The French Parliament approved on Monday (June 29, 2026) an anti-branding ultra-fast fashiontargeting e-commerce platforms like Shein, Temu and AliExpress. The measure comes after 2 years of debate on how to adapt the action to European Union regulations. With this decision, France is the first European country to decide to tax Chinese companies.
The parts of fast fashion contribute to pollution from the textile industry, responsible for almost 10% of global greenhouse gas emissions. The law imposes a piece rate for mass textile production and prohibits advertising by these brands, including by digital influencers. Here is the proposal, in French (PDF – 105 kB).
“This text is mainly aimed at e-commerce platforms like Shein, Temu or AliExpress: because they are the champions of this disposable, profoundly anti-ecological and falsely cheap fashion, given that we all, collectively, pay the price”the French Minister of Commerce, on Monday (June 29).
The legislation aims to ultra-fast fashion based on 2 criteria: the volume of clothes placed on the market and the cost of repairing the pieces in relation to their purchase price. The fee per item should vary on a predefined scale, according to each brand’s score on both criteria.
Here are other points that French law proposes:
- fine of up to 50% of the product price for platforms ultra-fast fashionfrom September 2026;
- prohibition of all advertising of ultra-fast fashion from January 1, 2027, in all media, including digital influencers;
- obligation to display awareness messages about reuse, repair and recycling on all relevant platforms.
The advertising ban is a central point of the bill, although there are still doubts about how it could be applied. The European Commission has questioned whether the measures comply with EU law.
The French government said it is based on similar principles to those that guide regulations on alcohol or cigarette advertising. However, if the Commission disagrees, France will not be able to apply the measure.
Some congressmen and activists criticized the proposal for sparing European and French companies such as Zara and Kiabi.
a center-right deputy who proposed the bill, told the agency AFP who needed legislation that could be passed “very quickly and for it to come into force”.
She stated: “We are being very strict with Shein, and this is the 1st step.”
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