Compliance culture

A compliance culture is the set of shared values, attitudes, and behaviours within an organisation that promotes adherence to laws, regulations, ethical standards, and internal policies. It means that following the rules—like those in the TTPA Regulation—becomes part of everyday work, supported by leadership, training, and accountability at all levels.

Legal Basis

While the TTPA Regulation (EU 2024/900) does not explicitly define "compliance culture," it requires providers of political advertising services and sponsors to implement transparency and due diligence obligations. A strong compliance culture supports the effective implementation of these obligations.

"Providers of political advertising services shall establish and maintain transparency and due diligence obligations as set out in this Regulation."

— Recital 21, Regulation (EU) 2024/900

Why It Matters

A strong compliance culture is essential for any organisation involved in political advertising—whether as a sponsor, publisher, platform, or advertising service provider. Under the TTPA Regulation, compliance is not just about ticking boxes; it requires that everyone in the organisation understands their obligations and acts on them.

For platforms and publishers, this means training staff on labelling requirements, transparency notices, and reporting channels. For sponsors and political actors, it means ensuring campaign teams understand when advertising must be declared and how personal data may be used for targeting. Leadership must set the tone by visibly supporting compliance efforts, allocating resources, and holding teams accountable.

When compliance becomes embedded in the culture, organisations are better equipped to prevent breaches, respond quickly to issues, and build trust with voters, regulators, and partners. A weak compliance culture, by contrast, increases the risk of penalties, reputational damage, and undermining democratic processes.

Key Points

Leadership commitment: Senior management must champion compliance and allocate adequate resources for training, systems, and oversight.
Training and awareness: All staff should understand their role in meeting TTPA obligations, from labelling political ads to handling user reports.
Clear policies and procedures: Organisations should document and communicate how they will comply with transparency, targeting, and due diligence rules.
Accountability: Compliance is everyone's responsibility, with clear consequences for breaches and recognition for meeting standards.
Continuous improvement: Regular reviews, audits, and feedback loops help organisations adapt to new risks and regulatory developments.
Open communication: Staff should feel safe raising concerns or reporting potential breaches without fear of retaliation.

Compliance culture vs. Compliance programme

A compliance programme is the formal set of policies, procedures, controls, and tools an organisation puts in place to meet legal and regulatory requirements. A compliance culture is the informal set of values, attitudes, and behaviours that determine whether that programme actually works in practice.

You can have a detailed compliance programme on paper, but if staff don't believe compliance matters, or if leadership doesn't model it, the programme will fail. Culture is what happens when no one is watching. A strong compliance culture turns rules into habits, making compliance a natural part of how the organisation operates rather than a box-ticking exercise.

Aspect	Compliance Programme	Compliance Culture
Nature	Formal, documented	Informal, behavioural
Focus	Policies, procedures, controls	Values, attitudes, habits
Responsibility	Compliance team	Everyone in the organisation
Success measure	Policies in place	Policies followed consistently

Related Terms

Compliance management system
Due diligence
Transparency obligations
Provider of political advertising services
Sponsor
Publisher
Political actor
Internal control systems
Governance
Whistleblowing

Very transparent. Every political ad will be labelled, linked to a transparency notice with detailed information, and online ads will be searchable in a central European repository.

The Network coordinates election-related cooperation between member states. National contact points for TTPA enforcement should be members of this network where possible.

Election campaigns will need to ensure all paid advertising includes proper labels and transparency notices. Sponsors must be prepared to provide required information to all service providers.

Several major platforms currently do not allow paid political advertising, including some large social networks. This limits where political actors can place paid online advertisements.

The TTPA applies from 10 October 2025. Member States had until 10 April 2025 to designate competent authorities, and the Commission must provide label templates by 10 July 2025.

Publishers must ensure completeness and accuracy of certain information but are not required to verify all sponsor claims. They must correct manifestly erroneous information when they become aware of it.

Yes. When a hosting provider and a website both display an ad, both are considered publishers with responsibility for their specific services. Contracts should clarify how they share compliance duties.

If a publisher removes or disables access to a political ad due to illegality or terms violations, they must still provide access to the transparency information for the full seven-year retention period.