Short answer. Commerce Manager marks a product “Policy violations” when its automatic review finds it breaks Meta’s Advertising Standards, which keeps it out of ads, or its Commerce Policies, which keep it out of your shop and product tags. Check the Policy issues column to see which policy, then either request another review if the rejection is wrong, or edit the product at its source so it complies.
| Shown in Commerce Manager as | Policy violations |
|---|---|
| Effect | Policy violation — Advertising Standards: not in ads. Commerce Policies: not in the shop or tags |
| Where to find it | Catalog → Products → a product’s Status and issues; feed-level errors under Catalog → Data sources → Download issue report |
| Free check | Not something a feed file shows; see below for what the check can tell you instead |
What Commerce Manager means by “Policy violations”
Every product in a catalog goes through an automatic review. Meta’s help page for policy violations says that products which don’t comply with its Advertising Standards won’t show in your ads, and products which don’t comply with its Commerce Policies won’t show in your shop and can’t be tagged on Facebook and Instagram. Either way they appear as rejected in the catalog.
The two sets of rules are not the same. Meta’s page on how they apply to catalog products gives alcohol, gambling, animals and animal products, and medical and healthcare products as things that can be advertised with restrictions but not sold through its commerce channels — so a product can be fine in ads and rejected in the shop.
Why it happens
- A product the shop does not allow. The Commerce Policies prohibit, among others, alcohol, tobacco, weapons, adult products, medical and healthcare products including ingestible supplements, animals and animal products, used cosmetics, recalled products and downloadable digital content or subscriptions.
- Restricted content without approval. Gift cards and vouchers, event tickets and services are allowed only for sellers Meta has approved.
- Something in how it is presented. The policies also cover misleading offers, products positioned in a sexually suggestive way and counterfeits that copy another brand.
- A rejection you believe is wrong. Meta’s help page says that if you believe products were incorrectly rejected, you can request another review.
How to fix it
In Shopify
Open the catalog in Commerce Manager, go to Products, and under Filters → Issues choose Policy violations; the Policy issues column names the policy. If the rejection is wrong, select the products (up to 100 at a time) and click Request review. If the product really is one the shop can’t carry, keep it out of the Meta feed: in FeedRobin a rule on that feed only — for example, product type contains “Gift card”, don’t include the product — leaves your Google feed as it is.
In WooCommerce
The review works the same way: Filters → Issues → Policy violations in Commerce Manager, then Request review for the ones rejected by mistake. Meta says to edit a product through its original data source, so change it in WooCommerce or in the feed rather than in Commerce Manager; the edited product is reviewed again on its own. Products the shop can’t carry are best left out of the Meta feed with a rule.
In a CSV or XML feed
Edit the rejected rows in your feed file, or remove the products the shop can’t carry, and upload it again — Meta reviews edited products automatically. For a rejection you think is wrong, request a review in Commerce Manager or in Business Support Home instead of editing: an edit cancels a pending review.
How long until Commerce Manager clears it
Meta says reviews typically take up to a few days. An approved review makes the products ready to use; a refused one leaves them rejected, and the same products can’t be sent for review again unless you edit them first. You can submit up to 5,000 products for review every 7 days.
What FeedRobin does about it
No feed check can tell whether a product breaks a policy, so the free check doesn’t try. What FeedRobin gives you is the per-feed rule: a product can be kept out of the Meta feed alone — by title, product type or any other field — while it stays in your Google feed, and the rule’s preview shows which products it removes before you save it.
Questions merchants ask
Can a product be allowed in ads but not in my shop?
Yes. Meta says the Advertising Standards and Commerce Policies cover different uses: alcohol, gambling, animal products and medical products can be advertised with restrictions, but not sold through its commerce channels.
How long does a review take, and how many can I send?
Meta says reviews typically take up to a few days. You can select up to 100 rejected products at a time and submit up to 5,000 for review every 7 days.
Can I ask for a second review if the first one fails?
Not for the same products unless you edit them first. Editing a product also sends it for review again on its own, and it cancels a review that is still pending.
Are gift cards allowed in a Facebook or Instagram shop?
Only for approved sellers: Meta’s Commerce Policies list gift cards and vouchers, event tickets and services as restricted content, not allowed except for sellers Meta has approved.
Sources
- metaPolicyViolations — Meta Business Help Centre
- metaCommercePolicies — Meta Business Help Centre
- metaPoliciesApply — Meta Business Help Centre
- metaProductApprovals — Meta Business Help Centre
- metaItemsNotShowing — Meta Business Help Centre