Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

Related legal acts

Key definition

Advertising definition

What does Advertising mean? Advertising, in legal practice, describes any communication by a trader intended to promote the supply or transfer of products (goods, services, digital content). Across England & Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, legislation implementing the EU regime on misleading and comparative advertising (notably the Business Protection from Misleading Marketing Regulations 2008) defines advertising broadly as any form of representation made in connection with a trade, business, craft or profession to promote the supply of goods or services, including immovable property, rights and obligations. In Ireland, equivalent implementing measures adopt a materially similar definition; usage is broadly consistent across the...

UK rules on identifying advertising: CAP/BCAP, DMCCA 2024 and CMA—practical guidance and ASA rulings across influencer, affiliate, social, VoD/VSP, reviews and direct marketing

Published by a LexisNexis TMT expert

Practice notes

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The Rules applicable to Advertising in the UK

In the UK, advertising is governed by both statute and industry-run self-regulatory codes. A fundamental rule is that advertising must be clearly identifiable as advertising.

This Practice Note reviews the provisions in the UK Code of Non-broadcast Advertising and Direct & Promotional Marketing (CAP code) and the UK Code of Broadcast Advertising (BCAP code) on signalling advertising and the labels commonly used to achieve this. It introduces the self-regulatory framework and sets out specific guidance on applying CAP Code rules in the context of:

advertisement features
native advertising
affiliate marketing
social media advertising
influencer advertising
podcasts and audio streaming
vlogs and live streaming
reviews, testimonials and endorsements
direct marketing

Keep in mind that elements of the guidance may overlap. For instance, influencer advertising often includes advertisement features and affiliate marketing undertaken on social media. All guidance relevant to the specific scenario should therefore be considered. For more information on influencers, see Practice Note: The regulation and protection of influencers. This Practice Note also considers advertising practices...

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Web page updated on 22/05/2026

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