How to Delete a LINE Account After Someone Dies

After someone dies, their phone can feel like a small, glowing room you’re not sure you’re allowed to enter. The notifications keep arriving. A friend sends a message without knowing. A payment reminder pops up at the worst possible moment. For families who used LINE as their primary messenger, that little green icon can hold years of everyday life—photos, voice notes, jokes, apologies, “I’m home” messages, and the last ordinary conversation that now feels sacred.

If you’re here because you need to close LINE account after death, you’re not alone. You’re also not overreacting. A messaging app is both emotional and practical: it’s where memories live, and it’s also where privacy risks and financial connections can hide. This guide explains how LINE account deletion works, what it removes, what happens to paid items and LINE Pay, and what to do when you can’t log in. We’ll move gently but clearly, so you can protect what matters and reduce what keeps hurting.

What “deleting” a LINE account really means

Before you tap anything, it helps to know what you’re choosing. According to the LINE Help Center, deleting a LINE account permanently removes the account and associated data—including purchase history, friends, groups, chat history, and data tied to linked apps and services—and it cannot be restored or transferred afterward. That irreversible part is the detail families most often wish they had paused to absorb, especially if there are messages you may want to keep for personal reasons or for estate-related records.

This is why so many people use the phrase remove LINE profile after someone dies when what they actually mean is “I need the account to stop being active in the world.” Deleting does accomplish that, but it also closes the door on anything you haven’t saved. If you’re unsure, it’s okay to slow down and take a “preserve first, delete second” approach.

Start with a calm digital-legacy order of operations

In grief, the mind craves a single “right” button that makes everything tidy. Digital life doesn’t work that way, but there is a gentle order that reduces mistakes. Funeral.com’s guide on Digital Accounts After a Death: A Practical Closure Checklist recommends securing devices, preserving what matters, and then closing or memorializing accounts one by one. That sequence is especially helpful with LINE, because access to the phone number and device often determines what you can do next.

If you’re still sorting through the broader picture—passwords, two-factor codes, email access, and subscriptions—Funeral.com’s resource on digital legacy planning can help you map the “why” behind each decision. Think of LINE as one room in the house. You don’t have to empty the entire house today.

Before you delete: protect the memories you can’t replace

People often discover too late that what they wanted wasn’t deletion—it was relief from ongoing pings and the fear of account misuse, while still keeping the messages that feel like their person. If you have access to the phone, consider pausing for a short preservation step. What you save is personal. Some families keep everything; others only keep a handful of conversations that matter most.

• Save meaningful media (photos, videos, voice notes) to a secure family folder or external backup.
• Screenshot essential details if you anticipate needing proof of an agreement, address, or timeline.
• Note linked financial services (especially LINE Pay) so you can close them in the right order.
• Write down what you did and when, so another family member can pick up the thread later without guesswork.

If you need help thinking through what to preserve—photos, videos, voicemails, and the emotional boundaries that come with them—Funeral.com’s guide on handling photos, videos, and voicemails after a death is a steady companion for this stage.

How to delete the account when you can log in

If you have access to the device that’s logged into LINE (or you can log in), the process is straightforward. The LINE Help Center delete account instructions explain that deletion can only be completed on the “main device” (typically the smartphone), and that uninstalling the app alone does not delete the account. That one sentence saves many families from an unpleasant surprise: removing the app may make the phone look “quiet,” but the account can still exist and be reachable by others.

On the main device, the path is essentially: open LINE, go to Settings, open Account, and choose “Delete account,” then confirm after reading the warnings. LINE’s help documentation emphasizes that this action removes the account data and can’t be reversed. If you’re doing this on behalf of a deceased loved one, take one more breath before you confirm. If there’s anything you meant to save, this is the moment to step back and preserve it.

Important note about LINE Pay

LINE also notes that if there is a LINE Pay account, you need to delete it before you can delete the LINE account. That’s not a small footnote—it’s often the reason families get stuck mid-process. The LINE Pay Global Help Center explains that you can delete your LINE Pay account from the settings menu, and that doing so deletes your LINE Pay usage history; it also notes situations where you may not be able to delete the account immediately, such as when a transaction is still in progress. See LINE Pay’s guidance on deleting an account for the most current steps and restrictions.

If you’re dealing with broader bills, autopay surprises, or ongoing subscriptions tied to the phone number or email, Funeral.com’s step-by-step guide to closing accounts and subscriptions after a death can help you build a simple checklist so LINE doesn’t become an isolated headache.

What to do when you can’t log in

This is the situation many families face: the person died suddenly, the phone is locked, the SIM was deactivated, or the login information was never shared. When that happens, it can feel unfair—like the app is holding your loved one hostage behind a passcode. In reality, these platforms are designed to prevent unauthorized access, which protects users in life, but can complicate things after death.

LINE’s own deletion guidance explains that, depending on region and how the account was created, support may be able to help delete an account if you can provide specific documentation. In its account deletion article, LINE describes cases where users who cannot log in may request deletion by submitting required documents that verify identity and a document from the mobile provider showing a contract for the phone number registered to the account. The details and eligibility depend on region and account/version circumstances, so it’s important to read the current requirements directly in the LINE account deletion article.

If you’re pursuing delete LINE account deceased support help, prepare emotionally for the fact that many companies will only act when they can confirm authority. That can mean the phone number contract holder, the email linked to the account, or documentation that matches what LINE needs for verification. This can be frustrating when the deceased managed everything. It’s still worth trying—especially if the goal is to prevent impersonation, scams, or unwanted contact.

Documents families often need for a support request

LINE’s deletion guidance is specific about what it needs to verify an account deletion request when you can’t log in. While the exact requirements vary by situation, it generally centers on proof of identity and proof of control/ownership of the phone number tied to the LINE account. In plain language, that typically means:

• A government-issued identification document for the person making the request (with unnecessary personal details redacted, as LINE advises in its instructions).
• A document from the mobile service provider showing the phone number and the contract holder information for the number registered to the LINE account.

If your family is still deciding whether to cancel or keep the phone number active temporarily (because other accounts are tied to two-factor authentication), Funeral.com’s guide on canceling or transferring a cell phone plan after a death can help you avoid a common mistake: shutting off the number too soon and losing access to verification codes you need for multiple account closures.

When you can’t delete: reducing harm and keeping boundaries

Sometimes, despite your best effort, deletion isn’t possible. LINE’s help article notes scenarios where deletion support may be limited, and it even mentions a practical fallback in certain cases: asking friends to block the account. That doesn’t “close” the account in a formal sense, but it can reduce the account’s presence in other people’s chats and limit contact. It can also reduce the chance that a well-meaning friend continues sending messages that reopen the wound every time you see the notification count.

If your goal is less about formal closure and more about emotional safety, it’s okay to focus on the parts you can control. Turn off notifications on devices you manage. Ask close contacts to stop messaging the account. If the phone is accessible, consider updating the profile image or status to something neutral and private before you proceed with any deletion steps—only if it feels right and only if you’re authorized to do so. A quiet boundary is still a boundary.

How LINE fits into a bigger digital legacy

For many families, LINE is one of the first “digital rooms” they face, because it’s so intimate. But it’s rarely the only one. Email accounts, cloud storage, banking logins, and social media profiles often interlock with the phone number that LINE relies on. That’s why the phrase digital legacy LINE matters: it reminds you that this isn’t just an app problem—it’s part of a larger modern estate.

If you’re trying to take a more holistic approach, Funeral.com’s digital accounts closure checklist can help you set a steady pace, and the digital legacy planning guide can help you document what you learn so the next steps—closing other accounts, notifying services, and protecting identity—don’t become guesswork.

FAQs about closing a LINE account after death

If you’re working through multiple accounts and this feels like too much, that doesn’t mean you’re doing it wrong. It means you’re doing something difficult while grieving. Take one careful step at a time. Your job isn’t to become an expert in every platform. Your job is to protect your loved one’s story, privacy, and the people left behind.