Facebook memorialized: what to do in Canada
What you see: "Remembering" next to the name. Can you log in? No. The clock: No clock.
First move
If the person is alive, report the mistake to Meta. If they have died, their legacy contact or family can manage or remove the account.
Free, no sign-up. It fills in your dates and drafts a letter for each route.
The first hour
Do
- Screenshot the ban screen, Meta's email and any reference number.
- Write down the date and time. The 180-day clock starts there.
- Submit exactly one appeal through one channel.
- Do the ID or video-selfie check from your usual phone and network.
- Check your inbox for Meta security emails and use "revert this change" or "secure my account" if they're there.
- If you can still log in, request Download Your Information right away.
- Tell your audience where to find you: email, other platforms, your website.
Don’t
- Don't open a new account. After a violation ban it breaks Meta's terms, and it usually gets banned too.
- Don't appeal through several forms at once. Duplicate appeals get pushed down the queue.
- Don't use a VPN, a new device or someone else's network.
- Don't file a policy ban as "hacked", or a hack as a policy ban.
- Don't pay anyone who promises recovery or asks for your password or login codes.
- Don't delete linked accounts or Pages in a panic.
Every route open to you in Canada
1. Report a memorialization made by mistake
Cost: Free · Time: Days to weeks
- The email address on the account
- An ID document, uploaded only to Meta if it asks
2. Legacy contact or family request
Cost: Free · Time: Weeks
- Proof of death, such as an obituary or death certificate
- Proof you're immediate family or the executor, if you're asking for removal
Before you do anything
Nobody can buy your account back
Ignore anyone who messages you offering to recover the account, even if they say they work at Meta. Meta never charges to restore an account and never asks for your password or a login code.
In the first hours
Take screenshots of the ban screen and any emails. Don't delete the app, don't log in from new phones, computers or a VPN, and don't change your recovery email or phone.
One appeal per route
Send each appeal once. Repeating it can be treated as spam and doesn't make anyone look sooner. Keep a copy of everything you send, with the date.
Don't open a new account
A new account to get around the ban can be disabled too, and it can count against your appeal. Wait for the outcome of this case.
Only Meta can restore an account, and we can't guarantee it will. Minarva is independent and not affiliated with Meta. This is general information and templates, not legal advice.