Ad Review Delays Due to Covid-19

Delays in ad reviews are common, however, in light of Covid-19, disruptions have recently been more severe than usual.
With the country now on lockdown due to Covid-19, more and more workers are being sent home and we are all having to adapt.

Google is experiencing delays in ad review, especially for new ads in non-text formats (Video, RDA, App, etc). Appeals for disapproved ads are also experiencing delays, while requests to expedite unreviewed ads are not currently supported.
The Google Ads Help page now includes the statement:

‘As a precautionary health measure for our Google support specialists in light of COVID-19, some support options may be unavailable or delayed. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause and appreciate your patience.’

One way to avoid the lengthy review process is to make the most of existing ads, opposed to creating new ones, and using text ads where possible where review times are shorter.
Google will block any ads trying to capitalize on the pandemic so it is important to be careful using words such as ‘protection,’ ‘check-up,’ ‘prevention,’ or ‘virus’, as well as any local terms that have been used to reference the Covid-19, especially for international campaigns. Ads for medical masks and respirators have also been temporarily banned.
An approval request form can be submitted if you created or edited your ad more than 1 business day ago and it’s still labelled “Under review” or “Eligible” but this too will be affected by the delays.

To avoid triggering lengthy ads review periods:

• Change only the budget and start/end dates of existing ads as making any other changes will require a review.
• Run the best performing ads for longer, rather than creating new ones that need reviewing.