How To Avoid Ad Rejection On Facebook: Meta Ad Policies Explained

If you want to reach your audience and have great results with your Facebook ads, you need to understand Meta's advertising guidelines. These rules are here to keep ads on the platform safe and fair, and to provide a great user experience for everyone.

Understanding these standards is not just about avoiding rejections – it will help you create effective ads that deliver your message the right way. Plus, avoiding ad rejections will save time and reduce stress, keeping your campaigns running smoothly.

Let's talk about the main standards your Facebook ads should comply with. 

Meta Advertising Standards Explained

Meta Advertising Standards, previously known as Meta ad policies, are a set of rules designed to ensure that all ads have the same high quality across all Meta’s platforms.

What counts as a 'good' ad according to these standards? Here are a few characteristics: 

• Safe - ads aren't misleading and don't lead anywhere users wouldn't expect. 
• Appropriate - ads don't promote anything illegal, unethical, etc. 
• Relevant - ads are shown to people who are likely to find offers in them interesting. 
• Enjoyable - ads feel natural and not disruptive to the user experience. 

Every ad that runs on Meta’s platforms goes through a review process, and its outcome will depend on whether the ad follows the Advertising Standards. If it does, it gets the green light. 

These standards can guide you in creating ads that are not only effective but also respectful of users’ experiences. By following them, your ads will have a much lower chance of being flagged or rejected. In short, less hassle and better results for you.

Now, let’s go over the key Meta rules you need to know about.

Key Advertising Rules You Need to Know

Meta's ad standards explain what you can promote, how to make ads, and who you can target.

Meta groups ad content that violates their standards into two main categories: unacceptable and restricted content. 

Unacceptable content: what’s not allowed

Unacceptable content includes everything that is off-limits: products or the way something’s being advertised. Here’s what you can’t promote: 

• Illegal products and services: drugs, unlicensed gambling, counterfeit items, or stolen goods. This also includes things that may be illegal in certain locations. 
• Violence and dangerous organizations: anything that promotes violence and militarized movements or praises individuals and groups marked as dangerous by Meta.
• Adult content: anything explicit, including overly suggestive imagery or messages.
• Weapons, ammunition, and explosives: firearms, ammunition, explosives, or any accessories for modifying weapons.
• Unsafe supplements: ‘unsafe’ refers to supplements not approved by health-related institutions like FDA and others. 
• Human exploitation: anything that facilitates or coordinates the exploitation of humans, including human trafficking.
• Vaccine discouragement: your ads can’t discourage people from vaccination or advocate against vaccines.
• Fraud, scams, and deceptive practices: this includes any deceptive means you can use in ads to scam people or drive engagement – misrepresentation, stolen information, exaggerated claims, or tricks to disguise an ad’s content or landing page.

Here are things that you can’t use in your ads: 

• Misinformation: false information that has been debunked by third-party fact-checkers. This includes false health claims (including discouragements of vaccination), misleading political statements, inaccurate financial advice, etc.
• Discriminatory practices: anything that promotes or encourages discrimination based on personal attributes like race, ethnicity, religion, gender, or disability.
• Hate speech: attacks or insults based on people’s personal characteristics (race, ethnicity, gender identity, religion, or orientation). 
• Profanity and sensational language: excessive profanity or sensational language.

You should also avoid intellectual property infringement. This means that your ads shouldn’t use logos, trademarks, or imitate another company’s products.

Restricted content: allowed, but under certain conditions 

Some content is allowed, but under specific conditions. These include: 

• Alcohol: these ads must comply with local laws and can only target audiences that meet the legal drinking age. There are also some countries where alcohol ads can’t be run at all. 
• Gambling and betting: these ads require prior approval from Meta and must follow specific targeting and content guidelines. For example, these ads can only target adult audiences in countries where online gambling is legal.
• Political and social issues: these ads must go through the ad authorization process and have a disclaimer about who paid for them. They should also comply with local laws. 
• Cryptocurrency: these ads need Meta's prior permission as well as regional licenses or registrations. Ads promoting NFTs and certain types of EFTs don’t need prior permission, just like ads that promote things only related to cryptocurrency (tax services, events, news, etc.).
• Dating services: these ads require Meta’s approval and must follow dating-specific guidelines.
• Online pharmacies and prescription drugs: these ads need prior approval and certification to ensure compliance with regulations. These ads are carefully monitored to prevent the promotion of unsafe or misleading products.
• Health and wellness products: ads that promote weight loss, cosmetic procedures, or health products shouldn’t exploit people’s insecurities or set unrealistic expectations. They should also target adults over 18 and focus on health benefits, not negative self-image. 
• Commercial exploitation of crises: ads must not exploit crises or controversial events for commercial purposes, including natural disasters and medical emergencies.
• Tobacco and related products: tobacco products, including e-cigarettes and vaping devices. Ads may only promote cessation products approved by health authorities like the WHO or FDA, and they must comply with local laws.
• Spyware or malware: spyware, malware, or any software designed to harm or secretly collect user information.
• Non-endangered animals and endangered species: products derived from endangered species (wildlife or plants) or the sale of live animals unless it is for donations or rehoming purposes.

In summary, these rules help keep Meta’s platforms safe for everyone. By sticking to them, your ads have a much better chance of being approved.

You can find more details about prohibited and restricted types of content on Meta. 

Data-use restrictions

Meta also focuses heavily on privacy, which is why there are specific rules around data use for advertisers: 

• Share data only with trusted service providers helping with your ad campaigns. You’re responsible for making sure this data is kept safe and used correctly.
• Do not share data with other ad networks or brokers.
• Use data only to measure the performance of your ads, anonymously and without targeting individual users unless Meta gives permission. You can’t use data to combine it across multiple campaigns, change user profiles, or retarget. 

Also, one of the key things Meta prohibits is using or requesting personal information. Avoid asking for or implying things like financial data, health information, or sensitive personal details (race, age, religion, health status, etc.). 

For example, ads with phrases like "Have you been diagnosed with…?" aren’t allowed by Facebook. If these details are important to your strategy, you need to find a workaround for it. Instead of using personal details in your ad copies, you can focus on the benefits of your product or service without making it personal. You can also target more precisely to make your ads more relevant. 

Community standards and platform-specific rules 

Every piece of content on Facebook needs to meet Facebook’s Community Standards – guidelines that ensure the platform is a safe and welcoming space for all users. This includes ads as well: if you want to run them, you need to make sure they don’t break any rules that apply to regular posts as well.

This also applies to your Instagram ads – if you want them to get approved, you need to make sure they follow Instagram Community Guidelines. 

There are 5 key values that Facebook Community Standards are based on. 

Aside from the general rules, there are also platform-specific rules: different platforms have additional rules that advertisers need to follow. 

For example, branded content on Instagram and Messenger have their own guidelines, and if you’re promoting products for sale, there are specific commerce policies that apply. Each Meta platform is slightly different, so you should know what’s expected depending on where your ad will show up.

Product and format-specific policies

There are also several rules specific to certain products and ad formats.

First of all, your video ads shouldn’t include disruptive content like flashing screens. If you’re advertising movies, TV shows, or video games, you’ll need Meta’s written permission to do so. You also can’t depict drugs, alcohol use, adult content, profanity, or excessive violence in your video ads. 

Secondly, there are rules for lead ads: you can’t request certain kinds of information through them if you don’t have prior written permission from Meta. 

There are also some limitations to targeting: you can’t target people in a discriminatory or harassing way or use predatory tactics. In most cases, you also can’t target minors in your ads. Your custom audiences also must comply with Meta’s terms.

Another advertising rule is that your ads have to be relevant: they should accurately represent the company, product, or service you’re advertising. Plus, all aspects and components of your ads (including your landing page) should match what you’re promoting. 

Finally, there’s branded content: if you use influencer partnerships or other types of content like that, you have to tag the third-party partner using Meta’s branded content tool. 

Ad creative and copy guidelines

Next, we have guidelines for your ad creatives and copies. These are key to making sure your ads meet Meta’s standards and perform well.

The main thing you need to do is to make ad creatives that catch attention quickly, especially on mobile devices where people tend to scroll fast. 

Check Apple’s Facebook ads: they always follow the platform’s creative and copy guidelines to a T

These guidelines are meant to help you with that: 

• Keep copy short: The primary text should be 1-3 lines at most. Keep text under 125 characters, the headline under 40 characters, and the description under 25 characters (or it will get truncated). 
• Avoid obstructing visuals: text on your ad images shouldn’t cover the visuals. Use clean, modern fonts that contrast well with the background.
• Clear CTA: your ad should guide users on what to do. The text and CTA button should be simple and direct.
• Customize your assets: tailor your copy to fit different placements across Meta. For example, you can use a shorter, more direct copy for Stories and more brand-oriented copy for Instagram posts.
• Multiple text optimization: use the feature to provide different options for your primary text, headline, and description. Meta will choose the best-performing variations for different audiences.

Now, let's move on to common reasons ads get rejected and how you can avoid those mistakes. 

Why your ads can get rejected (and how to avoid it)

Once you create and submit your ad, the ad review process will begin. 

Meta will use automated tools to review ads against its policies, checking images, text, video, targeting, and the landing page. The review usually takes up to 24 hours, and if any part of your ad violates the policy, it will be rejected.

Follow the tips from this checklist to avoid getting your Facebook ads rejected

Ads are also subject to re-reviews, either randomly or due to user feedback (e.g., if people hide or report the ad). If your ad is flagged during re-review, it can be rejected even if it was initially approved. 

Here are the main causes of ad rejection: 

• Non-compliance with laws: ads must comply with all laws in your jurisdiction.
• Discriminatory content: ads that discriminate against a group or demographic based on attributes like race, ethnicity, gender, or disability will be rejected.
• Deceptive or misleading practices: ads that promote products, services, or schemes using misleading tactics to trick people into providing personal information will also be rejected. 
• Violation of Meta's various policies: ads must follow Meta's Community Standards, Advertising Standards, Commerce Policies, and other relevant policies.

Even if your ad gets rejected, don't worry – the problem can be fixed. Meta will notify you about the reason for ad rejection, and you’ll know why it happened and what to do about it. 

Once you know the issue, you can take these steps to fix rejected ads: 

1. Edit your ad: adjust it to comply with Meta’s policies, and it will automatically be submitted for review.
2. Create a new ad: if the rejected ad can’t be edited, your best option is to create a new ad that follows the rules. 
3. Request a review: if you believe your ad was wrongly rejected, ask Meta to review it again (it usually takes 48 hours). A human reviewer might check it more carefully. 

In short, fix the issues, learn from them, and your ad can get back on track quickly. 

Conclusion

Getting a handle on Meta's ad policies is key to running successful ad campaigns across Facebook, Instagram, and other Meta properties. 

By following the guidelines, you can avoid ad rejections and provide a better experience for all users who will see your ads. Whether you're advertising products or services, or promoting a cause, knowing what’s allowed and what’s not will save you time and hassle.