One Belgian Advertising Code: what it changes for your campaigns

On 15 September 2026, the Conseil de la Publicité launched the Belgian Advertising Code: a single reference point that brings together, for the first time, all general and sector-specific rules that apply to advertising in Belgium. Until now, these rules were scattered across several codes, sector documents, guidelines and pieces of legislation. For a Belgian SME designing and running campaigns, the question is no longer where to find the applicable rule: it is now centralised, provided you know how to use it.

1. What the new Code brings together

The Belgian Advertising Code contains general provisions that apply to any advertisement, regardless of product, medium or channel, based on the International Chamber of Commerce Code (ICC Code). It adds sector-specific rules for seven precise areas: alcohol, food, cosmetics, motor vehicles, fundraising, the National Lottery and banks. The core principles stay the same across sectors: honesty, truthfulness, transparency, respect for human dignity, and social and environmental responsibility.

2. Influencer marketing, data and artificial intelligence: finally documented

The Code also covers the most recent forms of commercial communication: influencer and affiliate marketing, data-driven marketing, and artificial intelligence. This is the most current section for a company that personalises ads using customer data or generates part of its visuals with AI: these practices remain subject to the same honesty and transparency principles as any other advertisement, and the Code now sets this out in writing rather than leaving it open to interpretation.

3. Self-regulation does not replace the law, it complements it

The Code draws a clear line: advertising remains subject first and foremost to applicable legislation and regulation. Self-regulation does not replace these legal provisions, it complements them, and in case of conflict, the legal rules prevail. The Jury d'Éthique Publicitaire (JEP) assesses advertisements based on applicable legislation and this new Code. The document is not static: it will be regularly updated to keep pace with technological and legislative developments, and remains available online in French and Dutch.

4. Why this is not only a compliance question

The Code also improves accessibility of the rules for consumers, which strengthens trust in advertising overall. For an SME, checking it before launching a campaign helps avoid a complaint to the JEP or an unfavourable public ruling, but more importantly, it helps build campaigns that hold up over time, sector by sector, channel by channel.

The AI perspective, people first

The Code specifically addresses the use of artificial intelligence in advertising: image generation, data-based personalisation, automated creative recommendations. These tools speed up content production. But they cannot judge whether a claim stays honest, whether an image respects human dignity, or whether a collaboration with an influencer is properly disclosed. AI executes content generation and optimisation. Expertise decides on compliance, and checks every campaign before it goes live, sector by sector.