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To ensure a safe and trustworthy ad experience for users, we may require advertisers to complete a verification program. Advertisers must also comply with Google Ads policies.
Below are some examples of the verification programs we may require you to complete. A more detailed list can be found here. Learn about what happens if you violate our policies.
Advertiser identity
To increase transparency for users, advertisers will be required to verify their legal name through advertiser identity verification. Google will verify your identity and generate a disclosure on any ads you run, displaying your name and location. Find out more about transparency and ad disclosures here.
As part of a phased rollout, certain advertisers may be selected to complete this verification program first. Those who meet one of the below example criteria may be prioritized as Google expands this requirement across our Ad network:
Promotion of products, goods, and services.
Examples: Retail, media and entertainment, travel, B2B, technology, etc.Examples: Content promoting educational resources, research and statistics, free health or financial advice, charitable or social causes, etc.Examples: Gambling and games, financial products or services, healthcare products or services etc.
Advertisers who are required to complete advertiser identity verification will be notified and given 30 days to submit documentation. Verification must be completed by an authorized representative. Once you submit your documentation, you will then have an additional 30 days to complete any additional verification steps or your account will be paused. Multiple failed attempts to complete the verification program will result in account pausing. Currently, Google supports identity verification for advertisers registered in these regions.
Further instructions on how to complete verification can be found here.
Keep in mind
- If you intend to run election ads you must complete election ads verification instead. Accounts that have completed advertiser identity verification only will not be able to run election ads.
- If we find that you violate our Google Ads policy, or you’ve provided false information during the verification program, your verification will be revoked, and your account may be suspended.
- Google reserves the right to verify your identity again. You’ll receive a notification when this verification is required. You may also be asked to re-verify your identity if there are significant changes in your Google Ads account.
- Google may update these verification requirements at any time.
How Google uses your information
Google will use the information you provide to:
- Verify your identity
- Show a disclosure including your name, or the name of the business you represent, and location, linked from any ads you run.
Find out more about Advertiser transparency and disclosures.
As Google expands its transparency efforts, we may make information about your Google Ads accounts and ad campaigns publicly available including:
- Advertiser name change history
- Ad creatives
- Dates and locations ads served
- Ads removed or accounts suspended for legal or policy reasons
- Business contact information
Personal contact information, phone numbers, or email addresses will not be published.
On Google Search, the disclosure will show in "About this advertiser"
On YouTube, the disclosure will show in “Why this ad?” which can be accessed through the info icon 
On websites and apps that partner with Google for display ads, the disclosure will show in “Why this ad?” which can be accessed through the AdChoices icon
We want to ensure users understand who is providing the advertised products or services on Google Ads. If we suspect your ads violate our Google Ads policies, including Misleading representation, Unreliable claims, Unidentified business, Business name requirements, Solicitation of funds, Sensitive Events, and Coordinated Deceptive Practices, we may pause your account and ask you to complete Advertiser Identity Verification. We may also pause your account if we suspect you are attempting to circumvent our verification process or your identity is unclear.
Your account will remain paused until you complete the verification program, which can take 5-7 days depending on your account setup. More information on how to complete verification can be found here.
Once verification is complete, any ads that are compliant with Google Ads policies will be able to serve.
The advertiser name is the legal name of the advertiser, verified by Google through the advertiser identity verification program. As part of a beta program, certain advertisers can apply to use a trademark they own as their advertiser name.
The following is not allowed:
Inaccurate names or ‘doing business as’ names, brand or product names, that do not match the legal name of the advertiser. The advertiser name must be the legal name of the advertiser, and match any registration documents submitted during the verification program. For agencies, the name must be the legal name of the advertiser you are representing.
An authorized representative is an admin of:
- The Google Ads account and/or
- The payments profile paying for the ads
If required, you’ll be asked to provide documentation to complete verification.
- If you do not submit documentation within the 30 days notice period, or complete the verification program within 30 days once started your account will be paused. Start the verification program again, and once successfully completed your account will resume serving.
- Your account will be paused if you try to complete the verification program multiple times without success. If you believe this is an error or need further assistance, contact us to appeal the decision. Most appeals are reviewed within 3-5 business days, though some can take longer if they need a more complex review.
Business operations
To learn more about your business, we may ask you to verify information regarding your business operations. This may include details about your business, such as your business model, business registration information, types of services you offer, business practices, and relationships with advertised brands or third parties, if applicable.
Advertiser selection criteria for Business operations verificationAdvertisers may be selected to complete business operations verification if, for example, the advertising behavior has been identified as unclear or their ad content is deemed as potentially misleading. We want to ensure that users understand who is providing the advertised products or services on Google ads.
Advertisers who are required to complete business operations verification will be notified and given 21 days to submit the verification form. Once the verification form is completed and reviewed by Google, advertiser's accounts that do not meet the requirements of this verification program outlined below will be suspended with a 7 day notice period. Note that if any further clarification or information submitted to Google during this 7 day notice period is insufficient to verify the account, Google may suspend the account immediately.
Advertisers who are required to complete business operations verification will be notified and given 21 days to submit the verification form. In certain circumstances, we may pause advertisers’ accounts immediately when business operations verification is initiated. This means that advertisers' ads will not be able to serve until they are able to complete the program successfully.
Advertiser accounts may be paused if the advertiser's business model is unclear and we suspect that their advertising or business practices may cause physical or monetary harm to users. Non-exhaustive examples include: misrepresenting yourself in your ad content; offering financial products or services under false pretenses; or offering unauthorized customer support services on behalf of third parties.
In determining whether an advertiser’s account should be paused during the verification process, we may review information from multiple sources, including but not limited to: regulatory warnings, rulings about an advertiser’s business practices, or complaints from users, businesses, and other entities about impersonation or scams.
Once the verification form is completed and reviewed by Google, an advertiser's account(s) that do not meet the requirements of this verification program outlined below will be suspended with a 7 day notice period.
To successfully complete business operations verification, advertisers must submit all requested information within the time period specified by Google (21 days once notified). The following will result in account suspension with a 7 day notice period issued to the advertiser:
Additionally, upon review of the information provided during the business operations verification program, Google may consider your business model, operations or practices as unclear. This may be due to multiple reasons but not limited to the following.
Note: Advertisers must clarify and substantiate provisioning of products or services advertised with clear and accurate responses in the verification form. If you had indicated that the website pre-populated in your verification form is not associated with your customer ID, please ensure that you had provided an alternative website url and that the url is not invalid and that it appears in your Google Ads account. You must ensure that information in the verification form is consistent with the information you have provided in your Google Ads account.
You may provide the following to substantiate your relationships with advertised brands or businesses: unique identifiers, verification websites, contact details of individuals employed by third parties, or documentation (including an agreement, contract, or a document explaining the business relationship with the third party or brand owner on their company letterhead).
Your account will be suspended with a 7 day notice period if your business model, operations or practices are deemed unclear. Note that if any further clarification or information submitted to Google during this 7 day notice period is insufficient to verify the account, Google may suspend the account immediately. You must successfully complete this verification program to resume ad serving in your account.
- If you are unable to complete the verification program, or have been unsuccessful, your Google Ads account will be suspended with a 7 day notice period. Note that if any further clarification or information submitted to Google during this 7 day notice period is insufficient to verify the account, Google may suspend the account immediately.
- If you believe this is an error, or no longer applicable, contact us to appeal the decision. Make sure that you provide all the information required in the appeals form. Most appeals are reviewed within 5-7 business days, though some can take longer if they need a more complex review.
Restricted content
To protect our users, we allow only legitimate advertisers to promote content associated with certain regulated industries, such as Gambling and games, Healthcare and medicines, and Financial products or services. If you would like to advertise this content on our platform, you may be required to complete the verification program to prove you meet local licensing requirements. You may also have to complete additional identity checks.
We continually review our ad policies in light of industry changes and abuse trends, and may introduce new verification requirements for certain content.
Ad formats and features
To ensure quality ads, we may require advertisers to complete additional verification to access advanced ad formats and features of Google Ads, such as HTML5 ads and Local Services ads. We review all our ad formats for policy violations and abuse, and may introduce new verification requirements to access certain ad formats.
Advertiser responsibility
As stated in the Google Ads Terms & Conditions, advertisers are solely responsible for their use of Google Ads. Advertisers found submitting false information as part of our verification programs will be considered in violation of our Circumventing Systems policy. Google uses its best efforts to review and validate the information provided by advertisers as part of these verification programs, but in doing so does not guarantee or assume responsibility for advertiser content or activity.