Create your Google Play account and invite OpenCourt

Set up the Google Play account your branded (white-label) Android app is published under, and invite OpenCourt.

Just like on the App Store, your branded app on Google Play is published under your business's name, and Google requires the business behind the app to own the developer account. You create the account, verify your organization, then invite OpenCourt in — and we handle the build, submission, and every update after that.

Two things make Google Play different from Apple:

  • The registration fee is USD 25, one time, ever (Apple is USD 99/year).

  • Verification runs on your Google payments profile + D-U-N-S number, and the legal details on both must match exactly — most delays come from a mismatch.

Choose an Organization account, not a Personal one — and choose carefully, because the account type can't be changed after verification. Only an Organization account shows your company's name (not an individual's) as the developer on Google Play, only an Organization account cleanly grants OpenCourt access, and newly created Personal accounts must first run a closed test with testers for 14 days before any app can go live — a requirement Organization accounts skip entirely. We cannot publish your app from a Personal account.

Before you begin — gather these

  • Your organization's legal name and address, exactly as officially registered.

  • Your D-U-N-S number — the same free, nine-digit business ID you used for your Apple account (Google requires it for organizations too). If you don't have one yet, get it first — via Apple's lookup tool it takes about 5 business days; requesting directly from Dun & Bradstreet can take up to 30 days. Your D-U-N-S legal name and address must match your Google payments profile exactly.

  • A Google Account for the company — use a company email, not someone's personal account.

  • A private contact email + phone Google uses to reach your organization. Verified by one-time password; not shown publicly.

  • A public developer email + phone that will be shown on your Google Play listing. Also verified by one-time password. Organizations must provide both sets.

  • An organization registration document — certificate of incorporation, business license, or VAT registration certificate, issued by a government or business registry.

  • A government photo ID for an authorized representative (driver's license, passport, or national ID).

  • USD 25 for the one-time registration fee.

Government facility? Government agencies can sometimes verify without a D-U-N-S number — ask us and we'll flag the right path with Google before you create the account.

Step 1 — Create a Google Play Console developer account

Go to play.google.com/console/signup and sign in with the company's Google Account. When asked what kind of account you're creating, choose Organization — not Personal.

Google asks you to link a Google payments profile — this is how it collects and verifies your organization's legal name, address, and D-U-N-S number. Select an existing profile or create a new one.

This payments profile is used only to verify your organization — it's not the same thing as getting paid, and you don't have to use it for payouts. Payments in your app run through OpenCourt and Stripe, not Google's billing, so there are no payout bank accounts or tax forms to set up with Google.

Step 3 — Pay the USD 25 registration fee

Google charges a one-time USD 25 fee to register a developer account, paid with your card during signup. Unlike Apple's annual fee, this is paid once and never again.

Step 4 — Enter and confirm your D-U-N-S number

Enter your nine-digit D-U-N-S number. Google looks up your business information and shows it back to you — review it carefully and select Confirm.

You get a limited number of attempts to enter the D-U-N-S number correctly — have it right before you start. And the legal name and address on your D-U-N-S profile must match your Google payments profile exactly. If Google later finds a mismatch, you get 28 days to fix it before your account and apps are removed. This is the #1 place organizations get stuck — fix mismatches at Dun & Bradstreet first.

Step 5 — Add your organization and contact details

Fill in the remaining details about your organization, then provide:

  • Contact email + phone — how Google reaches you privately. Verified by one-time password (OTP). Not shown on Google Play.

  • Public developer email + phone — shown on your Google Play listing. Also verified by OTP. Organizations must provide both.

For phone OTP you can choose SMS or a voice call — if one fails, try the other. Use a monitored company inbox for the contact email, not a personal one, so account notices don't get lost.

Step 6 — Verify your identity and organization with documents

Google prompts you to upload official documents. The exact list depends on your country — Play Console shows the ones relevant to you. Typically:

  • An organization registration document — certificate of incorporation, business license, or VAT registration certificate.

  • A personal photo ID for an authorized representative (driver's license, passport, or national ID). The account owner or any authorized representative can provide this.

Enter the name and address exactly as they appear on the document you upload.

Never edit, crop-to-alter, or "clean up" a document — modified documents cause verification to fail and can get the account removed. Providing unsupported document types is the single most common verification problem, so check Play Console's accepted-documents list before uploading.

Step 7 — Wait for verification

Google reviews what you submitted; the account owner gets an email when verification is complete — usually within a few days. The Play Console home page shows a "we're verifying your identity" message meanwhile. When it's done, the banners disappear and your verified info appears on the Account details page.

Step 8 — Invite OpenCourt to your Play Console

Once your account is verified, add us so we can build and publish your app:

  1. In Play Console, go to Users and permissions → Invite new users.

  2. Enter apps@getopencourt.com.

  3. Grant the Admin (all permissions) account-level permission.

  4. Send the invitation, then let us know.

That's it — there's nothing else to send us. Once we accept the invitation, OpenCourt sets up automated publishing and handles building, submitting, and updating your Android app. You won't need to log in again except to accept an occasional Google agreement.

Troubleshooting

  • I don't have a D-U-N-S number. Get one free — our guide shows the fastest route (about 5 business days via Apple's lookup tool, which issues the same number Google needs; requesting directly from Dun & Bradstreet can take up to 30 days). You can't create an Organization account without one, so start immediately.

  • "Your organization name or address is no longer verified" / a mismatch banner. Your Google payments profile and your Dun & Bradstreet profile disagree. Fix the details (usually at Dun & Bradstreet), then approve the update in Google Payments Center. You typically have 28 days before apps are restricted.

  • Verification was rejected. The most common cause is a document mismatch — the legal name on your D-U-N-S, your photo ID, and your registration document must all match. Resubmit with consistent documents.

  • Sign-up is asking us to recruit testers. That means a Personal account was created. Personal accounts must run a 14-day closed test before launching anything — create an Organization account instead, which skips that entirely.

  • Phone number won't verify. Switch between SMS and voice call. If your phone system has an auto-attendant, route the OTP call to a line a person can answer.

  • We can't reach the account owner. Only the account owner can complete verification. If they've left the company, contact Google Play support and request a deadline extension in Play Console.

After you're verified

Invite us (Step 8) and tell us — we take it from there: the build, the store listing, review, and every update. On Android there's no annual renewal (the USD 25 was one-time), but keep two things current or Google can pull your app:

  1. Your D-U-N-S / payments-profile details — if they drift out of sync, fix promptly (you get a 28-day window).

  2. Your public developer email and phone — these must stay reachable, and Google's occasional updated agreements need accepting.