💡 What is the Financial Products & Services Policy?
Google has some of its strictest advertising rules for anything related to money — loans, investments, insurance, credit, trading, crypto, and more. Many financial products require proof of regulatory authorisation before Google will approve your ads at all. Others are completely banned. This checklist walks you through every single requirement in plain, everyday language so you know exactly what to fix, what documents to gather, and what to avoid before submitting an appeal.
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Confirm whether your financial product or service requires regulatory authorisation to advertise on Google
Google requires proof of regulatory authorisation for many financial categories, including consumer loans, credit products, investment services, insurance, trading platforms, debt management, and cryptocurrency services. If you cannot prove authorisation, your ads will always be disapproved — no amount of editing will fix it. Check Google's Financial Products and Services policy page for your specific category.
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Gather your regulatory licence or authorisation certificate and have it ready to upload
Depending on your country and product type, you may need documents from the FCA (UK), SEC or FINRA (USA), SEBI (India), FCA, BaFin (Germany), or your local equivalent. Find your authorisation certificate, licence number, or registration confirmation right now — you will need to upload or reference it in your Google Ads Policy Manager or appeal.
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Verify that your authorisation or licence covers the specific product you are advertising
A general financial services licence does not automatically cover every product. For example: being licensed to sell insurance does not mean you are automatically authorised to offer investment products. Confirm that your specific licence explicitly covers the exact product or service you are advertising.
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Confirm your licence or authorisation has not expired and is currently active
An expired licence is the same as no licence in Google's eyes. Log into your regulatory authority's portal (e.g. FCA Register, SEC EDGAR, SEBI registration) and confirm your authorisation status is "Active" or "Registered." If it has lapsed, renew it before doing anything else.
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Check that Google permits advertising for your financial product category in your target country
Even with a valid licence, Google restricts or bans certain financial product advertising in specific countries. Binary options, certain high-risk investment products, and some forms of short-term loans are banned in all countries. Check Google's country-specific financial services policy before spending time on other fixes.
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Confirm your product is not on Google's completely prohibited financial products list
Google completely bans advertising for: binary options and related products, certain contracts for difference (CFDs) in some countries, unauthorised cryptocurrency exchanges, predatory loan products, and pyramid or multi-level marketing schemes. If your product falls into any of these categories, the only resolution is to change what you offer — not how you advertise it.
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Your landing page must load fully without errors on both mobile and desktop
Open your exact landing page URL in a browser on your phone and on a computer. If you see a "404 Not Found," a blank page, a broken layout, or a loading error — your ad will be automatically disapproved. Fix any technical issues before anything else.
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Your landing page must clearly show your regulatory authorisation or licence number
For regulated financial services, your licence number or regulatory registration must be visible on your website — ideally in the footer of every page. Example: "Authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. FCA registration number: 123456." Include a link to your entry on the regulator's public register so reviewers can verify it instantly.
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Your landing page must show full risk warnings and disclaimers required by your regulator
Most financial regulators require specific risk warnings to be displayed prominently. Examples: "Capital at risk. The value of your investments can go down as well as up." or "Forex trading involves significant risk of loss." These warnings must be easy to read — not in tiny grey font at the bottom. Check exactly what your regulator requires and add it clearly.
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Display your business name, physical address, and contact details clearly on your website
Anonymous or hard-to-identify financial businesses are automatically flagged. Your website must show your registered business name, a working phone number or email address, and ideally a registered office address. This information should be easy to find — not buried three clicks deep.
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Your website must have a clear, accessible Privacy Policy that covers financial data handling
A Privacy Policy is mandatory for any website that collects personal or financial data — including names, bank details, income information, or payment card data. Link it in the footer of every page. It must explain what data you collect, how you use it, who you share it with, and how users can request deletion or correction.
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Your landing page content must exactly match what your ad promises — no bait and switch
If your ad mentions a specific loan rate, investment return, or financial product, that exact product with those exact terms must be clearly available on the landing page. Sending people to a homepage or a different product than the one advertised is a direct policy violation.
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Remove all guaranteed return or risk-free promises from your ad text
Phrases like "Guaranteed 20% annual returns," "Risk-free investment," "Zero risk trading," or "Earn guaranteed passive income" are not permitted for financial ads. No legitimate investment or financial product can guarantee returns — making such claims is both a policy violation and illegal in most countries. Remove every instance of these phrases.
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Include any required risk warnings directly in your ad text if your regulator requires it
Some regulators (such as the UK's FCA for investment ads) require a risk warning to appear within the ad itself — not just on the landing page. Check whether your regulator requires an in-ad warning such as "Capital at risk" and add it to your ad descriptions. The Google Ads character limit must still be respected.
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Do not use urgency or pressure tactics to push people into financial decisions
Phrases like "Invest NOW before it's too late!" "Last chance — offer expires tonight!" or "Act immediately or miss out forever" are manipulative tactics designed to rush people into financial decisions they haven't thought through. Google strictly prohibits exploitative urgency in financial advertising. Use informative, factual language instead.
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Make sure any interest rate, APR, or fee mentioned in your ad is accurate and currently available
If your ad shows "Loans from 3.9% APR" but the real starting rate on your website is 19.9% APR, that is a serious misleading pricing violation. The rate shown in your ad must be the actual rate a typical customer can access today — not a promotional rate only available to a tiny fraction of applicants. Update your ads every time your rates change.
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Do not impersonate a government body, central bank, or well-known financial institution
Using official-looking language like "Government-backed investment," "Bank of England approved," or styling your ad to look like it is from a central bank or national pension authority — when it isn't — is fraudulent. This is one of the most serious violations in financial advertising and can result in immediate account termination and referral to authorities.
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Ensure your ad is written in the same language as your landing page
Running an English-language ad that sends people to a page in a different language is confusing and can be flagged as misleading. Your ad language and landing page language must match for every country you target. If you target multiple countries, create separate ad groups and landing pages for each language.
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Display the full Annual Percentage Rate (APR) — including all fees — on your landing page
For any loan or credit product, regulators in most countries require the full APR to be clearly displayed — not just a teaser interest rate. The APR must include all fees, charges, and the interest rate combined. In the UK, this means showing the representative APR. In the US, it must comply with the Truth in Lending Act (TILA) disclosure requirements.
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Show minimum and maximum loan terms, amounts, and repayment information clearly
Hiding the repayment period, the total amount repayable, or the minimum monthly payment is misleading. Your landing page must clearly show: the loan amount range, the repayment period, the representative example (e.g. "£10,000 over 36 months at 6.9% APR"), and the total amount the customer will repay.
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Do not advertise payday loans or ultra-short-term high-cost credit in countries where Google prohibits it
Google bans payday loan advertising entirely in some countries, and heavily restricts it in others. In the United States, Google prohibits ads for loans with an APR of 36% or higher along with loans where repayment is due within 60 days of issuance. Check the specific rules for every country you target before running loan ads.
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If you offer debt management or debt relief services, ensure you hold the required authorisation
Debt management plans, Individual Voluntary Arrangements (IVAs), debt settlement, or debt counselling services typically require specific licencing. In the UK, debt management companies must be FCA-authorised. In the US, many states require state-level licences. Confirm your authorisation covers debt-related services specifically.
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Include a responsible lending or borrowing statement on your website if required by your regulator
Many regulators require lenders and credit brokers to include statements encouraging responsible borrowing. Example: "Please only borrow what you can comfortably afford to repay. Missing repayments can affect your credit score and result in additional charges." Check your regulator's specific requirements and add the appropriate statement to your landing page.
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Add the required investment risk warning clearly on your landing page and in your ad if applicable
Investment products must display prominent risk disclosures. In the UK: "The value of your investments can go down as well as up and you may get back less than you invest." In the EU (MiFID II compliant): "Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results." These cannot be in small print — they must be clearly readable.
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Remove or do not advertise binary options, certain CFDs, or products banned by Google in your country
Google globally bans advertising for binary options. CFD (Contract for Difference) advertising is permitted in some countries only with the appropriate regulatory authorisation — and is banned in others. Check Google's current policy for CFDs in each country you want to target before creating any CFD ads.
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If advertising cryptocurrency services, apply for Google's cryptocurrency certification
Cryptocurrency exchanges, crypto wallets, and related services require a specific Google certification to advertise in permitted countries. Without this, all crypto ads will be disapproved. You must also hold the appropriate regulatory registration in each country you target — for example, FCA registration in the UK, FinCEN registration in the US, or MAS licensing in Singapore.
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Do not advertise initial coin offerings (ICOs), DeFi trading protocols, or unregistered token sales
Initial Coin Offerings, most DeFi (Decentralised Finance) products, and unregistered cryptocurrency token sales are completely banned from Google advertising in all countries. This includes ads that promote, explain, or drive traffic to these types of offerings — even if you are not directly selling the tokens yourself.
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Do not use past performance figures to imply or suggest future investment returns
Showing historical returns (e.g. "Our fund returned 40% last year!") in a way that implies future results is misleading and regulated. If you reference past performance figures at all, they must be accompanied by a clear disclaimer that "past performance is not indicative of future results" — and must be presented in a balanced, non-misleading way.
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Confirm you hold the appropriate insurance intermediary or underwriter authorisation for every country you target
Selling or promoting insurance without proper regulatory authorisation is illegal in virtually every country. In the UK, insurance intermediaries must be FCA authorised. In the US, insurance sellers must hold a state-specific licence for each state they sell in. Confirm you hold all required licences before advertising.
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Do not make misleading "cheapest" or "best" claims about insurance unless they can be independently verified
Claiming "The UK's cheapest car insurance" or "Best life insurance on the market" without substantiation from an independent, credible source is misleading. Only use superlative claims if they are backed by verifiable, recent, independent data — and be prepared to provide evidence if challenged.
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Clearly disclose what is and is not covered by the insurance product on your landing page
Advertising insurance without making exclusions or key conditions clear is misleading. Your landing page must not just sell the benefits — it must also make key exclusions and limitations reasonably clear, with a link to full policy terms. Example: If your travel insurance excludes pre-existing conditions, this must be easy to find — not buried in a downloadable PDF.
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If advertising health insurance, confirm it complies with both Google's healthcare and financial policies
Health insurance sits at the intersection of Google's Healthcare policy and Financial Products policy — both sets of rules apply simultaneously. Your landing page, ad copy, and targeting must comply with both policies at the same time. Review both policy pages before advertising any health or medical insurance product.
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Set your geographic targeting to only include countries where you are licensed and where Google permits your product
In Google Ads, go to your campaign's Location settings. Make sure you are only targeting countries and regions where your financial product is legally approved, where you hold the required authorisation, and where Google permits this category of financial advertising. Targeting an unauthorised country is a policy violation even if your ad looks perfect.
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Apply appropriate age targeting — financial products must not target minors
Financial products and services must not be advertised to people under 18. In your Google Ads Demographics settings, exclude the under-18 age group. Also exclude "Unknown" if your product is strictly for adults — "Unknown" can include under-18 users who have not provided age information to Google.
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Confirm your Final URL and Display URL are on the same domain and go to the correct page
In Google Ads, the Final URL (where people actually land) and the Display URL (shown in the ad) must belong to the same domain. For financial ads, the Final URL must go directly to the specific product or service the ad describes — not to a homepage. Check every ad in your account for this.
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Upload your regulatory authorisation certificate to Google's Policy Manager
For financial products requiring Google certification or proof of regulatory status, you must upload your authorisation documents directly in your Google Ads account. Go to: Tools & Settings → Policy Manager → Certifications, and upload your current, valid regulatory certificate for the appropriate product category and country.
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Review all ad extensions — sitelinks, callouts, and price extensions — for accuracy
Ad extensions appear as extra links or text below your main ad. Every sitelink must go to a real, working page. Every callout must be accurate. Price extensions must show real, current prices. A misleading or broken extension can trigger a disapproval even if your main ad is correct.
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Audit your entire Google Ads account — not just the disapproved ad — for similar violations
If one ad or campaign was flagged for a financial policy violation, other ads in your account may have identical or similar issues. Before submitting any appeal, go through every active and paused campaign, ad group, and individual ad. Fix all issues across the whole account — a partially clean account rarely results in a successful appeal.
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Go through this entire checklist and confirm every single item is genuinely fixed before appealing
Financial policy appeals are reviewed by Google specialists, not automated systems. You typically get one or two manual review attempts — if you submit too early and are rejected again, subsequent appeals become significantly harder. Only submit when every item is truly resolved, not just partially addressed.
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Write a detailed, specific, and professional appeal — list every single change you made
In Google Ads: find the disapproved ad or suspension notice → click "Appeal" or "Request Review" → in your message, list every specific change you made: the exact ad text you rewrote, the risk warnings you added, the landing page updates, the certifications you uploaded, the targeting changes, and so on. Generic appeals like "I've fixed the issues" are almost always rejected in this category.
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Attach all supporting documents — licences, regulatory certificates, and authorisation letters
Financial appeals with documented evidence are far more likely to succeed. Attach your regulatory licence certificate, your FCA/SEC/SEBI registration confirmation, any Google-specific certification approvals, and any correspondence from your regulator confirming your authorised status. Name each document clearly so reviewers can identify them quickly.
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If your appeal is still rejected, engage a Google Ads financial policy specialist
Financial policy cases are the most complex and consequential in Google Ads. If you have done everything correctly and are still being rejected, do not keep guessing — contact Google Ads Support for a detailed written explanation of the remaining issue, and consider engaging a specialist who handles financial ad policy appeals regularly. The cost of expert help is almost always less than continued lost revenue from suspended ads.
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