Who can take over your accounts
If your business runs through accounts in your own name, here is what each platform says about handing them over. These are summaries of the platforms' own help pages, read on October 24, 2026. Policies change; the linked page is the authority. This isn't legal advice.
Apple Developer Program
- Organization accounts: the Account Holder can pass the role to another team member who has the legal authority to bind the organization. The new holder needs two-factor authentication and accepts a transferee agreement (Apple: transfer the Account Holder role).
- Individual accounts: Apple's page says individual Account Holder transfers are granted when a minor comes of age, or "when the Account Holder is deceased", and that this needs Apple Developer Support. It does not list the documents (same page).
- Individual to organization: you can ask Apple to convert your membership if you are a founder of the organization; you need its D-U-N-S Number and may be asked for business documents (Apple: update account information).
- Moving apps instead: an app can be transferred to another developer account. The sender starts it and the recipient accepts. The app needs at least one released version, can't be in review, and both accounts must have accepted the latest agreements (overview, criteria). Both sides must act, so a transfer can't happen if nobody can sign in as the sender.
- Legacy Contact is not for developer accounts. Apple's Legacy Contact gives access to Apple Account data such as photos, notes and backups, with an access key and a death certificate. The page does not mention developer accounts, and it excludes Keychain passwords (Apple: Legacy Contact).
Google Play Console
- Moving apps: the original account requests the transfer and the target account approves it. Users, statistics, ratings and the store listing move; earnings reports, promotions and test groups don't. Google says it replies within 2 business days (Google: transfer apps).
- Changing the account owner: only the owner can start it; it is held for 7 days. Google's page says individual developers who monetize their apps can't use this direct transfer and must move the apps to a new account instead. If owner access is lost, you contact support (Google: transfer account ownership).
- Death or incapacity: we found no Play Console page about it.
- Inactive accounts can be closed. One set of criteria: over a year old, under 1,000 lifetime installs, unverified contact details and no Play Console use for 180 days, with warnings at 60, 30 and 7 days (Google: inactive developer accounts).
Stripe
- The account owner can transfer ownership to a team member with an Administrator or Super Administrator role. If the owner is unavailable, Stripe Support can help; the requester verifies their identity and their relationship with the business, and the owner is notified and can cancel (Stripe: change the owner).
- Stripe's page talks about an owner "no longer with the company" and says nothing specific about death.
- Selling the business is a separate process: contact Support first, then update the bank account, legal name and tax ID (Stripe: business sale).
- Practical point: adding a trusted person as an Administrator now is what makes the owner-transfer route possible later.
Domains
- GoDaddy: only the estate administrator can ask, with a Regain Access form, legal documents naming them, a death certificate and a colour photo ID; GoDaddy replies within about 72 hours (GoDaddy).
- Porkbun: the estate administrator emails proof of estate administration and a death certificate copy, then completes a questionnaire and ID check (Porkbun).
- Cloudflare: its best-practices page says that without instructions Cloudflare "may be able to assist", and lists no documents (Cloudflare).
- Namecheap: we could not find a published policy.
- The clock: an unrenewed domain can be released. Registrars must send reminders about a month and a week before expiry and within five days after; many offer an auto-renew grace period of 1 to 45 days, and gTLD registries keep a 30-day redemption period after deletion (ICANN: renewal FAQ, ICANN: expired registration rules). Auto-renew with a card that won't expire soon buys your successor time.