Influencer disclosure rules by country

The short answer

• Yes, gifts usually count. In most of the countries below, a product sent for free is a benefit, like money. If the creator then posts about it, the post must show the connection to the brand.
• Say it up front. The label goes at the start of the caption or on the video itself, not after “more”, not in a list of hashtags, and not only in the bio.
• Use the local language. Germany expects “Werbung” or “Anzeige”, France “Publicité” or “Collaboration commerciale”, Korea “광고” or “협찬”. Several regulators say an English “#ad” is not enough for a local audience.
• The platform’s label helps, but isn’t always enough. Instagram’s “Paid partnership” label and TikTok’s content disclosure setting are accepted in some countries and treated as an extra in others.
• The brand is responsible too. Most regulators expect the brand to tell creators how to disclose and to check that they do.

Why a free product counts

Disclosure rules exist so that people can judge a recommendation. A creator who received the product for free may talk about it differently from one who bought it. Regulators call this a “material connection” (United States, Canada, India), “consideration” or “a benefit” (Germany, France, Spain, the Netherlands) or an “economic interest” (South Korea). In each case, a free product is on the list.

A few places draw a line between a gift with no conditions and a gift sent as part of a deal. In the United Kingdom, the advertising regulator (ASA) covers the post only if the brand also had some control over it, but consumer law (enforced by the CMA) still requires the gift to be disclosed. In Brazil, a thank-you post for a gift is not an ad under the CONAR guide, but it must still mention the brand that sent it. In Japan and Sweden, it depends on the circumstances.

Disclosure rules in 14 countries

Four markets have their own page, with each regulator’s rules in more detail: the United Kingdom, Germany, the Netherlands and Japan.

Details that change by country

Germany: the label is the first word

The German media authorities ask for “Werbung” or “Anzeige” as the first word of the caption, in a clear and readable font. Abbreviations and foreign words such as “ad”, “sponsored by” or “PR sample” are not enough. If a product sent for free only appears in passing, a shorter note such as “enthält Produktplatzierung” is enough, and only when the products from one brand are worth more than 100 euros. If the product is the focus of the scene, it is advertising and needs the full label.

United Kingdom: “#gifted” is not on the list

The CMA’s guide for influencers says posts about gifts must be labelled, even when there is no obligation to post. It lists “#gifted” and “#sponsored” among the unclear terms and asks for “Ad” or “Advert” instead. The ASA applies the CAP Code when the brand also had control over the content, for example by asking for a positive post in return.

Spain, Korea and Brazil: English isn’t enough

Spain’s code of conduct says a label in another language, such as “Ad” or “Advertising”, should not be used. Korea’s guidelines say “AD”, “PR” and “Sponsor” do not count as the same language for a Korean audience. Brazil’s CONAR guide says English terms may not be understood. The FTC, Canada and India also ask for the disclosure in the language of the post.

Japan: the company is the one regulated

Japan’s stealth marketing rule regulates the company that decided the content of the advertising, not the creator. A post counts as the company’s ad when the company was involved in its content, for example by giving the product and asking for a post. The Consumer Affairs Agency recommends keeping a label such as “広告” on screen for the whole video, because viewers who start watching later can miss a label shown only at the start.

Italy: tell the creator when you ship

Under the IAP Digital Chart, a brand that sends a product for free must tell the creator, clearly and when it sends the product, that their posts about it need a note such as “prodotto inviato da [brand]”. For videos, the note goes at the start, written or spoken.

Where the label goes

Almost every regulator above says the same thing about placement. The disclosure must be seen at first glance, without the viewer having to do anything.

• At the start of the caption. Instagram and TikTok cut captions off after a line or two. A label after the cut, behind “more”, is easy to miss (FTC, ASCI, Spain, Brazil, Korea).
• Not in a list of hashtags. “#ad” as the twelfth hashtag doesn’t count as clear (CMA, FTC, Canada, the Netherlands, Korea).
• In the video, not only under it. For TikTok, Reels and Shorts, the FTC says the disclosure should be in the video itself, not just in the description. Say it, show it on screen, or both, depending on how the product is presented.
• On every post. A note in the bio or a line saying the whole account contains ads is not enough (FTC, ASCI, Germany).
• For long videos and live streams, repeat it. People who join later should see it too (FTC, ASCI, Korea, the Netherlands).

Platform labels: helpful, not always enough

Each platform has its own disclosure tool: Instagram’s “Paid partnership” label, TikTok’s content disclosure setting (shown as “Paid partnership”) and YouTube’s paid promotion setting (shown as “Includes paid promotion”). Each platform’s own policy asks creators to use them for gifted products too, and all three say the creator is still responsible for following the law.

Regulators treat these labels differently. The German media authorities accept a platform label on its own if it says “Werbung”, “Anzeige” or “bezahlte Werbepartnerschaft”. Spain’s code and Brazil’s CONAR guide recommend using the platform tools. The CMA accepts them if the label is clear and easy to see. The FTC and ASCI say not to rely on the platform tool alone, and to add your own disclosure. How each label works is explained in our guide to the paid partnership label.

What brands are responsible for

A brand can’t hand all of this to the creator. Regulators in most of these countries hold the brand responsible too, and some put the main responsibility on the brand:

• United States. The FTC says advertisers need reasonable programs to train and monitor the people who promote their products, and are responsible for what others do on their behalf.
• United Kingdom. The CMA tells brands they have a responsibility to make sure content promoting them is labelled, to give clear instructions with gifts, and to check the content themselves.
• Sweden. Konsumentverket says the company has the main responsibility, and that this can’t be passed to influencers or agencies by contract.
• Japan. The stealth marketing rule applies to the company, not the creator.
• Netherlands, India, Canada. The codes make the brand responsible for informing creators and for acting when a disclosure is missing, alongside the creator.

A checklist for brands

1. 01

   Decide which countries apply

   Look at where the creator lives and where their audience is. US rules apply if it is reasonably foreseeable that a post will reach US consumers, even when the creator lives abroad.

2. 02

   Write the exact words in your gifting note

   Don’t leave the creator to guess. Give the label to use in their language and where to put it, for example “Werbung” in Germany or “Publicité” in France, at the start of the caption.

3. 03

   Ask for the platform label as well

   Ask creators to turn on Instagram’s paid partnership label, TikTok’s content disclosure setting or YouTube’s paid promotion box, in addition to their own words.

4. 04

   Ask for it in the video

   For short videos, ask for the disclosure on screen or said out loud near the start, not only in the caption.

5. 05

   Check every post you gifted

   Watch the posts that show your product, including the ones that don’t tag you, and check that the disclosure is there and visible before “more”.

6. 06

   Ask for a fix, and keep a record

   If the label is missing or buried, ask the creator to correct it. Keep a note of what you asked and when. That record is part of the monitoring regulators expect.

To check one post now, paste its link or caption into our free disclosure checker. For the US rules in more detail, read what the FTC asks for gifted products.

How Pozto helps

Pozto watches the creators you gifted on TikTok, Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts and finds the posts that show your product, tagged or not. For each one, it reads the caption for disclosure words in many languages and notes whether they come before the caption is cut off. It also notes the platform’s partnership label where it can read it, such as YouTube’s paid promotion flag and Instagram’s “Paid partnership” label, and, for videos it checks, whether the creator said or showed the disclosure.

Pozto tells you what it found: a clear disclosure, a weak one, or none. It doesn’t tell you whether that is legally enough, because that depends on the country and the details. Start free with up to 10 creators.