ASCI disclosure (India)

ASCI disclosure is the requirement, under the Advertising Standards Council of India’s guidelines for influencer advertising, to clearly label paid or sponsored content with a label like #ad, #sponsored or #collab, placed prominently rather than buried in a long list of hashtags.

ASCI published these guidelines in 2021. They exist so your audience can tell a sponsored post apart from your independent opinion.

It applies whenever a creator receives money, free product, or any other material connection in exchange for a post. A small barter deal for a single Story is covered just as a large paid campaign is.

Disclose barter and product-seeding collaborations too. Disclosure rules apply to free product, not only cash payment.

The guidelines treat any of these as a material connection that needs a disclosure label:

• Payment of any kind, whether by bank transfer, UPI or through an agency
• Free product, including barter collaborations and product seeding
• Discounts on the brand’s products or services
• Any other benefit the brand gives you in return for the content

ASCI’s guidelines name clear, upfront labels such as #ad, #collab, #sponsored, #partnership or #freegift. The label should sit where people will see it before the fold, meaning before the caption is cut off with “more”.

Example: a skincare brand sends you a free serum for a Reel. A caption that opens “#freegift My honest take on this serum…” makes the connection clear. The same label tucked at the end after twenty other hashtags does not.

• Place the disclosure label at the start of a caption or visibly on-screen in video, not at the end where it’s easily missed.
• Keep it apart from your other hashtags, not hidden among them.
• Add it to every version of the content: the Reel, the Story, the YouTube Short and any cross-post.
• Pick the label that matches the deal, such as #freegift when you received a free product.

Disclosure in India isn’t only an ASCI matter. Two dates every creator should know:

• 2021: ASCI issues its guidelines for influencer advertising, requiring any material connection to be disclosed with a clear, upfront label.
• January 2023: the Department of Consumer Affairs publishes “Endorsement Know-hows!”, endorsement guidelines for celebrities and influencers that also expect clear disclosure.

• Write the disclosure into your brief or contract, so a brand can’t object to the label later.
• If a brand asks you to drop or hide the label, treat that as a red flag about how it works, and check its reviews on CredFluence before agreeing to more.
• Don’t rely on tagging the brand alone. A tag isn’t one of the labels the guidelines name, and it doesn’t tell viewers you were paid.
• Treat ASCI guidance as a baseline, not legal advice specific to your situation. Read the current ASCI and Department of Consumer Affairs guidelines directly, and check with a lawyer for anything borderline.

ASCI is an Indian body, and its guidelines cover influencer advertising in India. The FTC is the US regulator; its Endorsement Guides expect clear and conspicuous disclosure of any material connection in content reaching US consumers.

The core idea is the same: tell people upfront when a brand has given you something. If you work with a US brand or have a sizeable US audience, read both.