Google Play Redeem Gift Card Error Code PRS-PGCSEFC-01

People are facing a strange Gift Card Error when they go ahead with redeeming on Google Play Store. The first such issue was reported on the Google Play Help Support forum in late 2020. The user complained about staring at a message while redeeming a Gift Card Error Code PRS-PGCSEFC-01. He was joined by many afterward with the error code still unable to find a permanent solution from Google.

People have tried all possible means to redeem the gift card and have wasted money too in return. Unfortunately, Google has not released any solution to it except a recommended autobot reply.

“Thanks for reaching out on the Google Play forum! We’ve sent you an email with next steps so we can better assist you.” Apparently, this has not solved Redeem Gift Card Error Code PRS-PGCSEFC-01.

Check out a few complaints and the reply

How To Fix Google Play Redeem Gift Card Error Code PRS-PGCSEFC-01?

PlayStore
I purchased a $10 google play credits but upon redeeming it, the error PRS-PGCSEFC-01 Pops up right after it says you are about to load $10 to this account. I tried searching the cause of it and it says according to my research a country problem though I purchased the gift code in my country. Ive tried all sorts of solutions a could find online from changing my google account country to using a VPN
Please help
sebastian ezekiel vergabera

People have tried all possible means to find a way around the Gift Card Error Code PRS-PGCSEFC-01 while redeeming. They have tried all the possible combinations of upper case, lower case, and mixed case. The redemption feature can be located on the sidebar of the Google Play Store Android app.

Over a period of a few months, people have found the root cause of the issue. It is a mismatch between the country that issued the redemption card and where the Google Play account was created. For instance, if a gift card is from the USA and the account is in Germany, Redeem Gift Card Error Code PRS-PGCSEFC-01 will pop up. The gift card in US currency must be redeemed in the US only.

The reason lies behind this is Google’s policy. It mandates the gift card to be from the same country where the account holder resides. Maybe the fix lies in resolving transactions between different currencies, the issue lies unattended. Cross-country redemption on Google Play Store is out of scope for the time being.

There are a couple of tried and tested workarounds to it. Before you start, ensure the Google Play Store account isn’t a Google Family Link and stop supervision. Clear the cache of the Store app, log out, and re-login.

If it doesn’t work, opt to redeem using VPN. Here is one suggested by a user.

Workaround:
1. Connect to USA VPN using a VPN app, 2. Close the Play Store app, force-stop it from Settings->Apps menu, and delete cache and app data. 3. Only then re-open Play Store app, go to Menu->Redeem, enter the code, change your country to USA in the process (you will be prompted).

The above workaround is applicable only if you are in a different country from where the Gift Card was purchased.

In case the above workaround did not help you, ensure that GPay details are correct and the account isn’t being denied by Google Family Link. Check out what another user has to say

If you have verified all the possible solutions and still could not redeem the gift cards, then the final resort is to clear the cache of the Google Play Store app. Also, sign out of your Google account and re-login. As per Google ensure that it is a Google Play gift card only and the code is correct.

Share with us which option worked for you and if you found a new solution, drop in a note to us so that it can be shared with all the readers.