Note: The content below is for guidance only. TikTok Shop reserves the right to enforce any content it considers to be inappropriate for any reason.

This guide outlines TikTok Shop's rules on product claims, including restrictions on medical claims, health claims, beauty & personal care claims and absolute terms. Following these rules helps ensure you remain compliant with platform policies when promoting products on Lives, Photos and Short Videos. ⏱ Reading Time: ~10 minutes

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The Importance of Honest Product Marketing

TikTok Shop is committed to creating a safe and trustworthy shopping experience where customers can feel confident in what they buy. To support this, all sellers and creators must promote their products in a way that does not mislead customers about the product's functionality, effects, or end results, and must follow our UK TikTok Shop Content Policy and Community Guidelines.

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What is Misleading Functionality and Effect (MFE)?

Content created to promote products on TikTok Shop must not misrepresent the product's functionality, effects, or results. Content is misleading if it claims or implies performance or results the product cannot deliver, including when personal experiences are presented in a way that suggests effects the product cannot deliver.
Examples of misleading content include:

• Medical claims (absolute effect claims) and misleading health claims
• Misleading advice presented as fact
• Overstated or exaggerated beauty claims

This applies to all formats: videos, livestreams, product listings, titles, descriptions, hashtags, links, and images.
⚠️ If content is found to be misleading, TikTok Shop may take enforcement action on both the content and associated products. Misleading content can cause safety risks, reduce customer trust, and lead to negative customer reviews and complaints.

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💊 Medical and Health Claims (Absolute Effect Claim)

❌ Medical products/devices cannot be sold on TikTok Shop. Click here to learn more about what types of medical and medicinal products are not allowed to be sold on TikTok Shop.
❌ E-commerce content containing medical claims is also prohibited. A medical claim is when a product is described as being able to cure, heal, eliminate, treat, prevent, eradicate, or alleviate any disease or medical condition, or health condition. This applies even if different words with the same meaning are used to describe the product's effects (e.g. Saying the product can 'fix' a medical or health condition, 'get rid' of it or make it 'disappear' or 'go away') or when slang words are used to describe the disease/medical condition/health condition (e.g. 'the big C').
❌ Sharing personal experiences that suggest a product can cure, heal, treat, prevent, alleviate, eliminate, or eradicate a disease, medical condition, or health issue is also not allowed.

Examples of Medical Claims To Avoid

❌ #supplementpreventsMigraines❌ "Take 2 tablets of XYZ product every day to cure your IBS"❌ "This product will fix UTIs"❌ "This product has cured over 500 thousand women of BV"❌ "This supplement treats depression"❌ "Insomnia cure"❌ "Never get a migraine again"❌ "Prevents the Big C (Cancer)"❌ "Eliminate back pain"

Examples of Allowed Claims

✅ "Just in case you're not getting enough magnesium from the food you eat, magnesium supplements may be for you"✅ Sharing general wellness content or healthy lifestyle tips without medical implications✅ "For digestive health, consider maintaining a balanced diet combined with taking this supplement, and consult with a healthcare professional for personalized advice"✅ "This product can boost your energy"✅ "This product can improve your sleep"✅ "This product supports wellness"✅ "Boost the immune system"✅ "Supports nutrition"✅ "Enhance lifestyle"✅ "Reduce fatigue"✅ "Supports metabolism"✅ "Give the immune system a natural kick"📍 Click here to learn more about Promoting Supplements on TikTok Shop

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Avoid Misleading Advice

In addition to the above, creators should not give misleading medical advice.

• Is better than or the same as a prescription-only product;
• Is better than a healthy, balanced diet;
• Has no side effects;
• Is a miracle or the secret/cure.
• Is “clinically proven/shown” in connection with a medical claim (studies may be referenced if claims are non-medical)

• Discourage seeking proper health care consultation from professionals;
• Show images of real severe medical conditions or symptoms alongside the product, indicating the product will cure the condition;
• Encourage viewers to disregard previous medical advice from health professionals.

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💄Cosmetic Claims

Cosmetic claims describe or show a temporary, external cosmetic effect without changing body functions. Creators may use beauty claims in their content.
Content violates the Misleading Functionality and Effect policy if it exaggerates the benefits of beauty products or makes physiological or therapeutic claims.
📍Click here to learn more about Promoting Beauty Products on TikTok Shop

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Cosmetic Claims You Must Avoid
Do not claim or imply your product:

• Treats, cures, heals, eliminates, reverses, or removes skin conditions (e.g. eczema, psoriasis)
• Treats, cures, heals, eliminates, alleviates, or prevents any disease
• Has skin-whitening or lightening properties
• Alters the body's structure or function, for example:
  • "This serum will change the shape of your jawline / change your face structure"
  • "14 days of mouth-taping literally transformed my jawline"
  • Claims that a product can stimulate collagen to tighten the skin
  • "Regenerates hair follicles"
  • Claims that a product can stimulate hair follicles to create natural hair growth
  • Exaggerated hair growth e.g. Images that show bald patches/ bald spots 'before' and a full head of hair in the 'after' image
• Has permanent effects or effects that are only possible through medical intervention, for example:
  • Permanent skin tightening effects
  • Permanent anti-aging effects e.g. Reversing sun damage
  • Before & after images depicting the full removal of wrinkles, freckles, scars, etc.

These types of claims classify a product as a medicine/medicinal and are not allowed on TikTok Shop.

✅ Allowed Cosmetic Claims

These describe appearance-based or subjective effects:

• “Skin appears brighter”
• “Hair looks fuller”
• “Improves the appearance of blemishes”
• "Get glowy skin using this product"
• "Improve the appearance of your skin"
• "Reduce dark spots"
• "Hydrates your skin"
• "Make your skin look plumper"
• "Nourish your hair"
• "Make your hair appear fuller and thicker"
• #uklash #hairstyle #hairgrowth #hairgrowthjourney #hairvitamins

Fashion Products Cosmetic Claims

In addition, fashion products making appearance-based claims are allowed, for example:
✅ Body-shaping underwear and padded bras showing temporary changes in body shape are allowed
✅ Shoe fillers that temporarily increase height are allowed

• "This hand lotion is my favorite so far. It helps with my dry skin and I prefer it to X, Y and Z brands."
• "I prefer brand X to brand Y. Brand X's products suits my skin better, so I always get my moisturiser from them."
• "I used this product for 10 days, and it reduced the appearance of blemishes on my face"

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📸 Before & After Photos: Best Practices

Before & after photos may be used to demonstrate the effect of the product.
✅ Follow these best practices when using before & after photos:

• Reflect genuine, average expected results (i.e. No extreme exaggerations)
• Do not digitally alter images to exaggerate effects
• Do not show permanent changes
  • e.g. suggesting a cream permanently removes wrinkles
• Do not show biological changes
  • e.g. suggesting the product can reverse aging at a cellular level
• Include a disclaimer“Results may vary by individual”

⚠️ Note: Disclaimers do not exempt creators from misleading claims - misleading claims are still prohibited even if a disclaimer is included.

• State the timeframe for results
• Reference any studies supporting the claims

❌ Avoid using exaggerated and misleading before-and-after images

• e.g. showing extreme results (like overly brightened teeth) that have been digitally altered to represent outcomes most customers could not realistically achieve.

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👨🏻‍⚕️Misleading Healthcare Professionals

Do not have any professionals or experts promoting healthcare products efficacy in the content . These imply medical recommendations or endorsements as it could provide misinformation to the users. This includes healthcare professionals, wellness experts and individuals presented as authoritative experts. This includes:

• Doctors
• Nurses
• Dermatologists
• Pharmacists
• Dentists etc
• Hospital room backgrounds
• Any healthcare professional
• Beauty specialists
• Any Experts, Host, or Specialists who explicitly provide medical suggestions

❌ This also includes creators or avatars wearing uniforms/scrubs to manipulate shoppers into believing a product has medical "endorsements".
❌ AI avatars or Cartoon characters dressed as "healthcare professionals" are also prohibited. (📍 Click here to learn more about AI generated content)

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Absolute Terms

An absolute term is a superlative statement that positions a product as the best, leading, or unmatched within a market, location, time period, or industry.
📍 Click here to learn more about Absolute Terms