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Meta to suspend political advertising in Europe due to new EU regulation

The company said the decision was made in light of the "unfeasible requirements and legal uncertainties" posed by the E.U.'s new Transparency and Targeting of Political Advertising (TTPA) regulation.

Mark Zuckerberg claimed the cuts were based on

Mark Zuckerberg claimed the cuts were based on "performance"/ Julien De RosaAFP.

Carlos Dominguez
Published by
Carlos Dominguez

(AFP) Meta announced Friday that, due to strict regulations on digital platforms in the E.U., it will suspend political advertising on its platforms in the European bloc.

"This is a difficult decision - one we've taken in response to the E.U.'s incoming Transparency and Targeting of Political Advertising (TTPA) regulation," the company announced. The measure will be implemented starting in October.

"Meta – like other platforms – will no longer allow political, electoral and social issue ads our platforms in the E.U.," the company said.

The decision was made in light of the "unworkable requirements" and "legal uncertainties" posed by European regulations.

This change in operations, Meta said, "is specific to the E.U." It stated that political, electoral and social advertising will continue to be permitted outside the E.U. as normal.

Meta said that "online political advertising is a vital part of modern politics, connecting people to important information about the politicians that represent them."

However, it added, European legislation "introduces significant, additional obligations to our processes and systems that create an untenable level of complexity and legal uncertainty for advertisers."

Meta's challenges in the E.U.

In January, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg accused the E.U. of "censorship" and likened the bloc's fines to tariffs.

The most recent dispute between Meta and the E.U. concerns the payment system to prevent the firm from using personal data, called "payment or consent."

The E.U. fined Meta $235 million in April after concluding that it violated rules on personal data use on Facebook and Instagram.

The company faces additional daily penalties if it does not make changes, but the E.U. has yet to decide whether Meta has modified its platforms enough to avoid further fines.

Google announced last year that it would also remove political advertising beginning in October 2025 due to "new operational challenges and legal uncertainties."

Meta v. E.U. A.I. Code of Best Practice

Last week, Meta refused to sign on to the E.U. A.I. Code of Best Practice, which seeks to regulate tools such as ChatGPT and Gemini.

While companies such as OpenAI, Anthropic and Microsoft support it, Meta claims the code "stifles innovation" and goes beyond what is required by the Artificial Intelligence Act.

As stated by Meta Director of Global Affairs Joel Kaplan, the company believes the text introduces legal uncertainties for developers, imposes measures that go beyond the A.I. Act and could stifle innovation.

The rejection came before the A.I. Act goes into effect on Aug. 2, 2025.

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