ReferenceGoogle Ads disapproval
Event ticket sale
Google allows ticket sale ads only after it confirms the business is eligible, and eligibility is set per account and domain. Resellers and aggregators must show a resale disclosure in the top 20% of the page, and a tax and fee breakdown before payment. Apply through the eligibility form, which is typically processed within 2 business days. Use official only with a legal agreement.
At a glance
- Where it shows
- The Status column on the Ads & assets page, as Disapproved under this policy.
- What stops
- The ad stops serving until eligibility is confirmed.
- How serious
- Not specified for warnings. Google may limit or stop ads from businesses that pose an unreasonable risk to user safety or experience.
- How long
- Eligibility requests are typically processed within 2 business days, and longer during high-volume periods.
What it means
Businesses that sell event tickets may advertise on Google Ads only after Google confirms their eligibility. The policy names four business models: event-associated groups such as artists, teams and venues; primary providers, which sell the tickets first; resellers, which sell tickets already sold or allocated; and ticket aggregators, which show reseller prices without selling the tickets themselves.
Resellers and aggregators face more requirements. In France and French territories, only eligible primary providers may advertise ticket sales.
What actually triggers it
A reseller ad with no resale disclosure
A reseller must disclose, in the top 20% of the page, that it is a resale market and not the primary provider, and that prices may exceed face value. The disclosure must not be hideable and must be at least as large as most of the page text.
A checkout without the tax and fee breakdown first
Before payment, resellers must show a tax and fee breakdown. A checkout that shows the breakdown only after payment does not meet the requirement.
A subdomain or a post-domain path in the display URL
Resellers and aggregators must not use a display URL with a subdomain or a post-domain path.
The word official or a group's name without a document
Official is allowed only with a legal agreement and a letter from the event-associated group, and only in approved phrases such as Official Primary Ticket Provider or Official Fan to Fan Ticket Marketplace. A group's name in the domain needs a contract or a signed letter attesting to the affiliation.
Fix it in this order
- In Google Ads, open Ads under the Campaigns menu, and read the status of each disapproved ad.
- If the business is not yet eligible, apply through the Event Ticket Sale Eligibility Application form. Eligibility is set per Google Ads account and applies to the domain you advertise, so a manager account cannot carry it.
- If the business is a reseller or aggregator, fix the disclosures, the checkout breakdown and the display URL. Then select Edit on each ad, make the change and select Save.
- Remove the word official, and any group name in the domain, unless the legal agreement or letter covers it.
- Check the Status column on the Ads & assets page after the review.
When to appeal
The page describes no appeal process for this policy. Eligibility comes through the application, so an ad that runs before the business is confirmed eligible is fixed by applying, not by appealing.
Often confused with
Government documents and official services
Also has a certification step and limits the word official, but for government documents. A ticket reseller and a document service have different certificates and routes.