As ecommerce become an increasingly mature business, more and more laws and regulations come in place. This is also because Europe desperately wants to have one, unified ecommerce market. The Directive on Consumer Right is one of these examples. As of 13 June 2014 it replaced certain directives and it’s focused more on protecting the online consumer than the European Union did before.
The European Commission wants to crack down on misleading and addictive online sales techniques and has presented a proposal for the Digital Fairness Act. It includes measures targeting dark patterns, addictive design and influencer marketing.
The Council of the European Union has agreed on further measures to improve VAT collection on online sales in the EU. According to their proposal, the digital VAT Import One Stop Shop (IOSS) will need to be expanded. In the future, platforms and suppliers will be able to account for VAT on high value goods on this system as well.
The European Commission has approved an action plan submitted by Temu to combat the spread of illegal products. The Chinese platform has committed to implementing five corrective measures. The fine previously imposed on Temu remains in place.
Customs authorities and other enforcement agencies in the EU intercepted a record 196 million suspected counterfeit items last year, with a total estimated value of 6.3 billion euros. That is 67 percent more than in 2024.
The European Parliament wants to reduce the administrative burden on SMEs in regards to waste legislation. It wants to exempt small companies from the obligation of appointing a representative for waste legislation compliance in each EU-member state where they sell products.
The government of the United Kingdom wants to make marketplaces responsible for collecting VAT on sales by larger domestic sellers. The proposed measure could raise up to 1 billion pounds a year for the Treasury, with the additional revenue intended to fund tax cuts for high street businesses.
The European Commission is working on a new fee for packages from outside the EU. This surveillance fee is intended to facilitate better product inspections. The fee will be in addition to the 3-euro import duty and the upcoming 2-euro fee for customs clearance.
As of today, Austria has introduced a national levy of 2 euros per parcel for large online sellers. The measure applies to online stores and marketplaces generating more than 100 million euros in annual sales to customers in the country. Thousands of other businesses are affected indirectly. Resistance to the levy is therefore considerable.
Growth in online consumer spending in Europe is slowing down. For the current year, Ecommerce Europe and EuroCommerce expect growth of 5 percent in nominal terms. The growth engine in Eastern Europe is grinding to a halt.
Temu has broken into the top 10 online retailers in almost every European country. In four countries, the platform owned by China’s PDD Holdings even ranks first, according to ECDB, based on its 2025 data. Worth noting that none of these countries has a local Amazon storefront or a major domestic marketplace.
Product carousels have almost entirely disappeared from Google’s shopping-related search results in the European Economic Area (EEA). For online retailers, a large part of their visibility in organic Shopping results has abruptly vanished.
Chinese ecommerce platforms such as AliExpress, Banggood, Shein, and Temu are more popular than average in Southern Europe, according to research by the European Central Bank (ECB). Shoppers are attracted by low prices and a wide product range.
The Dutch Consumer Association has sent a cease-and-desist letter to Amazon and Duch online marketplace Bol. The association demands that the platforms immediately stop offering misleading discounts. These fake deals violate legal regulations.
In 2025, 60 percent of German retailers who participated in a study said that they were dissatisfied or very dissatisfied with their online business. This indicates a significant decline compared to 2024. The share of satisfied or very satisfied sellers has fallen from 48 to 40 percent.
Customers of DHL Globalmail in the United Kingdom will soon no longer be able to send parcels to consumers in the European Union. The carrier is not yet operationally ready for the new customs rules that will take effect on July 1st.