In short
- Screen the category before the brief. Tobacco, online money games and some health claims are barred or restricted, and no disclosure label makes them legal.
- Collect proof for every factual claim before the script is written. Under the 2022 CCPA guidelines, advertisers and agencies must produce substantiation when asked.
- Write the label wording, the approval step and the takedown time into the contract. ASCI makes the advertiser and the influencer both responsible.
- Keep one evidence file per campaign: claims sheet, approved drafts, qualifications and declarations. If a complaint arrives, that file is your answer.
An influencer campaign is compliant when seven checks have passed in order: the category may be advertised, every claim can be proved, the creator is the right person to say it, the contract carries the rules, a named person approved the draft, the label survives going live and paid, and the evidence is on file. A label alone does not do this. It answers one question, whether a post is an ad.
This checklist is organised by stage, so each check has an owner and a date. It sits one level beneath our ASCI influencer guidelines explainer, which covers labels and timings in detail, and our complete guide to influencer marketing in India. Where a category has its own rulebook, the table at gate 1 points you to a post that goes deeper.
Gate 1: Is the category allowed at all?
Do this before anyone writes to a creator. Some categories cannot be advertised through a creator in any form, and some can only be advertised with extra proof. A disclosure label does not change that.
| If the post touches | The rule to meet | Read next |
|---|---|---|
| Tobacco, directly or by brand extension | The Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act, 2003, section 5: no person shall take part in an advertisement that directly or indirectly promotes tobacco use | Surrogate advertising |
| Online money games or betting | The Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act, 2025, section 6, bars advertising that directly or indirectly promotes such games | Surrogate advertising |
| Food, drinks, supplements | FSSAI Advertising and Claims Regulations, 2018 | Food claims |
| Skincare, haircare, make-up | Cosmetics Rules, 2020, rule 36, and ASCI | Cosmetics claims |
| Health conditions, treatment | ASCI Addendum II and the 1954 Drugs and Magic Remedies Act | Health influencer rules |
| Stocks and investments | ASCI Addendum II and SEBI's 2024 circular | Finfluencer rules |
| Courses, colleges, coaching | ASCI education guidelines and CCPA coaching guidelines | Education advertising |
| Property | RERA sections 3, 11 and 12 | Real estate rules |
| A child in the frame or as the audience | CCPA rule 8 and the Child and Adolescent Labour Act | Children in ads |
| Songs, cloned voices, AI faces | Copyright Act, 1957; ASCI's AI guideline | Music copyright and AI content rules |
If the brand sells a product in a restricted category through a separate "extension" brand, stop and read the surrogate advertising post first. That is the category screen most often skipped.
Gate 2: Can every claim be proved?
The Central Consumer Protection Authority's 2022 guidelines, rule 12(a), require every manufacturer, service provider, advertiser or advertising agency to ensure that descriptions, claims and comparisons about objectively ascertainable facts can be substantiated, and to produce the substantiation if the Authority asks. ASCI's Code says the same. That duty falls on the brand and the agency, not on the creator's goodwill.
Build a claims sheet before the brief goes out. One row per claim:
- The exact wording a creator may use.
- The evidence behind it, with its source and date. Rule 12(b) says an ad that cites independent research must indicate the source and date.
- The words a creator must not use, such as "guaranteed", "100%" or "doctor approved".
- Any disclaimer, in the same language as the claim and the same font. Rule 11 bars a disclaimer from correcting a misleading claim.
Two rules catch property, retail and app campaigns more than any others. Rule 12(e)(i) says ads may not use expressions such as "prices from as low as Rs. Y" and should state a fixed price instead. Rule 5 requires adequate stock to meet the demand an ad creates, and says an ad must not hide restrictions such as geography or age limits.
Gate 3: Is this creator the right person to say it?
Check three things about the person, not the account.
- Material connection. ASCI counts money, free or discounted products (even unasked), trips, barter, awards and family or employment ties. If the creator is related to a founder, rule 14 of the CCPA guidelines says a connection the audience would not expect must be fully disclosed.
- Qualification. If the script contains technical health, nutrition or finance advice, ASCI's Addendum II requires qualifications stated upfront, and SEBI registration with its number for stock advice. Collect proof before booking.
- Experience. Rule 13(1) says an endorsement must reflect the creator's genuine, reasonably current opinion and be based on adequate information about, or experience with, the product. Send the product, and give a realistic window to use it, before the script is due.
One rule is easy to miss. Rule 13(2) says that where Indian professionals are barred from endorsing in an ad, foreign professionals of that profession are barred too. A doctor-creator who is not an Indian citizen is not a workaround.
Gate 4: Does the contract carry the compliance?
A contract should do five things. It should name the exact label and where it sits for each format. It should give the brand an approval right before posting. It should state how fast a creator must edit or take down a post, in hours. It should make the creator warrant that claims came from the claims sheet. And it should say who answers if a post goes wrong. Our guide to influencer contracts in India has the clauses, and the agency contract checklist shows how the agency's duties line up behind them. Settle the payment side, including the TDS position, using our post on TDS 194R and GST.
ASCI's text lets the advertiser call on the influencer to edit or delete a post where needed. A contract turns that right into a deadline.
Gate 5: The approval sheet
Approval is the one step where the brand sees the real post. Use the same ten questions every time.
| # | Question | Who checks |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Is the category cleared at gate 1? | Compliance |
| 2 | Does every factual claim match a row in the claims sheet? | Brand and agency |
| 3 | Is the label one ASCI lists (Ad, Sponsored, Collaboration, Partnership, Free gift, Affiliate) and upfront? | Agency |
| 4 | For video, is it on screen long enough (3 seconds up to 15 seconds, a third of the video up to 2 minutes)? | Agency |
| 5 | Are qualifications or SEBI numbers shown where the script gives technical advice? | Compliance |
| 6 | Does any line promise a result, return, rank or price that is not on the sheet? | Brand |
| 7 | Is any child shown or addressed? | Compliance |
| 8 | Is the audio licensed for a sponsored post? | Agency |
| 9 | Is any voice, face or product shot AI-generated? | Agency |
| 10 | Is the final cut the approved cut? | Agency |
The label rules in rows 3 and 4 are set out in our disclosure hashtags post. Row 10 matters more than it looks: edits after approval, such as a trimmed caption or a new sticker, are where labels disappear.
Gate 6: Going live, and going paid
When a post is boosted as a partnership ad, it is your advertising in the plainest sense. Check the ad preview for the label, the claim wording and the audio. The same applies to a reposted Reel on the brand's own handle, a website embed or in-store screens. Each reuse needs its rights in the contract, as our usage rights guide explains.
Gate 7: The evidence file
If a complaint arrives, the only thing that helps is what you can show quickly. Keep, in one folder per campaign:
- The brief and the claims sheet with its evidence.
- Each draft and the approval record, with date and approver.
- Screenshots or screen recordings of each live post with the label visible.
- Contracts, and any qualification proof or SEBI number.
- Any signed no-connection declaration under ASCI's Addendum 1.
- The takedown log, if anything was edited or removed.
A three-week run
The timings below are our working plan for a micro-influencer campaign that goes live two to three weeks after the brief. They are practice, not law.
| Day | Step | Owner |
|---|---|---|
| 1 to 3 | Category screen, claims sheet drafted | Brand compliance, strategist |
| 4 to 7 | Creator shortlist vetted; qualifications and registrations collected | Agency |
| 6 to 9 | Contracts signed with label wording | Brand and agency |
| 10 to 14 | Drafts received and checked on the ten-question sheet | Agency, then brand |
| 15 | Final approval recorded | Named brand approver |
| 15 to 21 | Posts live; ad previews checked; screenshots filed | Agency |
| Day 22 on | Weekly scan for edits, comments making claims and label loss | Agency |
Where checklists fail
Four patterns repeat. Evidence arrives after the script, so the script is written around claims nobody can prove. Marketing signs off, and legal sees the post only after it is live. A label is correct on Instagram and missing on the YouTube cut-down. And an agency approves on the brand's behalf without the brand ever seeing the final file. Name one approver at the brand, and make the approval a recorded step.
We build these gates into how we run campaigns at Influencer Gully: the contract names the label, a strategist checks each draft against the claims sheet, and the brand sees the file before it posts. If you want that applied to a live brief, ask for a creator plan. For the cost side of a compliant programme, see influencer rates in India. Our D2C brands page shows how we plan creator work for brands that sell online, and the blog has more rules explainers.
This is general information, not legal advice.
Sources
- The Consumer Protection Act, 2019 (sections 2(28), 21, 88 and 89), Gazette of India (9 Aug 2019)
- Guidelines for Prevention of Misleading Advertisements and Endorsements for Misleading Advertisements, 2022 (rules 5, 6, 11, 12, 13, 14), Central Consumer Protection Authority, Gazette of India (9 Jun 2022)
- Centre issues Guidelines on Prevention of Misleading Advertisements and Endorsements for Misleading Advertisements, 2022, PIB, Department of Consumer Affairs (10 Jun 2022)
- ASCI Code guidelines: influencer advertising in digital media, disclaimers, celebrities, ASCI (undated page, accessed 1 Nov 2026)
- The ASCI Code: responsibility for observance, ASCI (undated page, accessed 1 Nov 2026)
- Offshore betting and realty emerge as most violative sectors in ASCI Annual Complaints Report 2025-26, ASCI press release (28 May 2026)
- The Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act, 2003 (sections 5 and 22), Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (2003)
- The Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act, 2025 (section 6), MeitY, Gazette of India (22 Aug 2025)
Frequently asked questions
What is a compliance checklist for influencer marketing?
It is the list of checks a brand runs between deciding to use a creator and the post going live: whether the category may be advertised, whether each claim can be proved, whether the creator is qualified to say it, whether the label and contract are right, and whether the approvals are on file. Our ASCI guide covers the label rules in detail.
Who should sign off an influencer post at a brand?
Two people: the marketing owner for message and brand fit, and legal or compliance for claims, disclosure and category rules. ASCI's Addendum 1 expects a no-connection declaration to come from a senior member of the advertiser, such as the marketing, legal or compliance head, so decide that signatory before the campaign starts.
How early should compliance start in an influencer campaign?
At the brief, not at the draft. The category screen and the claims sheet decide what a creator may say, so they must exist before outreach. For a typical micro-influencer programme that goes live two to three weeks after the brief, we put the claims sheet in the first week. See our strategy service.
Do we need a lawyer to review every creator post?
Not every post. Have counsel approve the claims sheet, the label wording and the contract template once, then check posts against them. Send anything that falls outside the sheet back to counsel, for example a new health claim, a price promise or a child in the frame. This is a working practice, not a legal requirement.
What records should a brand keep after a campaign?
Keep the brief, the claims sheet with its evidence, each approved draft, screenshots of the live posts with labels visible, contracts, and any qualification proof or no-connection declaration. We could not find a statutory retention period that applies to these records, so ask your counsel how long to hold them.
Is an influencer campaign legal if every post carries an Ad label?
Not necessarily. A label answers one question, whether the post is an ad. It does not make a prohibited category lawful, substantiate a claim or cure a missing qualification. ASCI found 97.3 percent of the influencer ads it processed in FY2025-26 needed modification, mostly for content, not only labels.