Google Ads policy guide; disapproval reasons

Policy reference	Description	Suggested actions
Image Quality	Ads should fill the entire space of the image size and not be sideways, blurry, strobing, flashing, or otherwise distracting. Read the full description.
Legal Requirements	All advertisers must comply with local laws for all areas their ads target, in addition to standard Google Ads policies. Read the full description.
Misrepresentation	Ads or destinations that intend to deceive users by excluding relevant information or give misleading information about products, services, or businesses aren't allowed. Read the full description.
Prescription Drug Sale	Ads relating to the sale of prescription drugs are restricted in some countries Read the full description.
Restricted Drug Terms	Prescription drug terms in ad text or landing pages (including source code) in most parts of the world (except for a few countries) isn't allowed. Read the full description.
Restricted Medical Content	Offline prescription drug treatments, services, or information related to prescription drugs is allowed with country-specific restrictions. Read the full description.
Legal Russia	You must comply with local laws. In Russia, for example, product information without an age rating isn't allowed to be advertised. Read the full description.
Destination Not Working	If the URL you entered isn't working, check to make sure it's correct, then resubmit your ad for review. If resubmission doesn't work, contact your webmaster. Read the full description.
Destination Mismatch	The domains of the Display URL, Final URL, Mobile URL, and URL that users end up on after any re-directs must be the same. Read the full description.
Trademarks In Ad Text	Request authorization from the trademark owner to use their trademark without restrictions. Read the full description.
Malicious Software	Ads, content, or destinations that are malicious or attempt to trick or circumvent our ad review processes aren't allowed. Read the full description.
Malicious Or Unwanted Software	Ads, content, or destinations that are malicious or attempt to trick or circumvent our ad review processes aren't allowed. Read the full description.
Unclear Relevance	Ad text that isn't relevant to the landing page isn't allowed. Read the full description.
Symbols	Remove any nonstandard or repetitive punctuation or symbols (like multiple exclamation points) from your ad text. Remove exclamation points from headlines if applicable. Read the full description.
Phone Number In Ad Text	Remove any phone number in the ad text. If you want customers to call you, consider using call extensions or call-only ads Read the full description.
Capitalization	Capitalization that is not used correctly or for its intended purpose Read the full description.
Alcohol sale	We consider ads to be promoting the sale of alcoholic beverages when one or more alcoholic beverages are featured in the ad, and alcohol can be purchased on the destination site or app. Read the full description.
Alcohol information	Branding and informational ads include promotions which focus on alcoholic beverages, or spread awareness of alcoholic beverages, but which do not offer them for online sale. Read the full description.
Misleading content	The following is not allowed: Making false statements about your identity or qualifications Using false claims or claims that entice the user with an improbable result (even if this result is possible) as the likely outcome that a user can expect, or making claims that are demonstrably false and could significantly undermine participation or trust in an electoral or democratic process Manipulating media to deceive, defraud, or mislead others Falsely implying affiliation with, or endorsement by, another individual, organization, product, or service Ads that mislead or trick the user into interacting with them Providing a business name that is anything other than the domain, the recognized name of the advertiser, or the promoted downloadable app Read the full description.
Abortion	Google doesn't allow ads related to abortion in the following countries: Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Aruba, Bahamas, Bahrain, Belgium, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Cayman Islands, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Djibouti, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, France, Germany, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Hong Kong, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Italy, Jamaica, Jordan, Korea (South), Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Malaysia, Martinique, Mexico, Morocco, Nicaragua, Oman, Pakistan, Palestinian Territory, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Qatar, Russia, Saint Barthelemy, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Spain, Sri Lanka, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, Suriname, Switzerland, Syria, Taiwan, Thailand, Tunisia, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, Uruguay, Venezuela, Yemen Read the full description.
Prescription opioid painkillers	Google does not allow ads for prescription opioid painkillers except for those that are intended for use as medication-assisted treatment (MAT) for opioid use disorder and meet all other requirements pertaining to prescription drugs listed on this page. In limited cases, and where permitted by local law, Google allows exceptions to this policy for (a) public health and safety awareness campaigns from governmental or well-established non-profit health advocacy organizations, (b) ads for non-opioid pharmaceuticals that only refer to prescription opioids in their safety information, and (c) certified addiction treatment providers in the United States. Read the full description.
Style and spelling	Ads or extensions that do not use commonly accepted spelling or grammar Ads or extensions that are incomprehensible or don’t make sense Ads or extensions that exceed character limits for double-width character languages Ads or extensions that are inconsistent with the clear and informational presentation style of the Google Search results Read the full description.
Destination experience	Destinations or content that are unnecessarily difficult or frustrating to navigate Links that initiate a direct download from the ad or that lead to an email address or a file Destinations that contain abusive experiences Read the full description.
Housing in personalized ads	Homes for sale or rental, where a home is defined as a place a person would reside. This includes products or services enabling the sale or rental of homes. Read the full description.
Adult content	Ads should respect user preferences and comply with legal regulations, so we don’t allow certain kinds of adult content in ads and destinations. Some kinds of adult-oriented ads and destinations are allowed if they comply with the policies below and don’t target minors, but they will only show in limited scenarios based on user search queries, user age, and local laws where the ad is being served. Read the full description.
Addiction services	Google restricts advertising for recovery-oriented drug and alcohol addiction services. Examples of recovery-oriented addiction services: Clinical addiction treatment providers, recovery support services like sober living environments and mutual help organizations, lead generators or referral agencies for addiction services, crisis hotlines for drug and alcohol addiction Read the full description.
Misleading ad design	Ads that make it difficult for the user to understand they are interacting with an ad Examples (non-exhaustive): Ads that resemble system or site warnings/error messages; ads that simulate messages, dialog boxes, menus, or request notifications; hosted ads that are indistinguishable from other content; ads depicting features that do not work, such as close buttons, text input boxes, multiple choice options; download/install buttons or icons in image ads; ads with a transparent background; images that are segmented; an image that contains multiple copies of itself within the ad; images that appear to be more than one ad; moving and clicking arrows; ads that use surreptitious techniques to disguise their nature Read the full description.
Clickbait Ads	Ads that use clickbait tactics or sensationalist text or imagery to drive traffic Ads that use negative life events such as death, accidents, illness, arrests or bankruptcy to induce fear, guilt or other strong negative emotions to pressure the viewer to take immediate action. Read the full description.
Unapproved substances	Google doesn't allow the promotion of the following content, irrespective of any claims of legality: All items on this non-exhaustive list of prohibited pharmaceuticals and supplements Products that contain ephedra Products containing human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) in relation to weight loss or weight control, or when promoted in conjunction with anabolic steroids Herbal and dietary supplements with active pharmaceutical or dangerous ingredients Products that imply they are as effective as prescription drugs or controlled substances Non-government approved products that are marketed in a way that implies that they're safe or effective for use in preventing, curing, or treating a particular disease or ailment Products that have been subject to any government or regulatory action or warning Products with names that are confusingly similar to an unapproved pharmaceutical or supplement or controlled substance Read the full description.
US Election Google Ads Policy Updates	Since January 6, we have enacted a limited Sensitive events policy, per our standard policies, given the violent events in Washington DC. Starting on Thursday, January 14, we will be expanding our Sensitive events enforcement to US election-related content, including ads which reference the candidates, the election, its outcome, the upcoming presidential inauguration, the ongoing presidential impeachment process, violence at the US Capitol, or future planned protests on these topics. There will not be any carve outs or appeals for this policy. Read the full description.
Birth control	Google doesn't allow ads related to birth control or fertility products in the following countries: Bahrain, China, Djibouti, Egypt, Hong Kong, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Malaysia, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Oman, Palestinian Territory, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Thailand, Tunisia, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, Yemen Read the full description.
Free desktop software	Ads for free desktop software must include the name of the specific software being advertised and lead to the authoritative online distribution source for the software. Read the full description.
Shocking content	Promotions containing violent language, gruesome or disgusting imagery, or graphic images or accounts of physical trauma. Promotions containing gratuitous portrayals of bodily fluids or waste. Promotions containing obscene or profane language. Promotions that are likely to shock or scare Read the full description.
Employment in personalized ads	Employment opportunities or hiring a person for a job. Read the full description.
Local legal requirements in Japan	Local legal requirements in Japan Read the full description.
Negative financial status in personalized advertising	Personal financial distress, difficulties, or deprivation Read the full description.
Past violations	Google continuously re-reviews ads to ensure they conform with our policies. During the standard re-review process, our system may identify disapproved ads that no longer violate our policies. If your ad was disapproved for an extended period of time and our enforcement system later decides that the policy no longer applies, we may keep the ad disapproved and classify the ad as “Past Violation”. We do this to prevent you from unintentionally exhausting spend on old ads Read the full description.
Circumventing systems	Engaging in practices that circumvent or interfere with Google's advertising systems and processes, or attempts to do so. Read the full description.
Speculative and experimental medical treatment, cell therapies, and gene therapies	The following is not allowed: Promotion of speculative and/or experimental medical treatments. Promotion of cell or gene therapies, regardless of regulatory approval status. Read the full description.
Trademarks	Google abides by local trademark laws and requires that Google Ads ads don’t infringe third party trademarks. We recognize that third parties may properly use trademarks in certain situations, such as by resellers to describe products. If a trademark owner submits a complaint to Google about the use of their trademark in Google Ads ads, we will review it and may enforce certain restrictions on use of the trademark. Read the full description.