Restarting Email After a Block or Suspension: A Day-by-Day Plan From Your Own Numbers
Send nothing on day 0 except what you must, mail only your 30-day engaged contacts for the first week, add 90-day engaged in week two, and bring older contacts back only after verifying them, a small share of each day at a time. Hold volume whenever a send goes over 2% hard bounces or 0.1% complaints.
The sending recovery planner builds this schedule from your normal daily volume and segment sizes, with a CSV download. What it leans on, read 2 November 2026: Google's sender guidelines FAQ (7 consecutive days below 0.3%) and email sender guidelines (0.1% target), and the Amazon SES sending review FAQ (under 2% bounces; old addresses "only with a small portion of your overall sending").
The plan
| Stage | Who gets mail | Volume |
|---|---|---|
| Day 0 | Nobody for marketing; transactional only | 0 |
| Days 1–7 | Opened or clicked in the last 30 days | Start at a fraction of normal, rise daily |
| Days 8–14 | Add 90-day engaged | Keep rising if the gates pass |
| Days 15–28 | Add verified older contacts | Capped share of each day |
Each tier lasts 7 days because that's the one window Google publishes. Volume returns as engagement does, not on a date: if your engaged segments are smaller than your old daily volume, the plan stays below it.
Day 0: stop and clean
- Find the cause. Match the block or notice to the send that triggered it. A per-source breakdown usually shows it in minutes: see finding which list source caused the bounces.
- Suppress every hard bounce and complaint on every platform you send from.
- Pull the segment that caused it from scheduled campaigns and sequences.
- Answer the platform if there's a review or suspension, with only the changes already made. See writing an ESP suspension appeal.
The gates
After each send, check two numbers before raising volume:
- Hard bounces under 2%. Amazon SES's recommended maximum and Brevo's suspension line. Engaged contacts should be far below it.
- Complaints under 0.1%. Google's target. For Gmail, follow the daily rate as in counting the 7 days below 0.3%.
Miss a gate once: hold the same volume for two days. Miss it again: drop back a tier. Over 2% bounces on engaged contacts means something besides the list is wrong; check the bounce codes with Bounce Doctor.
Bringing older contacts back
Export everyone who hasn't opened or clicked in 90 days, without unsubscribes, bounces or complaints. Verify that file, keep only the valid addresses, and add them as a capped share of each day. Anyone who still doesn't engage after a re-engagement attempt goes to your sunset list; see sunset policies for inactive subscribers and the re-engagement campaign guide.
Limits
This is a template from your own numbers, not a schedule any provider publishes, and it can't promise inbox placement or reinstatement. The gates need your daily bounce and complaint figures. For the reputation side in general, see sender reputation recovery.
Where SimpleVerifier fits
Upload the older contacts at /verify before week three: valid, risky and invalid download separately, and only the valid file joins the plan. The first 100 checks are free with a Google sign-in. Pro is $39 a month with the first 100,000 checks a month at full speed, then slower, never cut off. See pricing.
Common questions
How long does it take to recover after a block?
No provider publishes a timeline. Gmail's one published number is that bulk senders above a 0.3% spam rate become eligible for mitigation after 7 consecutive days below it. A cautious restart that brings older contacts back takes about four weeks, longer if sends miss the gates.
Should I switch to a new domain instead?
Usually not. The list and content that caused the problem come with you, so the new domain inherits it. Fix the cause and restart on the existing domain.
What counts as an engaged contact?
Someone who opened or clicked recently. Apple Mail Privacy Protection and similar features inflate opens, so clicks, replies and purchases are stronger signals.
Will this get me back to the inbox?
It's a cautious order of sending, not a guarantee. Providers decide placement from their own signals.
Check your list before you send
Real mailbox checks over SMTP, and nothing is sent to the address. Sign in with Google and your first 100 email checks are free, no card. Plans for bigger lists are on the pricing page.