Project Creator Locked Out - Missing Owner IAM Permissions

Google Cloud Cloud Foundations & Onboarding
1

I’m experiencing an IAM permission issue with my Google Cloud project (PII Removed by Staff).

Problem:

  • Account (PII Removed by Staff) can access Firebase Studio for the project
  • Cannot access Google Cloud Console IAM, Firebase Console, or Service Accounts
  • Current roles: Viewer + Firebase Analytics Admin only
  • Missing: Owner role needed for project management

What I’ve tried:

  • Used gcloud command: gcloud projects add-iam-policy-binding (PII Removed by Staff) --member='user:(PII Removed by Staff) --role='roles/owner'
  • Error received: “does not have permission to access projects instance [PII Removed by Staff]”
  • This is a catch-22: need Owner permissions to grant Owner permissions

Context:

  • New Google Cloud account with Basic (billing-only) support
  • Cannot file direct technical support cases
  • Need to create service accounts and manage Firebase Hosting for domain setup

Question:
How can I restore Owner permissions to the project creator account? Is there a way to escalate this to Google Cloud Support without a paid support plan?

Project ID: (PII Removed by Staff)
Account: (PII Removed by Staff)

3

You cannot restore Owner access from your account. Google blocks all IAM changes from roles below Owner. There is no command, console action, or Firebase action that can override this. The project is locked until an existing Owner signs in and assigns the role. If no active Owner exists, the project cannot be administered….