ReferenceGoogle Ads disapproval
Government documents and official services
Google restricts ads that promote direct acquisition of government documents and services, such as passports, driver licenses and birth certificates. Only certified governments and authorized providers may run them. A non-government business needs a link from an official government website that names its service. Apply for certification or an exclusion, complete verification, then appeal existing disapprovals.
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 certification or an exclusion applies.
- How serious
- Low on its own. Google warns at least 7 days before any account suspension, and can deny or revoke certification if the domain breaks its policies.
- How long
- Verification can take 5 to 7 business days to update in the account. Certification is typically confirmed within 10 to 12 business days after successful verification.
What it means
The policy restricts ads that promote direct acquisition of specific government documents and services. The list is long and region specific. It includes regional identification numbers, birth or death certificates, name or address changes, business identifiers, driver licenses, passports, travel authorizations, vehicle registration and license plates.
Only certified governments may run these ads by default. Other advertisers can run them only with an authorization from an official government site, a regional or business exclusion, or a product that falls outside the policy's scope.
What actually triggers it
A third-party site selling direct access to a government document
A business that sells direct access to a document the government issues falls under the policy unless it holds an authorization. The policy names passports and driver licenses among its categories.
Authorization from a source other than a government site
Commercial contracts, business licenses, business registry entries, and articles or blog posts do not count as authorization. The link has to come from an official, publicly accessible government website that names the service.
A Search ad that appears to search for these services
For Search ads that appear to be searching for these services, Google adds a Not a government website disclosure automatically, unless the advertiser is a certified government provider.
A driver license ad in an excluded area
Driving schools are excluded from the driver license category, and so are Israel and Italy. The exclusion has to be applied for, so it does not apply by default.
Fix it in this order
- In Google Ads, go to Ads under the Campaigns menu, and find each disapproved ad.
- Decide which case applies: a government provider, an authorized non-government provider, a regional or business exclusion, or a product outside the policy's scope.
- Apply through the form linked from the page for that case, and select the option that fits.
- Complete advertiser verification, unless you are a government provider or already verified. The verification details must match the business details given in the application.
- Once certified, appeal the existing disapprovals or resubmit the ads for review.
Google can deny or revoke certification at any time if the domain breaks its policies, so the domain is part of the fix.
When to appeal
Appeals on existing disapprovals come after certification. The page names that order, so an appeal before certification does not clear the ads.
Often confused with
Also uses the word official and an eligibility step. The ticket rule concerns resale of event tickets, and this one concerns government documents and services.
Third-party consumer technical support
Another third-party rule. It covers technical help for consumer products, while this one covers official government paperwork.