Creating Child's Xbox Live Account

DeansF · Apr 6, 2016

We've just bought a second hand Xbox 360 and have formatted the hard drive to remove details of the previous owner's profile and games. The Xbox is for my 10 year old son and tonight I spent over ONE HOUR trying to get him set up on Xbox Live WITHOUT SUCCESS.

First I went through the rigmarole of setting up a new account on the console but when that failed (kept throwing up an error saying it couldn't be completed at this time) I decided to do it online instead. Went to the MS site to set it up and after creating
an email address for him and signing in to the Microsoft site, it then asked me to sign in as well (it obviously picked up on the fact that I was setting up a child's account so needed me to sign in as an adult) but that's where the problems began.

After me signing in to my Micorsoft account (I also have an Xbox Live account) it stated that I needed to enter my credit card details in order to verify my son's account. The problem was, was that the credit card section stated that I had to use a U.S.
based credit card as it would charge me $0.50c (which would be donated to charity) to verify the account.

The fields on the page were all for U.S. citizens (it asked to enter a state and ZIP code and wouldn't obviously recognise a British post code). So without me being able to progress beyond this page, I am unable to verify my son's account so I am unable
to get him to join Xbox Live????

Why does MicrosSoft make this SO BLOODY DIFFICULT????? All I want is an Xbox Live profile for my son so he can play games and earn achievements- I can't even do that without getting past the RIDICULOUS U.S. credit card verification page?!?!?!?

Some further info:

I am indeed using the Xbox.com/gb website (there is no other
xbox.co.uk site), which is the U.K. site.

I have got to the stage where I have created a microsoft email address for my son, however, when I sign into the website using his details, I get this:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/...pslcpskrzm.jpg

...and then when I click on that link for the parent to sign in (me!), it re-directs to this:

http://i1013.photobucket.com/albums/...pszq6ftlya.jpg

...this page does not allow a U.K. credit/debit card to be entered as the address fields are only for U.S. citizens - so basically, I cannot log in to verify my son's account.

:)

Jimmy_Martin · Apr 6, 2016

Child trying to join Xbox Live with existing profile

Okay, so if I convert the local gamertag to a live one, can it then be put under my account as a child's account? If so, how does one do that? I'm familiar with creating an account for a child, moving a separate account under mine as my child's account
would be interesting too.

Rickgm-3D41A07D-7C5C-4F8E-A642-F05E43D112D0 · Apr 6, 2016

Want to create and transfer a local Xbox account to a Xbox live account

My child has been playing xbox360 for years with a local account (non-xbox live). Want to create and transfer a local Xbox account to a Xbox live account. I first created a Microsoft (child) account on the web. Then on the console, I signed-in as him and
tried to create a Xbox live profile. The console stated I needed to create the Xbox live account on the Xbox.com. (I think this has something to do with the parental control. I have two step authentication). I was successful in creating the gametag
(profile) for my child's account. So now my child has a Microsoft account with a Xbox live profile (all created on Xbox.com). Then I went back to the console, I signed-in as him (still a local account) and tried to add Xbox live to my child's local account.
It gives you two choices. Create an account or sign-in. When I "create an account" and put in my child's Xbox Live account info, the console stated that the profile is already taken. I was hoping that the console would just add or transfer his local account
into the Xbox live account. However it would not. When I tried the other option (just Signing-in), it would not allow me to choose my child's (local account) since it was not a Xbox live account. I would hate to not be able to add a Xbox Live account to my
child's current local account and loose all of the progress he has made over the years.

Daft Badger · Apr 6, 2016

At the top right of this page you should see your gamertag & gamerpic.Click on your gamertag & then profile.

That should take you to your profile page.If you look in the bottom left hand corner it should tell you what countries version of xbox.com you are using.Does it say U.K. ?

If not you can change it by clicking on it.

DeansF · Apr 7, 2016

Update!!

Ok, have managed to sort this issue out!

I just created a new Hotmail based email account for my son (the original account was set up under his iCloud account), and went through the sign up/set up process, and weirdly, it did NOT take me to that credit card verification page thing?! It just set
up a new Hotmail account, and signed me into the account, where I went through the process of choosing a new gamertag, and five minutes later, everything was set up as it should!

I then just signed into my adult Xbox account and set up all the parental controls/permissions from there. I guess, all I now need to do is sign into the account from the console itself, which I will do tonight.

dadbees · May 14, 2016

Well, to be honest setting up my son's xbox live account on the 360 was an irksome and irritating waste of an hour of my life. I can't remember how many times I was asked for names, addresses, email addresses and passwords etc etc. Microsoft really need
to get their act together with this.

For verification, the parent's live account email and password together with perhaps a DOB should be proof enough that they have authorised the creation of a child's account.

Let's face it, NOBODY IN THEIR RIGHT MIND wants enter any credit card details on an account linked to a child, regardless of whether they are saved or not.

Such a convoluted, ridiculous process with information re-entered over and again. Making your products user friendly is half the battle, and clearly you haven't made much investment in this area despite raking in billions in the console market. Get a grip.

wiktorpyter · Oct 31, 2018

check the time and date on the console and if its wrong set it correctly and try

Nkosana23

Hi. My name is Brilliant, an independent advisor. I am happy to assist you today.

Parent and child accounts on Xbox are designed to help parents manage their children’s gaming activities. A parent account is the primary account that can create and manage child accounts. Child accounts are created for children under the age of 18 and are linked to the parent account. The parent account can set up parental controls, such as screen time limits, content restrictions, and spending limits, for each child account.

You cannot change your account to be a child account. You will have to create a new account for your child.

To create a child account, the parent account must first create a family group. The family group can have up to six members, including the parent account. Once the family group is created, the parent account can add a child account to the group. The child account will be linked to the parent account and will have access to the parent account’s Xbox Live Gold subscription and other benefits.

I hope this helps.

MutableTomcat02

Same issues. Couldn't migrate the offline account to a LIVE account for a child on the xbox. Had to set the account up online which generated a GamerTag. When I then went to the offline child account on the xbox it asked for the adult login to verify
- did that - then it said the email address for the child account was already associated with an Xbox Live account. The only thing I could do is create a new profile on the Xbox. It's ridiculous there is no way to associate the new Live Account/Gamer Tag
to the exisiting offline account for a child account.

Miss Bijoux

Hey OptimumMink8671 -

Sorry to hear about the issue you are experiencing. The next step I can suggest is reading through the 'Can't Complete Parental
Consent' guide and try each of the steps listed there.

If that doesn't work, you'll want to call phone support via the
Contact Us page for further assistance as information regarding accounts and billing are not within our ability here on the public forums.

Keep us posted!

Ruthless Tenjin

Try resetting your password to see if it works. Located here:
account.live.com/ResetPassword.aspx If not, make sure you're signed into the appropriate window live ID, such as the one used to create your Xbox account. To make sure that the Windows Live ID you are using is the right one, try signing in to Xbox.com by
using the same Windows Live ID that you are trying to use on your console. If there’s a problem with that Windows Live ID, you are prompted to correct it. If you are signed in with an incorrect gamertag or if you are prompted to create a new Windows Live ID,
you are likely using the wrong Windows Live ID. Also, be sure it isn't a child account. If the Xbox LIVE account is a child's account, make sure that you enter your child's Windows Live ID. You must use the Windows Live ID that was used to create the account.
If your child's Windows Live ID was automatically created as part of Family Account setup and you try to reset the password, email is sent to the Windows Live ID parent account (the Xbox LIVE family primary account). Follow the instructions in that email to
reset the child's account's password. If you only want to download the account profile, use the Download Profile feature when you are signed in with the Xbox LIVE family primary account. Hope this helps. Sorry for the wall of text!

XBF Diego M

Hi LauraQ0220,

Thank you for posting on the Microsoft forums.

Every person, adult or child, should have their own Microsoft account (email) when using any Microsoft services, including Xbox Live. When creating a child Microsoft account using their correct age, and then adding it to an Xbox console to create an Xbox
Live profile, the profile will automatically set default privacy restrictions for the age of the child. Then, the parent can add the child to a

Microsoft Family and use the many features of parental control to monitor what your child does on Xbox Live, set content restrictions, ask to buy, set time limits, and manage privacy settings.

It's very important to create a
child Microsoft account for a child when they want to use Xbox Live so that a child is not using someone else's account besides their own, which can be monitored through Microsoft Family parental controls. Creating a child account for the child when they
first want to use Xbox Live, with restrictions suitable for the age you enter, is how you would prevent this situation from occurring.

Unfortunately, Microsoft cannot transfer Gamertags from one account to another and I don't see that changing because there are many features in place so that a parent is not forced to give their child access to their own Microsoft account.

Creating Child's Xbox Live Account