403 PERMISSION_DENIED - My new Free Tier Gemini API project has been denied access

Gemini API
1

Hello Google AI Developers team,

I am trying to use the Gemini API for my student project, WasteWise-AI.

My newly created Google AI Studio project is on the Free Tier, but every Gemini API request returns:

403 PERMISSION_DENIED:
“Your project has been denied access. Please contact support.”

Project: Default Gemini Project

I have already:

  • Created a Gemini API key in Google AI Studio
  • Verified my phone number
  • Enabled 2-Step Verification
  • Confirmed that the project is on the Free Tier
  • Tried the model recommended by the API error: gemini-3.6-flash

The AI Studio Usage page shows 403 Forbidden errors and no successful model requests.

Could you please review the project and confirm whether Gemini API access can be enabled for this Free Tier project?

Thank you.

2

Hello @ADHISHYA_M ,
After completing these steps still does not restore access (or if using a model requiring a paid tier), you might want to consider adding prepayment credits directly in Google AI Studio and/ or attaching a Google Cloud Billing account in the Google Cloud Console. Please note this will mean you lose your free tier quota.