There are a few key reasons why you may no longer be able to advertise on Facebook. Facebook has strict advertising policies and standards that all ads must comply with. If your ads don’t follow these guidelines, Facebook may reject or disable your ads and advertising account.
Your Ads Violated Facebook’s Advertising Policies
The most common reason that Facebook blocks advertising is due to policy violations. Facebook has detailed advertising policies that prohibit certain types of content, products, services and practices in ads. Some examples of prohibited ad content include:
- False or misleading claims
- Sensationalized health claims
- Promotion of illegal or recreational drugs
- Adult or sexual products/services
- Discriminatory ads
- Violence or illegal activity
- Infringing on intellectual property
If Facebook detects that your ads contain prohibited content or make misleading claims, they will disapprove your ads and may disable your ad account. You would need to appeal the violation and get your account reviewed before being able to run ads again.
Your Ad Account is Restricted
If you’ve had multiple advertising policy violations, Facebook may restrict your ad account. Ad account restrictions can include:
- Limits on amount you can spend on advertising
- Restriction from running certain ad types (ex. interest-based ads)
- Requirement of ad approval before publishing
- Disablement of your account from advertising entirely
Restricted accounts have to undergo an appeals process and get the restrictions lifted before being able to advertise normally again. This helps ensure advertisers comply with policies moving forward.
Your Business is Considered “Low Quality or Disruptive”
Facebook also reserves the right to restrict businesses they consider “low quality or disruptive” even if no specific ad violations occurred. This could happen if:
- Your business has a high number of customer complaints
- Your products/services have excessive refund rates
- You engage in aggressive or misleading sales tactics in ads
- Your website has been flagged for policy violations
- Your business model does not align with Facebook’s advertising principles and standards
Again, in cases like this you would need to appeal the restriction and demonstrate compliance to get your advertising access restored.
You Have Unpaid Advertising Balances
If your Facebook advertising account has an overdue balance, this can also lead to advertising restrictions or disablement. Facebook may pause ad campaigns or restrict your daily spend until unpaid balances are resolved.
Some common reasons for accruing an advertising balance include:
- Declined payments if the card on file expires or has insufficient funds
- Spending beyond your specified daily/monthly advertising budget
- Refunds or chargebacks issued on payments made
To restore advertising access, you would need to pay any outstanding balances and update your payment information on file. Facebook may also request a security deposit for advertisers with a history of overdue payments.
You Changed Business Information or Merged Accounts
Facebook advertising accounts are tied to specific business information like your tax ID, mailing address, email and phone number. If you update your business information or merge Facebook accounts, it can sometimes lead to disruptions with advertising.
To avoid issues, be sure to notify Facebook of any changes to your business details. You may need to set up a new ad account matching your new business identity. Also take care when merging accounts to choose the one with advertising history you want to retain.
Your Personal Account was Disabled
Since advertising accounts are linked to personal profiles, having your personal Facebook profile disabled can also restrict your access to advertising. This could happen if you violate Facebook’s Community Standards with your personal profile content.
To restore your ability to advertise, you would first need to appeal the disablement on your personal profile before addressing any limitations on your ad account.
You’re Temporarily Banned from Advertising
Serious or repeated violations of Facebook’s advertising policies can lead to temporary bans from running any ads. For example, promoting prohibited products multiple times despite disapprovals would warrant a temporary block. Bans can range from days to weeks to months in duration depending on severity.
You cannot run any ads or edit existing ads during a temporary ban. The duration is fixed so you would have to wait out the remaining ban period before advertising again. Of course, you should also address any policy issues to avoid further bans.
Your Facebook Account was Hacked
If your Facebook account is hacked or compromised, the hacker could potentially change business information, run prohibited ads or incur advertising charges in your name. In response, Facebook may restrict your ability to advertise until security is restored.
Regain access to your Facebook account via the account recovery process. Once your account is secure, you can review any changes made and request advertising access be restored.
You Made Changes to Your Facebook Page
Your Facebook Page and ad account are interconnected. This means that changes to your Facebook Page name, username or other key details can affect your advertising capabilities.
If you change your Page name or merge Pages, Facebook will automatically try to match your ad account to the new details. However, sometimes match failures can occur, leading toAdvertising may remain disabled until you directly confirm the new Page-ad account connection in Ads Manager.
Your Payment Method is From a Restricted Country
Facebook restricts ad accounts associated with certain countries for legal and compliance reasons. If your registered advertising payment method is from a restricted country, your account may be banned from advertising.
To resolve this, you would need to update the payment details on your account to a non-restricted country in order to advertise again. Be sure your business address, registrations and other info aligns with the country of your new payment method.
You Changed Your Ad Account Country
Facebook ad accounts are assigned a specific country which determines your currency, payment methods and which advertisers you can target. If you change your account country, it can sometimes cause issues with advertising access.
To minimize disruption, carefully consider country selection the first time you set up your ad account. If you do need to change it, double check that your business details, payment method and supported advertising all align with the new country before confirming the change.
Your Audience Selection Does Not Comply
Facebook has rules about which user segments advertisers are allowed to target. You cannot target ads based on sensitive factors like health, ethnicity, political beliefs or sexual orientation. If Facebook detects you are improperly targeting ads, your account can be restricted.
Carefully review Facebook’s Detailed Targeting policies and avoid selecting any prohibited audience segments. Use targeting selections relevant to your products/services to avoid further restrictions.
You Have Multiple Ad Accounts for One Business
Facebook limits businesses to a single advertising account per country. Having multiple active ad accounts for one business identity can be flagged as policy violation, leading to restrictions.
Consolidate your accounts by merging any additional or duplicate accounts into your primary advertising account. Make it the sole active account for your business moving forward to avoid further issues.
Your Personal Facebook Account was Deleted
If your personal Facebook profile is outright deleted rather than disabled, this immediately removes your access to advertise. Your ad account cannot exist without being linked to an active personal profile.
To restore your ability to advertise, you would first need to set up a new personal Facebook profile. You can then attempt to recover the original ad account or set up a new one, which can be linked to your new profile.
You Committed Bank or Payment Fraud
Intentionally deceiving Facebook for financial gain – such as stolen payment methods or unauthorized ad charges – will get your account banned. This includes things like unauthorized use of credits cards and bank fraud.
These types of violations result in indefinite bans. You would have to appeal directly to Facebook with proof that it was remedied and prevent future occurrences before reconsideration.
You Made Changes in Business Manager
Facebook Business Manager allows you to manage business accounts, ad accounts and Pages all in one place. However, certain changes made in Business Manager can inadvertently affect advertising capabilities.
Things like removing Pages or ad accounts from Business Manager, deleting your business or merging businesses can all lead to disruptions. Take care when making changes in Business Manager to avoid unintended advertising effects.
You Had Multiple Violations of Facebook’s Terms
Serious or repeat violations of any of Facebook’s terms, policies or standards can get your business prohibited from advertising. For example, multiple flags for Community Standards violations, Pages policy violations, issues across Instagram, WhatsApp, etc. can demonstrate your business lacks compliance, resulting in restrictions.
Thoroughly review all of Facebook’s rules and policies regarding acceptable use. Improve compliance across all your Facebook activities – not just in ads – to meet standards.
Conclusion
Losing the ability to advertise on Facebook can significantly impact businesses who rely on its large audience. However, Facebook maintains strict advertising policies and standards to protect users and maintain an ethical, compliant platform.
Ensure your business and ads meet Facebook’s guidelines. If restrictions do occur, address any policy violations that prompted it. Appealing restrictions and demonstrating improved compliance is key to getting your advertising account reinstated.