Error Updating Billing Info: "Ineligible due to government restrictions" for a Student Account in China

[Illustar0]

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Hello everyone,

I'm writing to seek help with a billing issue I've encountered.

I am a university student based in China, and I was trying to subscribe to GitHub Copilot. When I attempted to update my billing information with my university's official address, I received the following error:

Sorry, you can't update your billing information at this time

We are sorry, but after reviewing we have determined that the billing information supplied is ineligible for transactions with GitHub due to government restrictions. Learn more about GitHub and trade control regulations.

I am quite confused by the "government restrictions" reason. My billing details consist of my name and my university's public address. As a student using GitHub purely for educational purposes and personal open-source projects, I don't believe my account should be flagged under such restrictions. This feels like a possible system error or a false positive.

I would like to ask:

• Is this a known bug or a common issue that other users, particularly students in China, have been facing recently?

• Could my account have been flagged by mistake?

• What would be the recommended steps to get this resolved?

I have already submitted a ticket to GitHub Support, but I wanted to post here as well to see if anyone in the community has experienced this or has any advice.

Any insights from the community or GitHub staff would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you for your time.

[MrGaurav695]

Hello,

Thank you for reaching out. The error you’re seeing—“billing information ineligible due to government restrictions”—is usually triggered by GitHub’s automated system when certain regions or accounts fall under trade control regulations. Unfortunately, this can sometimes affect students in China even if they are using GitHub for purely educational or personal purposes.

Here are some recommended steps:

Check your payment method – Ensure that your card or payment method is supported for international transactions and is not restricted by your bank.

Use GitHub Education benefits – If you haven’t already, apply for the GitHub Student Developer Pack
. This often bypasses direct billing issues for students.

Contact GitHub Support directly – You’ve already submitted a ticket, which is good. Make sure to clearly explain that you are a student, using the service for education/personal projects, and provide your university-issued email.

Consider alternative payment methods – Sometimes using a verified PayPal account linked to your university card or another international card works when direct card billing fails.

In many cases, this is not a personal account flag but a system restriction based on location or payment origin. Persistence with GitHub Support, especially highlighting your student status, usually resolves the issue.

I hope this helps, and I recommend following up with GitHub Support with these details.

[vitalik-kovalchuk]

Hi team,

I recently moved and need to update the billing address associated with my account. I also have a new payment card. I already submitted a support request but haven’t received a response for several months.

Could someone advise the best way to update my billing information so my account and payments remain active?

Thank you!

[mmegaromm]

I also moved, but there is no way to update my payment information.

[Louis-26]

I experienced exactly the same situation, and this cannot be resolved.