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Advertising law in Uzbekistan: bans and fines in brief
The advertising law is not only about TV and billboards: an Instagram post, a promotion in a Telegram channel and a paid blogger post are all covered by it. In this article we look at what Uzbekistan's law actually requires from a small business, the 7 most common mistakes owners make, and how large the fines are.
This article is not legal advice. We retell the text of the law in plain language. In a complex case, talk to a lawyer.
Which law applies and who enforces it
The current law is the Law "On Advertising" No. ZRU-776 of 7 June 2022. It came into force in September 2022 and has been amended several times since (lex.uz). It is enforced by the Committee for the Development of Competition and Protection of Consumer Rights.
The checks are real. According to Kun.uz, in the first half of 2026 the committee reviewed more than 13,500 ads and found violations in almost 6,000 of them (Kun.uz). The same year brought news of fines for banks, construction companies and bloggers.
Under the law, advertising is information spread by any means to draw attention to a product or service and make a profit. So your website, social media, Telegram channel and SMS all count. Article 31 covers online advertising separately: it must meet the general requirements of Article 16.
What kind of advertising the law bans
The law bans "improper advertising". There are three types:
| Type | Meaning in the law (Art. 5) | Small business example |
|---|---|---|
| Misleading (unfair) | Misleads or may mislead through inaccuracy, exaggeration or hiding something important | "All sofas 50% off" when only two models are |
| Unethical | Offensive words and images about sex, ethnicity, religion and so on; insulting state symbols or the national currency | A "joke" about a competitor or a group of people |
| Hidden | Advertising that cannot be recognised as advertising | A paid blogger post presented as "just advice" |
The key words are "may mislead". Nobody has to prove a customer was actually deceived: if the text can be read two ways or an important condition is hidden, that is already a risk.
7 common mistakes business owners make
1. "Best" and "No. 1" without proof
Comparative advertising is allowed, but only if the advertiser can present factual evidence for the comparison and it does not damage a competitor's reputation (Art. 16). If you write "the cheapest furniture in Tashkent", be ready to prove it. Under Article 12, the advertiser must also provide documents confirming the accuracy of the ad on request.
What to do: drop "the most" or replace it with a measurable fact: "12-month warranty", "delivery in 3 days".
2. Prices in dollars
Article 16 directly prohibits stating prices (tariffs) in foreign currency in advertising. This shows up most in ads for real estate, cars, furniture and electronics: "Apartments from $45,000" (illustrative example).
What to do: state the price in soums. If the price depends on the exchange rate, you can write "ask the manager for the price", but keep foreign-currency figures out of the ad.
3. Key conditions in tiny print
It is prohibited to hide essential information about a product or the terms of buying or using it, or to make it hard to read, if this distorts the meaning and misleads (Art. 16). The classic case: a banner with a big "0% interest" and a barely visible "*3 months only, 50% down payment" at the bottom. Installment ads have their own extra rules — see our article on installment advertising.
What to do: write the main condition in the same or nearly the same size as the headline. In video, keep it on screen for a few seconds.
4. Someone else's photo, name or music without permission
Using a person's name or image without their consent is prohibited. So is copying text, images, music or sound effects from other ads and works word for word, unless copyright law says otherwise (Art. 16).
If a customer's photo or review appears in an ad, get written consent. Rules for handling customer data are in our article on customer databases and personal data.
5. Promotions and giveaways without rules
If a promotion has valuable prizes or requires people to do something to take part (follow, repost, buy), Article 21 requires the terms to be published before it starts. The announcement must include:
- the rules and dates of the promotion;
- the name and number of prizes, and where and how to receive them;
- the name, address, phone and email of the advertiser and the organiser.
If the terms are published online, they must stay publicly available for at least six months after the promotion ends. Wording that exaggerates the chance of winning is banned, and so are promotions without a prize fund.
6. Advertising that is not labelled
Article 18: whatever form an ad takes, people must be able to recognise it as advertising. The committee has specifically reminded bloggers that paid posts must be clearly labelled. How to set up a blogger campaign properly and measure it — see influencer advertising.
7. Advertising without a licence, or special product categories
Advertising products and services without the required certificates, licences or permits is prohibited (Art. 16). If your activity is licensed, you must show the document to the ad producer and distributor on request (Art. 12). Medicines, dietary supplements, energy drinks, alcohol, tobacco and financial services have their own articles in the law (Art. 34–46). If you run a clinic, a pharmacy or a shop selling on installments, read them separately.
How large the fines are
Article 47 sets financial sanctions for legal entities in advertising:
| Violation | Fine |
|---|---|
| Advertising products whose production, sale or advertising is prohibited or restricted | 100 BCA |
| Improper advertising, refusing to run counter-advertising | 70 BCA |
| Breaking the rules for energy drink, alcohol, tobacco, pyrotechnics and weapons ads, or the rules for placing outdoor ads | 50 BCA |
| Breaking the rules for ads aimed at minors, and for medicines, supplements and baby food | 30 BCA |
BCA is the base calculation amount. According to Buxgalter.uz, from 1 September 2026 one BCA equals 440,000 soums (Buxgalter.uz). So the fine for an ordinary misleading ad is over 30 million soums. Paying the fine does not cancel the committee's order, for example to run counter-advertising — a public correction of the misleading ad. If the company does not admit guilt, a court decides. Liability for officials and individuals is set by the Code of Administrative Responsibility.
Who is liable: the business, the agency or the channel
Article 49 splits liability three ways:
| Who | Liable for |
|---|---|
| Advertiser (the business) | The content of the information provided for the ad, unless it is proven the violation was the producer's or distributor's fault |
| Producer (agency, designer) | Making the ad |
| Distributor (channel, website, blogger) | The time, place and means of distribution |
In practice, "the designer wrote it" will not work as an excuse if you supplied the price, discount and terms. So review every ad yourself before it goes live.
One more requirement: contracts and materials for an ad must be kept for three years from the day it last ran (Art. 15). Keep creatives, copy and blogger agreements in one folder.
Meta's and Google's own policies are a separate matter. An ad that is legal in Uzbekistan can still be rejected if it breaks platform policy — see ad account blocked.
Advertising language
Under Article 6, advertising in Uzbekistan is distributed in the state language and may be repeated in other languages as a translation. The translation must not distort the main meaning. In outdoor advertising, the translation goes at the bottom, horizontally, takes up no more than 40% of the area, and uses smaller letters than the Uzbek text. The exception is websites that publish materials only in foreign languages.
The law has no separate rule for social media posts. If you advertise to a Russian-speaking audience, adding Uzbek text is the safest option.
Checklist before an ad goes live
- Is the price in soums?
- Do you have proof for "the best", "No. 1", "only with us"?
- Are discount and installment terms as readable as the main text?
- Do you have written consent from people in the photos?
- Are the music, photos and copy yours or licensed?
- If it is a promotion, were the terms published before the start?
- Is the blogger's post labelled as advertising?
- Are your licence and certificates at hand?
- Is there Uzbek text?
- Are the creative and the contract saved in the archive?
Questions and answers
Does the law apply to ads on Instagram and Telegram? Yes. The law defines advertising as information spread by any means, and Article 31 deals with online ads specifically.
Can I show the price in soums with dollars next to it? Article 16 prohibits stating prices in foreign currency in advertising. The law has no "fine if soums are shown too" exception, so use soums only.
If the agency made the mistake, who pays the fine? The advertiser is liable for the content unless it is proven that the producer or distributor was at fault (Art. 49). Write down in your agency contract who approves what.
Is a repost giveaway a lottery? Under Article 21 it is not, as long as the prize fund does not come from participants' money or ticket sales and the promotion is purely for advertising. You still have to publish the terms in advance.
How long should advertising materials be kept? Three years from the day the ad last ran, and if there is a dispute, until it is resolved (Art. 15).
Conclusion
There is no need to fear the law, but you do need to know it. For a small business the main rules are simple: prices in soums, terms in plain sight, proof for "the best", promotion rules in advance, ads clearly labelled. Checking each new creative against the checklist takes 5 minutes, which is far cheaper than a fine and a damaged reputation.
At Level Marketing we check creatives against this list before launch and agree prices, terms and labels with the client.
