Do You Need A Model Release For UGC Ads?

Using creator videos, customer photos and testimonial-style clips can make your ads feel much more real. It also raises a simple question that can get messy fast: do you actually have permission to use that person's face, voice and content in paid advertising?

For New Zealand businesses, the answer is usually yes - you should get a written model release or talent release before you run user generated content as an ad. A friendly DM, a tag on Instagram or a customer saying they love your product often won't be enough once you're editing the content, boosting it, whitelisting it or using it across multiple platforms.

This doesn't have to be complicated. The key is to be clear about what you're allowed to use, where you can use it, how long you can use it for, and what happens if the person changes their mind later.

Do You Need A Model Release For UGC Ads?

Yes, in most cases you should get a model release if you're using a person's image, video, voice, name or likeness in UGC ads. This is especially true where the content is used in paid social media advertising, not just reposted organically.

A model release form is a written permission from the person appearing in the content. You might also hear it called a talent release, appearance release or consent form.

For UGC ads, a good release helps you prove that the person agreed to your business using their:

• Face, body, image and likeness
• Voice, name, handle or bio details
• Photo, video, review or testimonial
• Performance, script or spoken words
• Before-and-after content, where relevant

Without a written release, you may still be able to use some content in limited ways, but you'll have less certainty. If the person later asks you to take the ad down, complains to a platform, or says they never agreed to paid advertising, you may need to pause campaigns quickly and lose the spend, testing data and creative momentum you've built.

Say you run a skincare brand in Auckland and a customer posts a TikTok saying your moisturiser is her new favourite product. Reposting it to your Instagram story is one thing. Turning that clip into a paid Meta ad, adding captions, cutting it into hooks and running it to cold audiences across New Zealand and Australia is a much bigger use. That's when a proper release matters.

What Counts As User Generated Content In New Zealand Advertising?

User generated content usually means content created by someone outside your business, rather than by your in-house team or agency. For ads, this can include content from paid creators, customers, influencers, affiliates, ambassadors or everyday users.

Common examples include:

• A creator filming an unboxing video for your product
• A customer sending you a before-and-after photo
• A TikTok-style testimonial from a paid UGC creator
• A review video posted by someone who received a free product
• A photo competition entry showing your product in use
• A gym member's transformation video
• A cafe customer tagging your business in a Reel

The legal rights can differ depending on who created the content and what you plan to do with it.

If you paid a creator to make content, you should have a UGC creator agreement that deals with copyright, usage rights, content licence terms and releases. If a customer posted content on their own page without being asked, you usually need separate permission before using it in ads.

It also matters whether the content includes other people, music, logos, private information or claims about your product. A creator may own the copyright in the video, but that doesn't automatically mean they can consent for everyone who appears in the background, or for commercial music used in the clip.

What Permission Do You Need From A UGC Creator?

You usually need both content rights and personal appearance rights from a UGC creator. A model release covers the creator's image and likeness, while a creator agreement covers the broader commercial deal.

For a paid creator, your agreement should be clear enough that your marketing team knows exactly what can and can't be done with the content.

Content Rights

Content rights deal with who owns the copyright and how your business can use the content. Under the Copyright Act 1994, the creator of a video or photo will often be the first copyright owner unless your agreement says otherwise or a specific exception applies.

Your agreement should say whether your business gets:

• An assignment of copyright, meaning ownership is transferred to your business
• An exclusive licence, meaning only your business can use the content in agreed ways
• A non-exclusive licence, meaning the creator can also use or license the content elsewhere

For many UGC campaigns, a licence is enough. For hero ads, long-term campaigns or content you want to heavily edit and repurpose, ownership or a wider licence may be worth considering.

Talent And Model Release Rights

A creator collaboration agreement should also include a talent release. This is the creator's consent for you to use their image, voice, name and performance in your marketing.

Make sure it covers paid ads, not just organic social posts. Platforms like Meta, TikTok, Google, YouTube and Pinterest can all involve different formats, placements and campaign settings.

Contractor Status

Most UGC creators are engaged as independent contractors, not employees. Your agreement should reflect that reality, including deliverables, fees, revisions, deadlines and who supplies equipment.

If the relationship is ongoing, highly controlled, or the creator is working almost like part of your team, you should be careful with classification. The Employment Relations Act 2000 and the Employment Relations Amendment Act 2025 changes, which came into force on 21 February 2026, make written contractor arrangements and the real working relationship more important. If you're relying on contractor status, get tailored advice before scaling the arrangement.

Can You Use Customer Photos Or Videos In Ads?

It depends, but you should get clear permission before using customer photos or videos in paid advertising. A tag, hashtag or public post doesn't automatically give your business broad advertising rights.

There are a few levels of permission to think about.

Organic Reposts

If a customer tags your business, you might ask if you can repost their photo on your brand's social page. A simple written yes may be enough for a one-off organic repost, depending on the content and context.

Even then, be clear about what you're asking for. For example: Can we repost this photo on our Instagram and Facebook pages, crediting your handle?

Paid Ads

Paid ads need stronger permission. You're using that person's image to sell your product or service, often to people who don't know them, and sometimes with edits, captions and targeting layered on top.

For paid ads, your permission should cover:

• Use in paid social ads and sponsored posts
• Use across specific platforms
• Whether you can edit, crop, subtitle or combine the content with other assets
• How long the ad can run
• Whether the customer will be named, tagged or kept anonymous
• Whether any payment, discount or free product is being provided

Competitions And Giveaways

If you're collecting UGC through a competition, your competition terms should explain how entries can be used. For example, you might ask entrants to agree that your business can repost entries and use shortlisted entries in marketing.

Be careful not to hide a wide advertising licence in fine print. If customers are effectively giving you content for ads, say that clearly when they enter.

What Should A Talent Release Form For Social Media Ads Cover?

A talent release form for social media ads should cover the people, content, platforms, duration, editing rights, payment and withdrawal process. The more specific you are, the easier it's to manage campaigns without awkward surprises.

For New Zealand UGC ads, consider including these terms.

Who Is Giving Consent

Name the person appearing in the content. If the person is under 18, you should get consent from a parent or guardian and be extra careful about the content, targeting and product category.

If there are multiple people in a video, don't assume one person can consent for everyone, or that one release covers every performer. Get releases from each recognisable person where possible.

What Content Is Covered

Describe the content clearly. You can attach the files, list the deliverables or refer to a campaign brief.

This avoids confusion about whether permission covers one video only, all raw footage, behind-the-scenes clips, still images pulled from the footage, or future edits.

Where You Can Use It

Name the platforms and channels. For example:

• Instagram, Facebook and Threads
• TikTok, including Spark Ads or creator authorisation codes if relevant
• YouTube and Google ads
• Your website, email marketing and landing pages
• Digital display ads

If you want broad flexibility, say so. If the creator only agrees to specific platforms, don't stretch that permission later.

How Long You Can Use It

Set a clear duration. Common options include 3 months, 6 months, 12 months or ongoing use.

Perpetual use can be tempting, but it may cost more and can be harder to negotiate. A fixed term with an option to extend is often cleaner.

Whether You Can Edit The Content

Paid ads often need edits. Your release should say whether you can:

• Crop, resize and reformat the content
• Add captions, graphics, music or voiceover
• Cut long videos into shorter clips
• Use screenshots or stills from video
• Combine the content with other footage
• Create variations for A/B testing

If you're using AI tools to edit, enhance, translate, dub or generate variations, say that clearly. Some creators will be comfortable with this, and others won't.

Payment And Value Exchange

Record exactly what the person gets in return. That might be a fee, gifted product, commission, discount code, exposure or no payment at all.

If the person is giving a testimonial because they were paid or received free products, your advertising claims and disclosures need to be handled carefully.

Can A Creator Or Customer Withdraw Consent Later?

It depends on what they agreed to, but your business should have a clear process for withdrawal requests. Written terms give you a much better position than relying on a casual message.

If your release says consent is irrevocable for a fixed period, you may be able to keep using the content during that period. Even then, you should think commercially and reputationally before continuing to run ads featuring someone who is strongly objecting.

If there was no written release, or the permission was vague, the person may have a stronger argument that they can withdraw consent, especially for future use.

Your release should explain:

• Whether consent can be withdrawn
• How a withdrawal request must be made
• How quickly your business will stop future use
• Whether live ads, scheduled posts and archived content are included
• What happens to content already printed, published or served through ad platforms
• Whether any fees must be repaid if consent is withdrawn early

In practice, you may not be able to instantly remove every impression from an ad platform or every saved version of content. But you can usually stop future campaigns, pause active ads and remove content from your owned channels.

The Privacy Act 2020 can also be relevant because a person's image, voice and social handle can be personal information. If you're collecting and using that information, you need to be open about your purpose and only use it in ways that fit the consent you've obtained.

How Do New Zealand Advertising And Privacy Rules Affect UGC Ads?

New Zealand advertising and privacy rules affect UGC ads because your content must be honest, properly consented to and not misleading. A release helps with permission, but it doesn't make a misleading ad okay.

Fair Trading Act 1986

The Fair Trading Act 1986 prohibits misleading or deceptive conduct and false or misleading representations in trade. For UGC ads, this means customer claims and creator testimonials need to be accurate and not taken out of context.

For example, if a customer says a supplement helped them feel more energetic, don't edit the clip to suggest it treats a medical condition unless you can legally and factually support that claim. If a creator only used your app for one week, don't present them as a long-term customer.

Consumer Guarantees Act 1993

The Consumer Guarantees Act 1993 can matter where your ads make promises about quality, performance or fitness for purpose. If your UGC ads create strong expectations about what your product will do, make sure your product, service and customer support can match those claims.

Privacy Act 2020

Under the Privacy Act 2020, you should be transparent when collecting and using personal information. For UGC ads, that includes telling people why you're collecting their content and how it may be used.

Good practice includes:

• Getting written consent before collecting content for ads
• Only using content for the purposes you told the person about
• Storing release forms and content securely
• Limiting access to your marketing team, agency and platform partners as needed
• Having a clear contact point for privacy questions or withdrawal requests

Advertising Standards Authority Codes

The Advertising Standards Authority codes can apply to social media advertising, including influencer and sponsored content. Paid, gifted or otherwise controlled content should be identifiable as advertising where the context isn't obvious.

If a creator posts on their own account as part of your campaign, make sure your brief covers disclosure. Words like ad, sponsored or paid partnership are often clearer than vague hashtags.

Common Mistakes To Avoid

Most UGC issues come from unclear permission, not bad intentions. A few simple habits can save you a lot of campaign stress.

• Relying On A Tag Or Hashtag: A customer tagging your brand doesn't usually mean they agree to paid ads.
• Getting Permission For Organic Use Only: If you plan to boost, sponsor or run the content through Ads Manager, say that clearly.
• Forgetting Editing Rights: Cropping, adding hooks, using captions and creating variants should be covered.
• Leaving Out Duration: If your agreement doesn't say how long you can use the content, you'll have uncertainty later.
• Ignoring Music And Third-Party Content: A creator's video may include music, artwork, logos or other people you don't have rights to use.
• Using Testimonials Too Broadly: Don't turn a specific customer experience into a general product promise unless you can support it.
• Not Keeping Records: Save signed releases, emails, DMs, campaign briefs and final approved assets in one place.
• Using A Generic Template Without Changes: Templates often miss platform-specific rights, whitelisting, Spark Ads, AI edits and withdrawal terms. Documents work best when they're tailored to how your business actually advertises.

Key Takeaways

• You should usually get a written model release before using a person's face, voice, name or likeness in UGC ads.
• A UGC creator agreement should cover both copyright in the content and consent to use the creator's image and performance.
• Customer tags, reviews and public posts don't automatically give you permission to use their content in paid advertising.
• Your release should be clear about platforms, duration, editing rights, payment, whitelisting and withdrawal of consent.
• New Zealand rules under the Fair Trading Act 1986, Privacy Act 2020 and advertising codes still apply, even when the content feels casual or authentic.
• Keep written records so your team can prove what was agreed if a creator, customer or platform asks questions later.

If you'd like help with your UGC creator agreements, model releases, social media advertising terms or privacy consent wording, you can reach us at 0800 002 184 or team@sprintlaw.co.nz for a free, no-obligations chat.