The vote comes after 2.5 years of debates before both Houses of the French Parliament. The text which essentially amends the Code of the Environment was published in the Official Bulletin of July 9, 2026 (Law n°2026-602 of July 8, 2026 aiming to reduce the environmental impact of the textile industry).
This piece of legislation aims to curb the ‘ultra’ fast fashion, a phenomenon characterized by ever increasing volumes of clothing, footwear, and linens placed on the market and by its negative externalities at the production and consumption stages. Fast fashion in general is not targeted however as the implied objective here is also to preserve traditional brands present on the domestic market and featuring entry-level products. Note also that companies located in the EU or in countries parties to the EEA are not target either subject to their not meeting the conditions set at Art. 3 paras. 4 and 5 of Directive 2000/31/EC of June 8, 2000 on electronic commerce (Env. Code, L541-9-1-1 IV).
Ultra-fast fashion is defined as industrial and commercial practices of producers entailing a reduced life expectancy of products due to (i) the placement on the market of a significant number of references and (ii) the modest enticement to repair such products (Env. Code, L541-9-1-1 I). Market places and other internet interfaces allowing to purchase or have these products delivered are also targeted. These will be required to post messages encouraging sustainable consumption behaviors (reuse, recycling, etc.) and to inform consumers of the social, environmental, and health impacts of these products, including their delivery (Env. Code, L541-9-1-1 III).
The law also introduces a new criterion to the modulation of eco-contributions owed by producers to Producer Responsibility Organizations (PROs) operating in the clothing, footwear, and linens field. The impact of the environment, including harm to biodiversity and the carbon footprint of products will now be taken into consideration by PROs in the computation of the eco-contributions paid by producers subject to the Extended Producer Responsibility scheme (Env. Code, L541-10-3). These eco-contributions will also be modulated by PROs based on the breadth of the product range or the frequency of offers, as well as the extent to which the repair of the products in question is encouraged (Env. Code, L541-10-27 II). Where this modulation is negative, the corresponding penalty shall increase overtime from 25 cents to 12 euros per product in 2026, and 2 to 20 euros in 2030 (id.). A draft Ministerial Order amending the general rules (cahier des charges) governing PROs operating in the clothing, footwear, and linens field is being circulated by the Ministry of the Environment for public consultation from July 9 to July 31, 2026. The products subject to the above penalty are those for which the result of ratio D is less than or equal to 0.8, based on a formula derived from a product range breadth criterion and a repair incentive criterion weighted at 50%. PROs operating in the clothing, footwear, and linens field (currently, Re_fashion is the only approved one) shall use a fraction of such eco-contribution to finance collection, sorting, reuse, preparation in view of reuse and recycling structures located in France (Env. Code, L541-10-27 IV). These provisions shall enter into force September 1, 2026.
The law further prohibits the advertising of products originating from the ultra-fast fashion industry or promoting directly or indirectly brands resorting to ultra-fast fashion practices (Env. Code, L229-61-1).
Interestingly, this prohibition also extends to individuals engaged in commercial influencing activities via electronic means, or undertaking the promotion, directly or indirectly, whether for payment or free of charge, and regardless of the nature of the consideration, of products associated with the practice of ultra-fast fashion or of brands employing this practice. As regards influencers, failures to comply with or violations of the above is punishable by an administrative fine not exceeding EUR 100,000.00 (Law n°2023-451 of June 9, 2023 aimed at regulating commercial influence and combating the excesses of influencers on social media, Article 4 as amended). These advertising bans come into force January 1, 2027.
Produktkanzlei has a broad network of international cooperation partners. This article was written by David Desforges, with whom we have been cooperating on product law issues in France for many years. You can reach out to David Desforges with the following contact details:
