Tracking your DNA kit status:
You can track your DNA kit status from the moment of your purchase until your results are ready: How can I track my DNA kit order?
Below are some reasons your DNA test results could be delayed.
Before Arrival at the Lab:
Postal Delays
MyHeritage has limited control over postal service delivery times, and packages may occasionally experience delays during shipping. We have experienced postal strikes and extreme weather conditions and other circumstances out of our control, which have affected both kits being delivered to our customers as well as being shipped by our customers to our lab.
We therefore recommend you wait for the email you will receive from MyHeritage itself (vs from the shipping company) once your sample has been received by our laboratory. The email will be titled
“[Name] ’s MyHeritage DNA sample has arrived at the lab (kit MH-XXXXXX)”.
Note that you can track your DNA kit at any time: How can I track my DNA kit order?
Once your kit has been scanned into the database in the lab, the tracker will update.
Lost in transit
While most DNA samples from the USA reach our lab within 1-2 weeks, and samples from the rest of the world typically arrive within a month, delivery times can occasionally extend much longer. In rare cases, we've seen samples take up to 5 weeks from the USA and 7 weeks from international locations to reach our laboratory.
We strongly recommend waiting for these maximum timeframes before requesting a replacement kit. Here's why this timing is crucial: once we send you a replacement kit, your original kit is immediately canceled in our system and cannot be processed - even if it arrives at our lab just a few days after the replacement is sent. This means that if your original sample shows up after we've issued a replacement, our laboratory will have to discard it entirely since the kit is no longer valid in our system.
To avoid losing your original sample and having to start over, please allow the full timeframe (5 weeks for USA, 7 weeks for international) before requesting a replacement.
If these timeframes have elapsed and your DNA kit is lost in transit, please Contact Us so that we can arrange for a replacement DNA kit to be sent to you.
Damaged upon arrival
If your kit is damaged upon arrival at our laboratory, we will contact you to arrange for a replacement DNA kit to be sent to you.
After Arrival at the Lab:
Kit not activated
Reason: Your DNA kit has been received by our laboratory, but you have not activated it in your online account. The analysis of your sample cannot begin until the activation is complete.
You will receive an email from MyHeritage to notify you of this. The email will be titled: “[Name] complete your MyHeritage DNA kit activation (Kit MH-XXXXXX)”
What should you do?
Complete the kit activation process.
If your kit reaches the lab without being activated:
Processing will not begin until activation is complete
Your kit loses its place in the processing queue based on arrival date
Once activated, your kit goes to the back of the line rather than returning to its original position
To ensure the fastest processing time, always activate your kit before sending it to our lab. This maintains your sample’s place in the queue and prevents unnecessary delays in receiving your results.
Insufficient or invalid sample
The DNA sample provided does not meet our quality requirements for analysis.
What should you do?
There is no need to do anything - if your sample was not adequate for analysis, we will automatically send you a replacement DNA kit. You will be made aware of this, as you will receive an email titled:
“Oops, we were unable to process [Name]'s DNA sample (kit MH-XXXXXX)”
When providing your new sample, please follow the sample collection instructions carefully.
If your sample is collected incorrectly and is unusable, you'll need to restart the entire process with a new kit, causing unnecessary delay in getting your results. Read all instructions thoroughly before collecting your sample to avoid this issue.
Profile gender mismatch
The gender listed in the user profile does not match the biological sex indicated by the DNA sample. As part of our rigorous quality control processes, the lab checks that the gender reported for the person who took the test matches the biological sex. This prevents user-caused mix-ups of kits which can happen easily in shared households.
Why am I receiving a message that there is a problem with the gender reported for my sample?
What should you do?
The fastest way to resolve this is as follows:
If you purchased more than one DNA kit, and they have been assigned to the wrong person:
You can reassign the DNA kit by following the instructions in the article below:
How do I assign a DNA kit to someone else?
If you are Transgender and the DNA kit is assigned to you:
Please update your profile information to reflect your biological sex. Once you have done so, analysis will resume automatically in a couple of weeks. Please note that analysis cannot proceed until this information is consistent.
Please find further information here : Why am I receiving a message that there is a problem with the gender reported for my sample?
If the DNA kit is assigned to a Transgender person in your tree (and you manage their DNA kit):
Please update their profile card in your tree, to reflect their biological sex.
Note: Once the relevant changes have been made, please allow a couple of weeks for your DNA analysis to resume.
If there is a medical reason such as Turner and Klinefelter syndrome, or you would prefer to contact us regarding this issue:
Please click here to contact us so that we may assist you further.
Fill out the Contact Form with the relevant medical/biological sex information and kit number so that we can request our lab to skip that part of the quality control, so that analysis will resume.
Please allow some time for our team to get back in touch with you.
Health questionnaire gender mismatch
Issue: The gender information provided in your health questionnaire does not correspond with the biological sex from birth indicated by your DNA sample.
If this is the case, you’ll receive an email from us titled: “MyHeritage DNA kit (MH-XXXXXX) - gender information needed”
What should you do?
Please Contact Us so that we can reset your Health Questionnaire. Once we have done so, you can fill it out once again ensuring the gender information provided reflects the biological sex from birth.
You can find further information here: Why am I receiving a message that there is a problem with the gender reported for my sample?
In the meantime…
Add value to your DNA results ahead of receiving them:
As you await your DNA results, we strongly recommend using this time to develop your family tree, as this will add value to your DNA results once you receive them.
How does a family tree add value to my DNA results?
Explore our DNA resources:
You can also take a look through our DNA resources to help you better understand your results and how to use them, once they are ready: MyHeritage Knowledge Base - DNA.