Advertising ban on Instagram from September 1 in Russia: what to do?

What exactly has been banned

Federal Law No. 72-ФЗ, signed in April 2025, prohibits placing ads on resources recognized as extremist or undesirable. These include Meta, which owns the social networks Instagram and Facebook. In addition, the law applies to other platforms:

• Undesirable organizations included in the special list of the Ministry of Justice.

• Terrorist organizations from the FSB list.

• Websites that are restricted for other reasons: for example, blocked by Roskomnadzor, including X (formerly Twitter).

The ban applies to all types of advertising on these resources:

• Blogger ads: paid posts, Stories, Reels.

• Barter or native integrations.

• Targeted advertising: although it had already been disabled for Russian accounts back in 2022, it is now formally enshrined in law.

• Any other promotion of a product or service.

What counts as advertising on Instagram starting September 1

To avoid fines, it is important to understand what FAS and Roskomnadzor may classify as advertising. The ban applies not only to direct calls to purchase such as “buy,” “order,” “sign up,” but also to more subtle tools:

• Mentioning a product with a positive evaluation.

• Posting links to third-party resources: websites, catalogs, price lists.

• Publishing promo codes, information about discounts, bonuses, or promotions.

• Mutual promotion or barter agreements.

• Reviews that contain calls to purchase.

For example, phrases like “Spots left for booking” or “Price in bio” are considered advertising and may become grounds for a fine. The key point is to avoid any direct or indirect calls to purchase, prices, and links.

What happens for violations

The penalty for violating the law is regulated by Article 14.3 of the Code of Administrative Offenses. Fines may be issued both to bloggers and advertising agencies, as well as to advertisers.

Fines amount to:

• For individuals (bloggers not registered as sole proprietors) — up to 2,500 rubles.

• For sole proprietors — from 4,000 to 20,000 rubles.

• For legal entities — from 100,000 to 500,000 rubles.

A fine is issued for each post, Reels, or Story separately. A violation includes even ads that were published before the law came into force if they reappear in Stories, reposts, or pinned posts.

Can you run an Instagram account?

Yes, running a page on Instagram is still legal. The main thing is to change your approach. Instagram in Russia is no longer a place for direct sales, but a platform for attracting attention and building a funnel. You can use it as an “entry point,” where you share your expertise, show your work process, and create an image. For example, you can:

• Talk about your company and its news.

• Share useful information, expert opinions, or analytics.

• Publish reference materials and reviews without direct promotion.

• Post information about your product range in the form of a catalog or list of services.

But ads and sales need to be moved to other platforms: Telegram, VK, your own website, or YouTube.

How to prepare for the ban

If you didn’t manage to prepare by September 1, it’s not too late to take action.

• Check all old publications for ads, including Reels, Stories, and pinned posts. Remove any calls to action, links to price lists, and commercial wording. Many experts recommend deleting all old ads to eliminate any risks.

• Rewrite your profile description. Exclude from your bio words like “services,” “prices,” “booking.” Focus on your expertise and the value you bring to your audience.

• Adjust your content plan. Switch from advertising to informational content. Talk about your experience, share case studies, show behind-the-scenes content. The goal is to generate interest and redirect traffic to other platforms.

• Develop other platforms. Start actively working with Russian social networks such as VK, Yandex Zen, or Telegram. Test different formats, find your audience, and move your advertising funnel there. To effectively manage multiple accounts on different platforms, use Octo Browser. It allows you to work with hundreds of profiles simultaneously, protecting each of them from bans. You can read more about managing multiple Instagram accounts in this article.

The new law is not the end but a reason to reboot familiar formats. You just need to adapt to the advertising ban on Instagram and rebuild your funnels.