EU withdrawal button 2026: the online withdrawal function

The EU withdrawal button is the everyday name for a new duty: from 19 June 2026, a shop that sells to consumers through a website or an app must let them withdraw from the contract online, through a clearly labelled function. The rule is Article 11a of the Consumer Rights Directive. This guide goes through it step by step, explains what stays the same, and covers the design questions shops ask most.

The right of withdrawal in brief

The right itself is not new. Under Directive 2011/83/EU, the Consumer Rights Directive, consumers who buy at a distance have time to change their mind:

Save where the exceptions provided for in Article 16 apply, the consumer shall have a period of 14 days to withdraw from a distance or off-premises contract, without giving any reason, and without incurring any costs other than those provided for in Article 13(2) and Article 14.

— Article 9(1) of Directive 2011/83/EU

For goods, the 14 days run from the day the consumer takes physical possession of them. For several goods in one order delivered separately, they run from the last one (Article 9(2)).

If the trader did not give the required information about the right of withdrawal, the period expires 12 months after the end of the initial period (Article 10(1)).

The main exceptions

Article 16 lists contracts with no right of withdrawal. The ones an online shop meets most often are:

• goods made to the consumer’s specifications or clearly personalised;
• goods liable to deteriorate or expire rapidly;
• sealed goods that are not suitable for return for health protection or hygiene reasons and were unsealed after delivery;
• sealed audio or video recordings or sealed software, unsealed after delivery;
• digital content not supplied on a tangible medium, once performance has begun under the conditions in point (m);
• newspapers, periodicals and magazines, other than subscriptions.

The list is longer and each point has conditions. Read Article 16 and your national law before relying on an exception.

Where the withdrawal function comes from

Directive (EU) 2023/2673 of 22 November 2023 is mostly about financial services sold at a distance. It also adds Article 11a to the Consumer Rights Directive, and that article is general. The recitals say the obligation should apply “to all distance contracts that are subject to the right of withdrawal under Directive 2011/83/EU”.

The stated aim is that “consumers can withdraw from a contract just as easily as they can conclude it” (recital 37).

Member States had to adopt national measures by 19 December 2025 and “shall apply those measures from 19 June 2026” (Article 2(1)). As with every directive, the rule reaches a shop through national law, so check the law of the countries you sell to.

What Article 11a requires, step by step

The core is the first paragraph:

1. For distance contracts concluded by the means of an online interface, the trader shall ensure that the consumer can also withdraw from the contract by using a withdrawal function.

The withdrawal function shall be labelled with the words “withdraw from contract here” or an unambiguous corresponding formulation in an easily legible way. The withdrawal function shall be continuously available throughout the withdrawal period. It shall be prominently displayed on the online interface and easily accessible to the consumer.

— Article 11a(1) of Directive 2011/83/EU, inserted by Article 1(3) of Directive (EU) 2023/2673

The rest of the article describes a sequence. In order:

A few notes on the wording.

“Online interface.” The recital gives “a website or application” as examples. A web shop is the standard case.

“Provide or confirm.” The two verbs matter. A consumer who is logged in can confirm details the shop already holds. A consumer who is not has to be able to provide them.

“Only with the words.” The second button carries the confirmation label and nothing else. According to the recital, this step exists “to avoid the unintended exercise of the right of withdrawal”.

“Durable medium.” The Consumer Rights Directive defines this as an instrument that lets the consumer store information addressed personally to them, accessible for future reference and reproducible unchanged. The directive’s own model instructions give email as the example.

“Its content.” The acknowledgement repeats what the consumer submitted. A message that only says “we received your request” leaves that out.

What the withdrawal function does not change

Article 11a adds a channel. It does not rewrite the right of withdrawal.

• Other ways to withdraw stay valid. The consumer can “also” use the function. Under Article 11(1), the model withdrawal form and “any other unequivocal statement” remain available. An email or a letter still counts.
• The period and the exceptions are the same. Directive (EU) 2023/2673 does not amend Articles 9, 10 or 16.
• The refund rule is the same. The trader reimburses all payments received, including standard delivery costs, “without undue delay and in any event not later than 14 days from the day on which he is informed” of the decision to withdraw (Article 13(1)). For sales contracts, the trader may withhold the reimbursement until the goods are back or the consumer has supplied evidence of having sent them, unless the trader offered to collect them (Article 13(3)).
• The return rule is the same. The consumer sends the goods back within 14 days of communicating the decision, and bears the direct cost of return unless the trader agreed to bear it or failed to inform the consumer (Article 14(1)).

Two connected texts did change. The pre-contractual information in Article 6(1), point (h), now includes, where applicable, “information about the existence and placement of the withdrawal function”. The model instructions on withdrawal in Annex I(A) gained a sentence beginning “You can also exercise your right of withdrawal online at”, followed by the address. Shops that use the model instructions should update them.

Practical design questions

The directive sets outcomes, not layouts. The points below show how the text bears on common decisions. They are not a substitute for national law or guidance.

Where to put it

The text asks for a function that is “prominently displayed” and “easily accessible”. The recital adds that it should be “easy for the consumer to find, continuously available and clearly visible during the withdrawal period”, and that the consumer should not have to do things like download an app if the contract was not concluded in that app.

Because every order has its own withdrawal period, a shop that sells continuously always has customers inside one. In practice that points to a permanent place on the site, such as the footer or header of every page, not a link that appears and disappears.

The recital also says the trader “could for example provide hyperlinks leading the consumer to the withdrawal function”. A link in the order confirmation email is one way to do that, in addition to the function on the site.

Logged-in customers and guest orders

The recital says that a consumer who has already identified themselves, “for example by logging in”, should be able to withdraw without giving their identification or the contract details again.

Article 11a does not mention customer accounts. A function that only works after login is hard to reconcile with “easily accessible” for someone who bought as a guest. A form that accepts a name, an order number and an email address covers both cases.

What to ask for

Paragraph 2 lists three pieces of information. Article 9 gives the right “without giving any reason”. A mandatory “reason for return” field, or other required fields beyond what identifies the order, sits uneasily with both. If you ask for a reason, the safer reading is to keep it optional.

Partial withdrawals

The recital says that where a consumer ordered several goods or services in one contract, “the trader can provide the consumer with the possibility to withdraw from a part rather than the whole of the contract”. The article does not require this, but an optional field for the items concerned is in line with it.

The acknowledgement

An automatic message is the straightforward way to meet “without undue delay”. It has to include the submitted details and the date and time of submission.

The text calls it an acknowledgement of receipt. It records that the statement arrived and when. It does not say that it settles whether a right of withdrawal exists for that order, for example where an Article 16 exception applies.

Record keeping

Article 11a does not require the trader to keep a register. Two other rules make records useful all the same. The 14-day refund deadline runs from the day the trader is informed, so the submission time matters. And the consumer holds a dated acknowledgement; a shop without its own record has nothing to compare it with.

Withdrawal statements contain personal data. Data protection law applies to how you store them and for how long.

A checklist for your shop

1. Is there a function labelled “withdraw from contract here”, or the wording your national law uses, in an easily legible way?
2. Can a shopper find it on the site at any time, without logging in and without searching?
3. Does the statement ask for the name, the order and an electronic contact, with logged-in customers able to confirm what you already hold?
4. Is the final step a button labelled only “confirm withdrawal” or the national equivalent?
5. Does the consumer receive an automatic acknowledgement by email, with the content of the statement and the date and time of submission?
6. Are requests recorded with their submission time, and does someone act on them within the refund deadline?
7. Do your withdrawal instructions and terms mention the function and where to find it?
8. Do email, post and the model form still work as before?
9. Have you checked the national law of each EU country you sell to?

If you would rather not build this yourself, StoreCompliant’s withdrawal button adds the labelled link, a two-step form, the confirmation email and a log of every request. It is a compliance aid, not legal advice; the trader remains responsible for the shop.

How the rule is enforced

Enforcement is national. Article 24 of the Consumer Rights Directive requires Member States to lay down penalties that are “effective, proportionate and dissuasive”. The authority in charge and the amounts are in national law.

The withdrawal function is one of three display duties covered in these guides. See also the 30-day lowest price rule and the EU legal guarantee notice, the FAQ, and the plans and pricing.