, return-postage responsibility and refund timing plainly, where a shopper can reach them.

Returns Policy · /returns-policyAccepted

Return window“Within 30 days of the delivery date.”

Condition required“Unused, in original packaging.”

Who pays return postage“Customer covers return postage.”

Refund processing time“Refunds within 5 business days of receipt.”

Missing details“Not happy? Just contact us.” — the page does not state the return window, condition, process or cost.

The public signals this check looks for:

The returns page gives a window but never says who pays to send an item back, or when the …
The returns page gives a window but never says who pays to send an item back, or when the money comes back.
“Contact us to arrange a return” is the whole policy
“Contact us to arrange a return” is the whole policy.
The policy covers faulty items only and says nothing about a shopper who simply changed th…
The policy covers faulty items only and says nothing about a shopper who simply changed their mind.
The returns link in the footer opens a login page or an order-lookup form instead of the p…
The returns link in the footer opens a login page or an order-lookup form instead of the policy.
The banner promises “30-day returns”, the returns page says 14 days, and the checkout says…
The banner promises “30-day returns”, the returns page says 14 days, and the checkout says nothing.
The policy was copied from another store and still mentions a showroom, an app or a return…
The policy was copied from another store and still mentions a showroom, an app or a returns portal you do not have.

What it looks like once it is right

Illustrative fix: establish who actually pays, update the product banner and policy together, and manually align the Merchant Center return settings. Reopen both public pages and save the matching terms. This proves the wording was corrected; it does not prove an account outcome.

Common mistakes

Common mistake

Illustrative conflict: a product banner says “free returns,” while the returns policy makes the buyer pay international postage. The account return settings still describe free return labels.

Fix checklist

Write the policy as short answers to the four things Google lists: what the shopper has to do, when returns and refunds apply, the time frame, and when the refund arrives.
State the return window in days and say when it starts, for example “30 days from the day your order is delivered”.
Say who pays return postage for a change of mind and for a faulty or wrong item, and name any restocking fee as an amount or a percentage.
Cover buyer’s remorse as well as faults: if you accept change-of-mind returns, say so on the returns page; if you do not, say that in plain words.
Give the policy its own returns page, link it from the footer of every page and from the cart, and open it in a private window to confirm it loads with no login.
Search the site for every other mention of returns (banners, product pages, the FAQ, order emails) and make each one say what the returns page says.
In Merchant Center, go to Shipping and returns, then Return policies, and enter the same window, method, fees and refund time, with your returns page as the policy URL.
Verify the correction: open the policy from a product page and checkout while logged out. Compare it with promotional banners, FAQs and your Merchant Center return settings, and save the corrected versions with a date.

Where the page has to live

Put the policy on a standalone public URL linked from each template, with no login or consent wall over the text. That makes it usable for shoppers and straightforward to test.

Any page

footer link

/returns-policy

its own clean URL

opens for anyone

no login, no wall

public page check

yourstore.com/returns-policy

Pass200 OK · public · text readable on arrival

Questions merchants ask

What should a returns policy include for Google Merchant Center?

Google's guidelines list four things: what the shopper has to do, when you offer returns and refunds, the time frame for returns, and when the shopper can expect a refund. The return policy setup page adds the return method and return fees, and asks that the policy covers buyer’s remorse as well as faulty products.

Does my returns policy need its own page?

Google's fix page for a missing policy suggests “a dedicated button in the footer of every page that links to your return and refund policy”. A single returns page that anyone can open without logging in is the simplest way to do that, and it gives Merchant Center a clean policy URL.

Do I have to accept returns to advertise on Google Shopping?

No. Merchant Center's return settings include “No, I don't accept returns”, and Google's guidelines say that even if you don't offer returns or refunds you should still state your policy explicitly. What you cannot do is leave it unsaid. See how to handle a no-returns policy.

Why does Merchant Center need my return policy if it is already on my website?

Because they are two separate jobs. Customers should be able to understand the policy “when they land on your website”, and Google adds: “This is separate from setting up your return and refund policy in Merchant Center.” Set up both and keep them saying the same thing; matching the two walks through it field by field.

What if my product page and returns policy say different things?

Resolve the conflict everywhere it appears. Establish the actual terms first, then update the policy, banners, product templates, FAQs and Merchant Center return settings that describe them. Reopen the public pages after publishing so the fix record shows what a shopper now sees.

Remediation

Risk signal

Strict terms are allowed; silence is the problem. A shopper who cannot find the window, the postage rule or the refund date assumes the worst, and Google's pages list that very gap. Write the four answers, link them from every page, and run the free scan to see what is still missing.

PriorityTreat this and any other highest-severity findings as first-priority work, then document each fix.

EvidenceRecord the current state before each change, apply the fix, then capture the corrected state so every change is evidenced.

Similar cases

Sources

Community guidance

Written by Product Experts, the users Google recognises for their answers on its Merchant Center Community forum. Often stricter than Google’s help pages, and not Google policy.

How to fix your Merchant Center suspension (Misrepresentation), 2026Merchant Center Community · Product Expert guide — support.google.com

Last reviewed 27 Sep 2026.

That is one issue. The library documents 134.

The free scan lists what it finds on your store. The paid report adds the affected pages, captured evidence and step-by-step fixes. Start free, with no account needed.