Abstract
In the field of business and environmental law, France has adopted specific legislation targeting ultra-fast fashion, introducing environmental penalties, advertising restrictions and new obligations for online platforms and influencers. The most interesting development, however, lies elsewhere: the legislation links regulatory obligations to the characteristics of the business model itself, including the breadth of the product range and the incentives offered for repairing products.
When does fast fashion become “ultra-fast”?
The distinction does not simply depend on the price of a T-shirt or the country in which it was manufactured.
With Law No. 2026-602 of 8 July 2026, France introduced a definition of mode ultra-express (ultra-fast fashion) into its Environmental Code (Code de l’environnement).
The definition covers industrial and commercial practices that contribute to shortening the period of use or lifespan of textile products through two cumulative criteria: the placing on the market of a large number of new product references, meaning different styles or items, and the lack of sufficient incentives to repair products.
The law leaves it to a decree of the Conseil d’État to establish the quantitative thresholds and implementing criteria, differentiated by brand and sales channel.
Rather than simply declaring that a particular operator belongs to the ultra-fast fashion sector, the legislation seeks to identify the defining characteristics of the business model being used.
The same criteria apply to online platforms, marketplaces and other interfaces enabling the remote sale or delivery of products. The calculation takes into account all new product references offered, excluding those for which the platform can demonstrate that the trademark owner is also the manufacturer and that the interface is not its main sales channel.
This means that names frequently associated with the phenomenon – such as Shein, Temu or AliExpress – are not simply placed on a legislative “blacklist”. Instead, it is necessary to assess whether the operator’s actual business activities meet the requirements laid down by law.
Could buying a T-shirt for just a few euros become more expensive?
One of the aspects of the new legislation that has attracted the greatest attention is the so-called “environmental malus”.
However, describing it simply as a new “tax on clothing” risks being misleading.
The French legislation operates within the framework of extended producer responsibility, allowing the contributions payable for textile products to be adjusted according to factors such as the breadth of the product range, the frequency of new offerings and the incentives provided for repairing products.
Where this adjustment takes the form of a financial penalty, the law establishes the following maximum amounts per product:
- Up to €12 per product in 2026;
- Up to €14 per product in 2027;
- Up to €16 per product in 2028;
- Up to €18 per product in 2029;
- Up to €20 per product from 2030 onwards.
These figures represent the statutory maximum amounts.
The actual fee schedule, introduced by the Order (arrêté) of 24 August 2026 and applicable from 1 September 2026, instead differentiates the amounts by product category. For example, in 2026 and 2027, it provides for penalties of €2 for T-shirts and polo shirts, €9 for jeans and €12 for jackets and coats. These amounts apply to products whose durability coefficient (D), calculated on the basis of the breadth of the product range and the incentives for repair, is equal to or lower than 0.8. From 2030, the fee schedule provides for a penalty of €19.50 for jackets and coats, remaining within the statutory maximum of €20.
Upon a duly reasoned request by the producer, producer responsibility organisations must cap the penalty at 50% of the selling price excluding taxes.
The environmental malus is imposed on producers under the extended producer responsibility framework: it is not a charge that the law directly imposes on consumers. It may affect the economic viability of the business model, but any resulting increase in the final retail price depends on the operator’s commercial decisions.
The law also requires part of the contributions paid by textile producers to finance infrastructure in France for the collection, sorting, reuse, preparation for reuse and recycling of textile products.
The aim, therefore, is not merely to increase the cost of products considered particularly problematic, but also to ensure that at least part of the costs associated with their end-of-life management are borne within the supply chain itself.
Will ultra-fast fashion still be allowed to advertise on social media?
From 1 January 2027, France will prohibit advertising for products falling within the definition of mode ultra-express, as well as the direct or indirect promotion of brands that engage in such practices.
The law also expressly addresses influencer marketing. From the same date, influencers will be prohibited from directly or indirectly promoting the products and brands concerned, regardless of whether the promotional activity is paid or unpaid. Violations may result in administrative fines of up to €100,000.
This issue is particularly relevant to one of the trends that has accompanied the growth of ultra-fast fashion: so-called “hauls”, videos in which creators display numerous products purchased or received from a particular brand in rapid succession.
The legislation does not expressly prohibit haul videos as such. However, where the content amounts to direct or indirect commercial promotion of products or brands covered by the ultra-fast fashion rules, it may fall within the advertising ban.
Cross-border application nevertheless requires particular attention. Articles 1 and 6 of the law provide for specific exclusions concerning operators established in other EU or European Economic Area (EEA) countries and, as regards advertising, certain media service providers subject to the jurisdiction of another Member State, without prejudice to the exceptions and procedures established under EU law.
The mere fact that a website can be accessed from France is therefore not sufficient to make all the new obligations automatically applicable to an Italian operator.
What will change when we buy clothes online?
Online platforms falling within the definition of mode ultra-express will be required to display messages encouraging consumers to adopt more responsible consumption habits, reuse, repair and recycle products. These messages must also provide information about the social, environmental and health impacts of products, as well as the environmental impact of their delivery. The law leaves the content and display requirements of these messages to a decree of the Conseil d’État.
Article 2 of the law introduces an additional obligation for the textile products covered by the provision and sold online: the places of manufacture must be clearly and legibly indicated on the platform, next to the price and in characters of the same size. The wording of this provision is not expressly limited to products classified as ultra-fast fashion.
In this way, the French legislature seeks to bring information that would normally appear only on product labels directly into the consumer’s purchasing decision.
Alongside a price tag of just a few euros, consumers should therefore also be able to see immediately where the garment was manufactured.
Could the same happen in Italy?
Italy does not currently have legislation equivalent to the French law.
However, Bill No. 1690 has been introduced in the Italian Senate, specifically addressing the reduction of the fashion industry’s environmental impact and the fight against ultra-fast fashion.
The proposed legislation sets out a detailed definition of the phenomenon.
The factors identified in the bill include:
- The introduction of more than 5,000 new product references onto the market each month;
- The absence of seasonal collections;
- A product turnover cycle of less than 30 days;
- Product traceability issues;
- The predominant use of low-quality synthetic materials;
- The absence of structured strategies for product repair, reuse and end-of-life management.
The bill also proposes the introduction of a national textile Eco-Score system and restrictions on advertising and commercial promotion relating to rapidly renewed fashion collections.
However, it is important to emphasise that this is still a legislative proposal: these provisions are not currently binding in Italy, and the text may be amended during the parliamentary process.
France’s initiative is, moreover, part of a broader regulatory transformation already underway at European level.
The EU Strategy for Sustainable and Circular Textiles addresses the entire product life cycle. The European Ecodesign Regulation (EU) 2024/1781 establishes the framework for introducing requirements concerning durability, repairability and recyclability through delegated acts. One obligation already in force concerns unsold products: since 19 July 2026, large companies have been prohibited from destroying unsold apparel, clothing accessories and footwear listed in Annex VII, subject to the exceptions provided for under Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2026/296. For medium-sized enterprises, the prohibition will apply from 19 July 2030. Micro and small enterprises are exempt, subject to the applicable anti-circumvention rules.
For businesses, online platforms and advertising operators, legal compliance assessments must therefore consider whether the environmental malus applies, whether advertising restrictions are triggered and which information requirements apply to online sales. For operators based in Italy, the first step is to distinguish between rules already applicable in their own market, the conditions under which French legislation may apply and proposals that are still under parliamentary consideration.
Revisionato da: Arlo Canella
Data di pubblicazione: 13 Ottobre 2026
© Canella Camaiora S.t.A. S.r.l. - Tutti i diritti riservati.
È consentita la riproduzione testuale dell’articolo, anche a fini commerciali, nei limiti del 15% della sua totalità a condizione che venga indicata chiaramente la fonte. In caso di riproduzione online, deve essere inserito un link all’articolo originale. La riproduzione o la parafrasi non autorizzata e senza indicazione della fonte sarà perseguita legalmente.
Margherita Manca
Avvocato presso lo Studio Legale Canella Camaiora, iscritta all’Ordine degli Avvocati di Milano, si occupa di diritto industriale.