From June 19, 2026, your e-commerce site must display a withdrawal button

On June 19, 2026, a new obligation takes effect for every online retailer selling to French consumers, with no revenue threshold or exemption for small businesses: a withdrawal button must be accessible directly on the site, at any time during the legal period. France had 153,000 active online stores in 2024 (+9% year-on-year) and consumers spent nearly €200 billion online in 2025 across 3.2 billion transactions (+10%), according to Fevad, France's e-commerce federation — and every one of those sites is affected, whether they know it yet or not.

If your site sells products or services remotely to consumers, this applies to you directly: what the law says, what you concretely need to display, and what you risk if nothing is done before June 19.

What changes on June 19, 2026?

This reform transposes the EU Directive 2023/2673 of November 22, 2023 into French law, through Ordinance n° 2026-2 and Decree n° 2026-3 of January 5, 2026, which amend article L.221-21 of the French Consumer Code. Both texts are officially titled around distance marketing of financial services — their regulatory starting point — but their practical scope goes much further: they directly amend the general Consumer Code provision governing the right of withdrawal for all distance consumer contracts, not only financial services.

In practice, this new button replaces nothing: it adds to existing channels (email, post, the paper form shipped with the order). The consumer still chooses the channel, but the trader is now required to offer an online one, free of charge and accessible without creating an account.

Who's affected? (Spoiler: every online store, no exceptions)

The obligation applies to any trader selling goods or services remotely to consumers via an online interface — website or app — regardless of revenue, size, or sector. No threshold exempts small businesses: a small craft e-commerce site processing 50 orders a month is just as concerned as an international marketplace.

This new technical obligation sits on top of the "classic" right of withdrawal already in force since 2014: a 14-day period from receipt of the goods (or from contract conclusion for services), during which the consumer can withdraw without justification or penalty (article L.221-18 of the Consumer Code). If your site already sells online, this period already applies to you — the button is simply a new way to exercise it.

The 6 technical requirements of the withdrawal button

Decree n° 2026-3 sets six cumulative conditions. Miss one, and the DGCCRF (France's consumer protection authority) considers the setup non-compliant.

1. Permanent accessibility

The button must be accessible from any page of the site, at any point during the 14-day period — not just from the account area or order page.

2. Completely free

No cost can be imposed on the consumer to use it: no premium SMS, no "processing" fee, no disproportionate CAPTCHA designed to discourage use.

3. Unambiguous wording

The wording recommended by the decree is "Renoncer au contrat" ("Withdraw from the contract"). A generic label like "Cancel" or "Contact" isn't enough: the consumer must immediately understand what the button does.

4. Two-click process

First click: access to a pre-filled form (customer details, order reference, contact method). Second click: explicit confirmation of the withdrawal declaration via a distinct button. The withdrawal is only legally registered after this second click.

5. No account required

A guest customer must be able to withdraw without being forced to create an account first.

6. Acknowledgment on durable medium

The system must automatically send an acknowledgment — typically a timestamped PDF email — showing date, time, reference number, and the content of the declaration. Under article D.221-5, this proof must be archivable by the trader for a minimum of 5 years. This date is what triggers the 14-day refund deadline.

The "classic" right of withdrawal still fully applies

The button is a new technical method, not a new right: the underlying rules of the Consumer Code haven't changed. Three points remain essential to stay compliant.

Exceptions (article L.221-28): thirteen categories of contracts are excluded from the right of withdrawal, including goods made to the consumer's specifications or clearly personalized, perishable goods, goods unsealed after delivery for hygiene reasons, digital content downloaded with the consumer's express consent, and services fully performed before the end of the period. This list is exhaustive — courts have consistently struck down broad interpretations.

Extension to small professionals (article L.221-3): a trader employing 5 employees or fewer, who enters into an off-premises or distance contract outside their main business activity, also benefits from the consumer right of withdrawal. A craftsperson who buys management software from a door-to-door seller can invoke it too.

Refunds: when a consumer withdraws, the trader must refund all sums paid, including delivery costs, within a maximum of 14 days from the date they became aware of the consumer's decision — a date the button's acknowledgment receipt now establishes without ambiguity.

How to actually display all this on your site

Displaying the right of withdrawal isn't limited to the technical button. To be genuinely compliant, four spots on your site need updating.

1. Terms and conditions

The clause must restate the 14-day period, when it starts running, how to exercise it (online button plus alternative channels), the exceptions that apply to your products, and the refund process. It's also a good moment to check that your GDPR compliance is up to date: the two compliance efforts often touch the same pages — terms, forms, transactional emails.

2. The standard withdrawal form

Independently of the button, the annex to article R.221-1 requires making a withdrawal form template available (trader's contact details, declaration statement, order/receipt date, consumer's identity and address). Missing or non-compliant forms are punishable by up to two years' imprisonment and a €150,000 fine — a separate criminal penalty from the administrative fine tied to the button.

3. The order confirmation email

It must restate the withdrawal right information and provide access to, or a reminder of, the button, per the pre-contractual information obligation in article L.221-5.

4. The button itself

Permanently visible, no login required, labeled "Renoncer au contrat," with the two-click process described above. In the audits we run for e-commerce clients, the most common failure isn't a missing withdrawal form — it's one buried in an unreadable PDF link in the footer: technically present, but not "easily accessible" in the sense the DGCCRF actually enforces.

What happens if a site doesn't comply?

Non-compliance triggers two kinds of consequences — one automatic, one following an inspection.

Automatic consequence: if the button (or, more broadly, withdrawal information) is missing or incomplete, the consumer's withdrawal period is automatically extended to 12 months and 14 days from delivery (article L.221-20). A customer can then withdraw almost a year after ordering, with no way for you to object.

DGCCRF administrative fine (article L.242-13): up to €15,000 for an individual and €75,000 for a company, doubled in case of repeat offenses within two years.

This reform doesn't only target the careless. In June 2026, the DGCCRF fined Shein a total of €22.4 million across two penalties, partly over non-compliant withdrawal procedures and order confirmation emails — the exact same chain of obligations described here, at a scale that shows enforcement isn't limited to small businesses.

Compliance checklist before June 19

Before the deadline, check each item:

Is a "Renoncer au contrat" button visible on every page of your site, including for guest checkout?
Does the process trigger a timestamped acknowledgment email (durable medium, archived for 5 years)?
Do your terms and conditions state the 14-day period, when it starts, and the exceptions that genuinely apply to your products?
Is the standard withdrawal form (annex to R.221-1) available on the site, independently of the button?
Does your order confirmation email restate the right of withdrawal?
Can your refund process meet the 14-day deadline after receiving the declaration?

If even one box is unchecked, your site isn't compliant as of June 19 — and your customers' withdrawal period automatically jumps to 12 months.

Conclusion: a technical obligation, not an option

The withdrawal button isn't another legal footnote to file away: it's a technical feature to build into the site, with a precise user flow, an acknowledgment system, and updated terms and transactional emails. With no exemption threshold, every French online store is affected starting June 19, 2026.

✅ "Renoncer au contrat" button visible on every page
✅ Two-click process with timestamped acknowledgment
✅ Terms and standard withdrawal form up to date
✅ Compliant order confirmation email
✅ Refund process within 14 days

Get your e-commerce site compliant before June 19

At NexIT, we build the withdrawal button directly into your site (flow, acknowledgment, archiving) and update your terms and transactional emails to match.

Better to act before June 19 than react after a DGCCRF inspection.

Camille Beaucher — Your partner for a compliant and secure e-commerce site.

Request a compliance audit of your site Discover our website creation service

Right of Withdrawal Website France: Mandatory Button 2026