The Advertising Regulatory Council of Nigeria, ARCON, has come up with new guidelines and fees for vetting of ads before exposure.

According to the director general of the Council, Dr. Lekan Fadolapo, this has become necessary because of the need to align the current vetting fees, procedures and processes across all media for inclusive pre-exposure vetting in line with the Nigerian Advertising Laws and Regulations.

The new regime states that vetted materials in the traditional media category (print, broadcast and out-of-home) would have a validity period of approval of one year, 12 months, while the duration for the new media (online and social media platforms) is three months.

In the new regime, small and medium enterprises are under a special window regime with a validity period of 12 months. To qualify under this category, organizations need to apply under the SME classification and provide evidence as an SME through a letter from the Small and Medium Enterprise Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) or the National Association of Small and Medium Enterprises (NASME). The creation of a special window for SMEs is aimed at supporting and encouraging the SME sector of the economy.

Vetting fees for the SME category are N10,000 for 10 working days period as against the previous fee of N25,000. For accelerated vetting of 8 hours, a fee of N100,000 is applicable for a maximum of 15 concepts per application. Organizations that opt for accelerated vetting of 16 hours would need to pay N70,000 with a maximum of 10 concepts per application.

Vetting fees for new media category (online and social media platforms) are N7,500 for seven working days period as against the previous fee of N25,000. For accelerated vetting of 8 hours, a fee of N100,000 is applicable for a maximum of 15 concepts per application. And like in the SME category, organizations that opt for accelerated vetting of 16 hours would need to pay N70,000 with a maximum of 10 concepts per application.

The current and existing vetting fee for the traditional media category (print, broadcast and out-of-home) remain the same for all categories – brands, organizations, industries - except SMEs.

The vetting process under this category is eight hours accelerated vetting with a maximum of 15 concepts per application and 16 hours for a maximum of 10 concepts per application.

“The new regime has not increased the existing vetting fee but rather broken it down to encourage responsible advertising through pre-exposure vetting in line with the Nigerian code of advertising and vetting guidance,” Fadolapo explained.