Facebook account restricted from advertising? Here's why and how to fix it

You become anxious and imagine all of your campaigns being restricted and how that will affect your business.

If you’ve found yourself in these shoes, don’t worry. In this article, we’ll explain why this might have happened and how to fix it.

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What does a restricted Facebook ad account mean?

Essentially, a restricted ad account is one that has limitations placed on it by Facebook. These limitations can prevent you from running certain types of ads or, in extreme cases, halt your advertising efforts altogether.

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The limitations can happen on different asset levels:

Meta Business Account: A central hub for businesses, allowing them to connect and manage various assets, including Facebook Pages, Instagram accounts, ad accounts, and product catalogs across Meta technologies.

Ad Account: An ad account is a critical component for advertisers on Meta platforms. It's the account through which advertisers create and manage their ads, set up advertising campaigns, make payments for ads, and gain insights and analytics on ad performance.

Page: A Facebook Page is a tool that individuals and businesses use to establish their presence on the platform. It serves as a means to connect with the broader Facebook community. It's important to note that before you can start advertising on Facebook, you must create a Facebook Page for your business.

User Account: Your personal account. Actions taken on a user account can have implications for the use of business assets. Enforcements on a user account can impact whether the individual can continue using these assets for advertising.

Each asset has a different set of restrictions that are applied.

For example, a personal restricted account means that the user can’t advertise on their pages and businesses, but the connected businesses can still advertise if done on another user account.

On the other hand, if a Business manager account is restricted, none of the users who manage the business can advertise until the restriction is lifted.

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Why is my Facebook account restricted?

Violating content policies

Facebook's advertising policies are firmly rooted in their fundamental values and principles. If your ads contain content that breaks these rules, your account might face restrictions. The basis of their policy is:

• Protecting People From Unsafe And Discriminatory Practices: Facebook wants all advertisers to follow their local laws, be fair, and not promote illegal or harmful stuff.
• Protecting People From Fraud Or Scams: Tricking people or scamming them through ads is a big no-no.
• Promoting Positive User Experiences: Facebook wants ads to be pleasant and not shocking, violent, or inappropriate.
• Promoting Transparency: Transparency is key. Facebook lets you peek at all active ads and also shows who's behind ads about important stuff like politics. The Ad Library and Info and Ads sections keep things open.

Learn more: Facebook ads rejected: 9 reasons, fixes and tips

Evading enforcement

Trying to outsmart Facebook's rules is a risky move. If you use tricks or tactics that seem like you're trying to get around the rules, such as using deceptive methods or cloaking, your account can get in trouble.

Actions such as creating a new account after your previous account was restricted only with the sole purpose of managing ads and not to be a real personal account is subject to restriction.

Running the same or similar policy-violating ad across multiple business assets or ads that have no clear business goals can also lead to a restricted facebook account.

Negative feedback on your ads

Whenever an ad is shown on Facebook, users can give feedback on it. The app itself also randomly chooses a few ads every once in a while and asks the user how relevant the ad is.

The users can also proactively give feedback to your ads by clicking the “…” on the top corner of the ad and choosing to hide the ad if it isn't something they are interested in or even hide all ads from that particular advertiser altogether.

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It’s important that you set up your audience well and be very clear on your ad content before launching the campaign so as not to have too many users hiding your ads.

Low Facebook feedback score

Facebook brands that advertise and sell products on Facebook have what is called the Facebook feedback score.

This metric gives sellers an overview of customer feedback about their purchase and the experience with your store.

The customer feedback Score is a numerical value ranging from 0 to 5. If your score is under 2 you already will have less reach and higher costs, but if it drops below 1 your account will be restricted from advertising.

Dive deeper: What is the Facebook feedback score and how does it affect my ads?

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Account authenticity

Facebook wants to ensure that all advertisers are authentic and legitimate. If your account is not authentic, such as if it is using a fake name or profile picture, your account could be restricted.

You can also take steps to proactively verify your account on the Facebook ID page

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Violating networks or associations

Facebook also restricts accounts that are connected to problematic assets, such as pages or business accounts that have been involved in scams or fraud, or prohibited activities.

The same applies if, in your user account, you display behavior like business assets that have already been taken down, your account.

Advertising restrictions for unusual activity

Facebook may also restrict accounts that exhibit unusual activity, such as creating a large number of ads in a short period of time or spending a lot of money on ads.

These restrictions can include limited advertising spending, loss of the ability to add admins, partners or users, or loss of the ability to create a new ad account.

If you suspect your Facebook has been hacked there are steps to secure hacked accounts.

This is a temporary restriction until they investigate the cause.

How long does a Facebook restriction last?

It’s always awful to answer something with “it depends”, but in this case, it really does.

The duration of a Facebook ad account restriction can vary depending on the severity of the violation. In some cases, the restriction may be lifted after a few hours, days, or weeks. In other cases, the restriction may be permanent.

How do I unrestrict my facebook account from advertising?

If your Facebook ad account has been restricted, you can try to lift the restriction by following these steps:

1. Login to the Business support page
2. Click on the “What you can do” section on the right side of the page
3. Follow the steps to unrestrict your asset (There are many types of restrictions for ad accounts and the process for each differs, so be ready to send photos of your ID or any entity-related documents, and set up security for your account with two factor authentication for your account)

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After taking all the steps, Facebook will review your case and you will receive updates on it if you need to take any other steps to recover your account.

Facebook asks for 48 hours to review your submission, but it can be done either in a few hours or take a much longer time.

What if my ad account restriction is not lifted?

There are three things you can do if the restriction is not lifted.

1. Appeal the decision

If you believe the restriction is unjust or a result of a misunderstanding, you can appeal Facebook's decision on the Business Support page. Provide any additional information or evidence that supports your case.

1. Contact Facebook support

If after the review you still believe your account is wrongfully restricted, you can always try contacting the Facebook Support team.

• On the Business Support home, expand the menu on the left.
• On the bottom, you’ll find “Help”.
• Click on it and on the right will appear the help menu, which has a button to contact the support team.

1. ‍Create a new ad account

If all else fails, you may need to create a new ad account. Ensure that you follow the Facebook advertising policies carefully with the new account to prevent running into the same issues.

But remember, If Facebook suspects your account is not a real user and is only intended for advertising, your new account might be suspended as well.

How to avoid getting your facebook ad accounts restricted?

Prevention is always the best remedy! Instead of having to go through the whole account review process and potentially harming your business, there are a few things you can do.

• Make sure that your ads are compliant with Facebook's advertising policies.
• If you end up having a rejected ad, learn why it was rejected and don’t repeat the same mistake again.
• Monitor your ads for negative feedback and take action to address any problems.
• Take the necessary precautions to have a healthy Facebook Feedback score for your sellers’ account.
• Verify your account ID if it is not already verified.
• Avoid associating your account with problematic entities.
• Be aware of unusual activity and report it to Facebook if you see anything suspicious.

Wrap up

We feel your pain! Getting your Facebook advertising account restricted can be a frustrating experience, but it is important to remember that it is usually possible to fix the problem. By following the steps in this article, you can increase your chances of getting your account back up and running.

Remember, the key is to be proactive, stay informed, and maintain transparency and authenticity in your advertising efforts.

Key takeaways  

   
• Facebook ad account restrictions can limit certain ad types and even halt advertising efforts in extreme cases.
   
• Violating Facebook advertising policies, attempting to evade enforcement, receiving negative feedback on ads, lacking account authenticity, or having associations with problematic entities can lead to a restricted facebook account.
   
• If your Facebook ad account gets restricted, you can take steps to resolve it, such as appealing the decision or contacting support. As a last resort, creating a new ad account may be necessary, but it comes with risks.
   
• Prevention is the best approach if you don’t want to have your Facebook advertising account restricted. It includes adhering to Facebook's policies, verifying your ID, and maintaining a healthy Facebook Feedback score.
   
• The duration of a Facebook ad account restriction varies depending on the severity of the violation, ranging from temporary restrictions that last a few hours to permanent ones.