GitHub Actions Locked: Account shows 'Billing Issue' on Free Plan (0% Usage)

[softpratham]

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Question

What GitHub Actions topic or product is this about?

General

Discussion Details

I am on the GitHub Free plan and currently have 0 usage of my 2,000 free minutes. However, my Actions are blocked with the error: "The job was not started because your account is locked due to a billing issue."

I have already:

Added a valid payment card to resolve the authorization hold.
Set my Actions budget to $1 to try and trigger an unlock.
Ensured my repository is Public/Private.

Is there a way to trigger a manual re-authorization of the card so the "Locked" status clears? I'm looking for any community workarounds in the meantime.

[Chami-03]

[Pjrich1313]

• • • I have paid multiple times and I keep getting blocked too I just paid not only once many time and still have a code pulled from copilot. I am a developer. I am supposed to do a contribution on my account

[ash-iiiiish]

Try these steps in order:

Remove and re-add your payment method
Go to Settings → Billing and plans → Payment information. Delete your current card, then add it again. This often forces a fresh $1 authorization attempt .

Check Payment history for a "Retry" option
Navigate to Billing → Payment history. If you see any failed payment lines (even for $0.00 or $0.32), click "Retry" or "Pay now" if available .

Verify the $1 hold succeeded
Wait 10-15 minutes after re-adding your card, then check your bank transactions. If you don't see a pending $1 authorization, the hold failed—meaning your card issuer may be blocking the transaction .

Test with a different card if possible
Several users reported that virtual cards or cards from different issuers worked when physical cards failed .

Contact GitHub Support with this exact message
Since community members cannot unlock accounts, you'll need support. Use this template: