When is a political ad disclosure legally required?

Increasingly, whenever content is AI-generated or materially AI-altered. The EU AI Act Article 50 requires marking synthetic and deepfake content; UK Electoral Commission guidance and proposed US FEC rules push the same way. Requirements vary, so always confirm against current local law.

What is the difference between AI-generated and AI-altered?

AI-generated means the content was created by AI from scratch; AI-altered means real footage or audio was meaningfully changed by AI. Both typically require disclosure, but the wording differs — "altered" must make clear what was changed.

Does the disclosure need to be visible or can it be in metadata?

For political content, regulators expect a clear, human-perceivable disclosure — on-screen text, an audio statement, or a visible label — not just hidden metadata. Metadata marking (like C2PA) is complementary, not a substitute.

Is this legal advice?

No. It generates template disclosures aligned to published guidance to help you start, but political advertising law is fast-moving and jurisdiction-specific. Have your compliance or legal team confirm before publishing.

Do these rules apply to organic posts or only paid ads?

Coverage is expanding. Paid political advertising is the clearest case, but synthetic-media labelling under the EU AI Act applies broadly to deepfakes regardless of payment. Treat any AI-altered political content as in scope and disclose.

What is the AI Political Content Disclosure Generator?

Generate legally required disclosures for AI-generated political campaign content under EU AI Act Article 50, UK Electoral Commission guidance, and US FEC proposed rules — formatted for various ad formats. It runs free in your browser on Gera Tools, with nothing uploaded.

AI Political Content Disclosure Generator

Name: AI Political Content Disclosure Generator
Creator: Gera Tools
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

AI political content disclosure generator

Using AI in political content now comes with disclosure duties that differ by country and format. The EU AI Act’s Article 50 requires marking synthetic and deepfake content; the UK Electoral Commission and proposed US FEC rules move in the same direction. This generator produces template disclosure text and placement guidance tailored to your jurisdiction, ad format, and whether the content is fully AI-generated or AI-altered.

How it works

You pick the jurisdiction, the ad format (video, audio, image, or text), and how AI was used. The tool selects the appropriate regime — EU AI Act Article 50, UK guidance, US FEC-style, or a conservative combined disclosure for multi-market campaigns — and assembles disclosure language plus placement instructions specific to that format. Video gets persistent on-screen wording, audio gets a spoken statement, images get a visible label, and text gets a prepended notice. “AI-altered” disclosures additionally prompt you to state what was changed. The result is copyable text for the creative and its compliance record.

The regulatory landscape in brief

EU AI Act Article 50 is the most specific rule currently in force for synthetic political content. It requires that AI-generated or AI-manipulated content depicting real or realistic-looking people, places, or events be labelled in a machine-readable format and in a manner perceptible to the human viewer. Political advertising in particular must carry disclosure. The rule applies across the EU regardless of where the creator is based, if the content is shown to EU audiences.

UK Electoral Commission guidance covers digital imprints on paid political material. As of recent guidance updates, AI-generated political content is expected to carry a disclosure, and the Electoral Commission has signalled increasing scrutiny of synthetic media in election contexts. The guidance covers paid advertising and campaign material; organic social posts fall in a grayer area but are increasingly expected to self-disclose.

US FEC proposed rules (as of the time of this page’s update) include proposals to require AI disclosures on federal candidate advertising. The rules are still developing and formal requirements may have evolved. Always check current FEC guidance before publishing.

AI-generated versus AI-altered: why the distinction matters

The disclosure wording differs meaningfully between fully AI-generated content and real content that was AI-altered.

Fully AI-generated political content — a synthetic voice reading a script, an AI-created image of a candidate at an event they did not attend, a video produced entirely by generative tools — requires a disclosure that states clearly that the content was created using AI and does not depict real events.

AI-altered content — real footage with a voice cloned, a real photo with background changed, real audio with words edited — is often more dangerous because it appears authentic. Disclosure here must state not just that AI was used, but what was changed: “This video has been digitally altered. The audio has been modified using AI voice synthesis.” Vague labels like “AI-assisted” for materially altered real footage do not meet the spirit of the disclosure requirements.

Tips and notes

Make it human-perceivable. Regulators want a visible or audible disclosure; metadata marking like C2PA is complementary, not a replacement.
Say what was altered. For modified real footage, vague labels aren’t enough — name the change.
Use the combined disclosure for cross-border campaigns. It satisfies the strictest applicable rule rather than the weakest.
Confirm with counsel. This is a starting template; political-ad law is changing fast and varies by jurisdiction.
Archive everything. Maintain a record of which content was AI-generated or AI-altered, the tools used, the disclosure applied, and where the content ran. Regulatory investigations after an election often come months later.