Google DV360 API enforces EU political ads declarations starting September

Google announced on August 21, 2025, that Display & Video 360 API and Structured Data Files will implement mandatory enforcement for European Union political advertising declarations starting September 8, 2025. The technical changes require advertisers to declare whether line items will serve EU political advertisements when creating them, marking another step in Google's withdrawal from European political advertising markets.

According to the Google Ads Developer Blog announcement, "Starting September 8, 2025, Display & Video 360 will require self-declaration for EU political ads." The enforcement applies to both new line item creation and existing line item modifications involving geography targeting. These technical requirements serve to implement Google's broader policy decision to cease political advertising services across the European Union before the Transparency and Targeting of Political Advertising (TTPA) regulation takes effect on October 10, 2025.

The Display & Video 360 API has added the containsEuPoliticalAds field to LineItem and Advertiser objects in both v3 and v4 versions. This field accepts three distinct values: CONTAINS_EU_POLITICAL_ADVERTISING for resources serving EU political ads, DOES_NOT_CONTAIN_EU_POLITICAL_ADVERTISING for those that will not, and an unspecified state requiring explicit declaration. Starting September 8, the API will reject operations that lack proper declarations for new line items or existing items undergoing geography targeting updates.

Google's departure from EU political advertising markets reflects the company's assessment that compliance with the TTPA regulation presents insurmountable technical challenges. The regulation requires detailed transparency notices, enhanced advertiser verification, and complex tracking across 27 member states with varying election schedules. Google cited "the lack of reliable local election data permitting consistent and accurate identification of all ads related to any local, regional or national election" as a primary impediment to compliance.

The enforcement mechanism operates at multiple levels within the Display & Video 360 ecosystem. Advertisers can make declarations at the advertiser level, which automatically applies to all line items under that advertiser unless overridden during creation. The blog post explains that "if you declare that your advertiser won't serve EU political ads, new line items under that advertiser will use that declaration if another isn't provided, avoiding an interruption of service." This inheritance system simplifies compliance for advertisers managing multiple campaigns while ensuring regulatory adherence.

Geography targeting modifications trigger enhanced scrutiny under the new requirements. The enforcement covers TARGETING_TYPE_GEO_REGION, TARGETING_TYPE_POI, TARGETING_TYPE_BUSINESS_CHAIN, TARGETING_TYPE_REGIONAL_LOCATION_LIST, and TARGETING_TYPE_PROXIMITY_LOCATION_LIST targeting types. Any modifications to these targeting parameters for existing line items require proper EU political advertising declarations before the system accepts the changes.

Structured Data Files have introduced version 9 to accommodate the new compliance requirements. The latest version adds the "Contains EU Political Ads" column to line item files, using YES and NO values to represent declarations. The blog announcement states that "starting September 8, 2025, Display & Video 360 will start requiring you to use v9 to upload Structured Data Files and set the Contains EU Political Ads column to YES or NO for new SDF line item entries." Older versions v7.1, v8, and v8.1 face deprecation, with support ending in March 2026.

Technical implementation challenges extend beyond simple field additions. The enforcement affects multiple API methods including advertisers.lineItems.create, advertisers.lineItems.duplicate, and advertisers.lineItems.generateDefault requests. Each method must include proper political advertising declarations in request bodies, with the system validating these declarations before processing operations. Geography targeting updates for existing line items similarly require declaration updates through advertisers.lineItems.patch requests.

The deprecation schedule for older Structured Data File versions creates pressure for rapid migration. Version 7.1, 8, and 8.1 will lose support by March 2026, giving developers approximately six months to complete transitions to version 9. However, advertisers declaring their accounts will not serve EU political ads can continue using older versions temporarily, as the system backfills declarations automatically within 24 hours.

The broader regulatory context demonstrates increasing platform withdrawals from European political advertising markets. Meta announced its exit from EU political advertising on July 25, 2025, with implementation beginning in early October 2025. Both companies cite operational complexity and legal uncertainty introduced by the TTPA regulation as primary factors driving their departures from European markets.

Industry observers note that these platform withdrawals create significant implications for political communication across the European Union. Political campaigns must redirect digital advertising budgets to alternative platforms and traditional media channels. The development raises questions about market participation balance in regulated digital political spheres while potentially favoring incumbent political organizations over challenger movements that relied on affordable digital platforms.

The technical enforcement timeline aligns with Google's broader political advertising cessation schedule. According to multiple announcements, campaigns declaring EU political content will cease serving advertisements in the European Union on September 22, 2025. This shutdown occurs three weeks after API enforcement begins and approximately three weeks before the TTPA regulation officially takes effect, providing a buffer period for final compliance preparations.

Implementation guidance from the European Commission published earlier in 2025 established harmonized standards across EU internal markets for political advertising services. The guidance addresses complex compliance requirements including sponsor identification, service provider obligations, and cross-border advertising restrictions during election periods.

The enforcement mechanism includes specific provisions for batch operations and automated workflows. GoogleAdsService.Mutate operations must comply with declaration requirements when creating or updating campaigns, line items, or ad groups. Google Ads Scripts users face similar compliance obligations, with bulk upload features requiring template modifications to accommodate new field requirements.

For developers managing multiple advertiser accounts, each individual account must apply separately for any available exemptions. The blog post emphasizes that "applications must be made in the name of the advertiser responsible for the ads, with each account required to complete the verification process independently." This individual account requirement prevents bulk exemption applications and increases administrative overhead for agencies managing multiple clients.

The API team provided specific guidance for identifying affected campaigns through GAQL queries. Developers can search for campaigns where contains_eu_political_advertising values exclude both positive and negative declarations, helping identify accounts requiring immediate attention before the September enforcement deadline.

Technical support channels remain available through Display & Video 360 API support systems for developers requiring assistance with implementation. The announcement from Trevor Mulchay of the Display & Video 360 API Team encourages affected users to reach out through established support channels for clarification on compliance requirements.

These changes represent the latest evolution in Google's approach to political advertising transparency, building upon existing systems while adapting to European regulatory frameworks. The company's decision to implement technical enforcement mechanisms rather than navigate complex compliance requirements demonstrates the perceived burden of meeting TTPA regulation standards across multiple jurisdictions with varying political calendars.

Timeline

• November 2024: Google announces withdrawal from EU political advertising ahead of new regulations
• December 13, 2024: European Data Protection Supervisor rules Commission violated privacy laws in targeted political advertising campaign
• March 11, 2024: EU Council adopts Regulation 2024/900 on political advertising transparency and targeting
• July 25, 2025: Meta announces withdrawal from EU political advertising
• July 14, 2025: European Commission releases implementation guidance for political advertising rules
• August 5, 2025: Google restricts EU political ads to official communications only
• August 7, 2025: Google Ads API enforces new EU political advertising declarations
• August 21, 2025: Google announces Display & Video 360 API enforcement for EU political advertising declarations
• September 8, 2025: Display & Video 360 API begins enforcing EU political advertising declarations
• September 22, 2025: Campaigns declaring EU political content cease serving advertisements in European Union
• October 10, 2025: TTPA regulation officially takes effect across European Union
• March 2026: Support ends for Structured Data Files versions v7.1, v8, and v8.1

Summary

Who: Google's Display & Video 360 API team, led by Trevor Mulchay, announced new enforcement requirements affecting advertisers, developers, and political campaigns using Display & Video 360 services across the European Union.

What: Mandatory enforcement of EU political advertising declarations through the containsEuPoliticalAds field in API v3 and v4, plus introduction of Structured Data Files v9 with "Contains EU Political Ads" column requiring YES or NO values for line item entries.

When: Enforcement begins September 8, 2025, with campaigns declaring EU political content ceasing service on September 22, 2025, ahead of the October 10, 2025 TTPA regulation effective date. Support for older SDF versions ends March 2026.

Where: The enforcement applies across all 27 European Union member states covered by Regulation 2024/900 on political advertising transparency and targeting, affecting campaigns using Display & Video 360 API and Structured Data Files.

Why: Google implements technical enforcement to support its withdrawal from EU political advertising markets due to compliance challenges with the TTPA regulation, including difficulties identifying political content at scale, complex identity verification requirements, and operational burden across multiple jurisdictions with varying election schedules.