China Advertising Tools

China Advertising Law Compliance Checker: Scan Your Ad Copy Before You Pay for Traffic

Paste your Chinese ad copy to screen it against the banned and restricted terms of the PRC Advertising Law (广告法违禁词) — absolute claims, medical efficacy language, industry-specific red lines — plus a sensitive-words layer for platform moderation on Baidu, WeChat and Douyin.

China's Advertising Law is enforced far more aggressively than most foreign advertisers expect. A single absolute claim such as 最好 ("the best") or 第一 ("No.1") violates Article 9 and carries a statutory fine of ¥200,000 to ¥1,000,000 per violation — even on a free WeChat post or your own shopfront signage. A small roasted-nut shop in Hangzhou (方林富炒货店) was fined ¥200,000 for printing "杭州最优秀炒货店" on its own bags; no paid media was involved at all.

This China ad law compliance checker scans your copy against our curated database of prohibited terms (违禁词) mapped to the relevant articles of the Advertising Law. For every match you see the exact term, its severity, the legal basis, the potential fine — and, where one exists, a compliant rewrite suggestion (for example 降血糖 → 有助于维持血糖健康水平). A second layer flags platform-sensitive words (敏感词) that can get your ad rejected or shadowbanned even when it is technically legal.

Select your industry for the category-specific rule sets — cosmetics (药妆/械字号 traps), health food (保健食品 approved-function phrasing), education (保证性承诺), real estate (学区房) and finance (保本保息) — including checks for missing mandatory disclaimers that are themselves violations.

Check Your Ad Copy for Advertising Law Violations

Frequently Asked Questions: China Advertising Law Compliance

What are "absolute terms" (绝对化用语) and why is "the best" illegal in Chinese ads?: Article 9(3) of the PRC Advertising Law bans absolute or superlative claims such as 最好 (best), 第一 (No.1), 国家级 (state-level), 顶级 (top-tier) and 100% — in any ad, in any industry, on any channel including your own website, WeChat posts and packaging. Regulators treat them as unverifiable by definition. The fine range is ¥200,000–¥1,000,000 per violation, and there is no minimum company size or ad spend: a Hangzhou nut shop was fined ¥200,000 for "杭州最优秀炒货店" on its own bags.
Why does the tool ask for my industry?: Beyond the universal bans, the Advertising Law carries industry-specific red lines: cosmetics ads cannot use terms like 药妆 or 械字号面膜 (categories the NMPA says do not exist); health-food ads may only use the 24 approved function phrases (降血糖 must become 有助于维持血糖健康水平); education ads cannot promise outcomes (保过, 保证提分); real-estate ads cannot mention 学区房 or promise appreciation; finance ads cannot promise 保本保息 or risk-free returns. Selecting your industry activates the matching rule set — plus checks for mandatory disclaimers whose absence is itself a violation.
What is the difference between a "Prohibited" and a "Review" flag?: Prohibited terms are illegal regardless of context — delete or replace them. Review terms are only legal with substantiation on file (e.g. efficacy test reports filed with the 药监局 for cosmetics claims like 祛斑 or 去眼袋) or depend on context (e.g. 临床 citing real licensed clinical data). If you cannot produce the documentation during an inspection, treat every Review flag as Prohibited.
What is the difference between ad-law violations and sensitive words?: They are two separate risks. Ad-law violations (违禁词) are a legal problem: market regulators can fine you under the Advertising Law even for content on your own channels. Sensitive words (敏感词) are a platform problem: gambling, medical, political or gray-market terms trigger automated moderation on Baidu, Douyin, WeChat and Xiaohongshu — your ad gets rejected, your post gets shadowbanned, or your account gets suspended, even if nothing was technically illegal. This tool checks both layers in one pass.
Which articles of the Advertising Law does this checker cover?: The wordlists are mapped to the 2021 revision of the 中华人民共和国广告法: Art. 9 (absolute terms, state-symbol and authority abuse), Art. 13 (disparaging competitors), Art. 16–17 (medical and efficacy claims outside licensed medical ads), Art. 18 (health food), Art. 24 (education & training), Art. 25 (finance & investment), Art. 26 (real estate), with penalties under Art. 55, 57, 58 and 59. We also apply SAMR enforcement guidance such as the 2023 广告绝对化用语执法指南 and the 保健食品 function directory.
If my ad passes the scan, is it legally compliant?: Not guaranteed. A clean scan means none of the documented prohibited terms were found — but regulators also judge implied claims, before/after imagery, data citations and overall misleading impression (Art. 28 false advertising), none of which a text scanner can fully assess. Treat this tool as your first-pass filter, then have a native Chinese marketing specialist or legal counsel review high-stakes campaigns before launch.