If a brand has paid an influencer, sent a free product or given a commission, the audience is entitled to know. The regulators in the UK, the US and the EU agree on that principle but word it differently, and the labels they accept are not identical. This guide summarises the current guidance from each, with the date each source was checked, and it is general information rather than legal advice.
All sources below were read on 12 October 2026. Rules and guidance change, so check the regulator’s page for anything that matters to a specific campaign.
What does disclosing a paid or gifted post actually mean?
Disclosure means making a commercial relationship clear to the audience at the point they see the content. The relationship is wider than a fee. The US Federal Trade Commission’s influencer guide, Disclosures 101 (November 2019), says a “material connection” can be financial, employment, personal or family, and that free or discounted products count. The UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) lists free or discounted products, direct payments, commissions and other incentives.
The size of the audience does not change the duty. The CMA’s guidance says it applies regardless of follower count, and it also covers promoting your own brand on a personal account.
What do the UK rules say?
Two bodies matter in the UK. The CMA published its guidance for content creators on 23 January 2019 and last updated it on 3 September 2025, including references to the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024. The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), which applies the advertising code, publishes its own influencer pages.
The ASA’s page, dated 6 August 2026, says that whenever a brand gives an influencer a payment or any other incentive, whether requested or unsolicited, any content featuring or referring to the brand needs to be obviously identifiable as advertising. It adds that where a brand also has editorial control over the content, the ASA can take action. The ASA says content with affiliate links or codes counts as advertising, and that creators promoting their own brands fall within the code too.
On placement, the ASA says it is likely to expect a prominent label upfront, which usually means at the beginning of the content.
What do the US rules say?
In the US the FTC’s Endorsement Guides are the reference point. They sit in the Code of Federal Regulations as 16 CFR Part 255 and were revised on 29 June 2023, having been last revised in 2009. The 2023 update added a definition of “clear and conspicuous”, said that a platform’s built-in disclosure tool might not be an adequate disclosure on its own, and made clear that “endorsements” include virtual influencers and social media tags. It also set out how advertisers, endorsers and intermediaries can each be liable.
Disclosures 101 gives practical advice. A disclosure should be hard to miss and placed with the endorsement, not hidden in a profile or behind a “more” link. On video it should be in the video itself, not only in the description. The guide gives wording such as “advertisement”, “ad” and “sponsored” as examples that work, and it discourages vague shorthand such as “sp”, “spon” and “collab”.
What does the EU say?
For the EU, the European Commission’s Influencer Legal Hub is the central source. The Commission published it on 11 October 2023, with an update to its intellectual property materials on 13 September 2024, working with academic experts from Utrecht University and the University of Leeds and, for the intellectual property part, the EU Intellectual Property Office. It explains EU consumer and intellectual property law for creators, including the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive, the Consumer Rights Directive and the Digital Services Act.
On commercial content, the hub says that advertising, including brand partnerships on social media, content created in exchange for products or services, and affiliate marketing, must be disclosed. It offers seven video trainings, ten legal briefs and a “Disclosure dos and don’ts” resource, and it points to national consumer authorities. The hub is an educational resource built on EU law and it links to national consumer authority resources, so creators should also check the authority in their own country.
Which labels work and which do not?
Here the guidance diverges, which matters for creators with an international audience. The comparison below uses only wording from the pages named.
| Label | ASA (UK) | FTC (US) |
|---|---|---|
| “Ad” / “Advert” / “Advertisement” | Described as very likely to be acceptable, as of the ASA’s March 2023 guidance | “Ad” and “advertisement” given as examples |
| “Sponsored” | Described as problematic because it can be interpreted in different ways | Given as an example that works |
| “Gifted” / “Thanks to [brand]” | Described as insufficient on their own | Plain wording such as thanks for a free product is an approved example |
| “sp”, “spon”, “aff” | Discouraged: audiences may not understand | “sp”, “spon” and “collab” discouraged |
The practical lesson is that the safest wording for a global audience is the plainest one. “Ad” at the start of a post meets the strictest of the three approaches described here, but it does not replace reading the local guidance.
Who is responsible for getting it right?
Responsibility is shared. Disclosures 101 states plainly that it is the influencer’s responsibility to make the disclosures, to know the Endorsement Guides and not to rely on others to do it. The FTC’s 2023 update, however, describes potential liability for advertisers, endorsers and intermediaries, so brands and agencies cannot treat disclosure as someone else’s job.
That is why brief documents and contracts should say who labels what, and how. Our guide to how to pitch a brand partnership and our explainer on gifting, affiliate and paid deals in beauty show where those conversations happen. For a wider view of how the money works, see how creators make money.
A practical checklist before posting
- Ask whether anything of value changed hands: money, a free or discounted item, a commission, travel or an event invitation. If yes, label it.
- Put the label at the start, where it is seen before the viewer engages, and make it plain: “Ad” is the clearest choice.
- On video, say it or show it in the video itself, not only in the caption.
- Do not rely on a platform’s partnership tool alone; the FTC says a built-in tool might not be adequate by itself.
- Keep the label with the content if it is reposted, clipped or shared elsewhere.
- Check the page for the country where the audience is, not only where the creator lives.
The takeaway: be plain, early and consistent
The three regimes use different words but share a core idea: audiences should not have to work out that content is commercial. Plain wording at the start of a post, backed by a written agreement about who is responsible, is the approach that holds up best across borders.
This article is general information, not legal advice. Guidance and law change and differ by country; check the current regulator pages and take advice for specific campaigns.
Sources: US Federal Trade Commission (Disclosures 101 for Social Media Influencers, November 2019); US Federal Trade Commission (announcement of updated Endorsement Guides, 29 June 2023); UK Competition and Markets Authority (social media endorsements guidance, updated 3 September 2025); Advertising Standards Authority (influencer advertising guidance, 6 August 2026); Advertising Standards Authority (ad labelling guidance, 23 March 2023); European Commission (Influencer Legal Hub, October 2023)
