France vs. fast fashion: A blueprint for the EU?
By Winona Kamphausen
TL;DR – What’s in the law?
On 10 June 2025, France passed one of the world’s most ambitious attempts to regulate ultra-fast fashion. The new legislation, targeting primarily Chinese platforms like SHEIN and Temu, introduces:
A €5 eco-tax per item sold, rising to €10 by 2030, capped at 50% of retail price.
A complete ban on advertising ultra-fast fashion from January 2026, including through influencers and social media.
Mandatory environmental transparency, with an eco-score displayed next to the product price.
Fines of up to €100,000 for violating advertising rules, and additional taxes on light packages imported from outside the EU.
The law will also require brands to provide clear information on a product’s durability, recyclability, carbon footprint, and country of origin, displayed at the same size as the price on all product pages. Revenue from these taxes will go toward supporting sustainable French fashion companies.
The bill passed with 337 votes in favour and just one against. It now awaits review by a joint committee in September and EU Commission approval that it complies with single market rules.
Why is fast fashion under fire?
The fast fashion industry is increasingly viewed as one of the most polluting and exploitative sectors of global commerce. In France alone, 35 clothing items are discarded every second, and most are made from synthetic, non-biodegradable materials that contribute to textile waste, plastic pollution, and carbon emissions.
Ultra-fast platforms like SHEIN and Temu amplify the problem. They churn out thousands of new styles daily, encouraging disposable consumption and undercutting environmental standards through low wages, opaque supply chains, and high-emission logistics. Between 2010 and 2023, the value of fast fashion advertising in France grew by nearly €1 billion, a clear sign of the model’s expanding cultural reach.
‘This could be the start of a new beginning,’ said Vojtech Vosecky, founder of The Circular Economist, on LinkedIn.
‘We have enough clothes for six generations.’
Opinion: France leads, but can the EU follow?
France deserves credit for pushing the conversation forward. In an era where climate commitments often lag behind consumer trends, this law represents a meaningful attempt to realign policy with planetary limits. It challenges not just overconsumption, but the deliberate design of disposability.
But there are serious risks of inconsistency and retaliation. While non-European platforms face the full weight of the law, major European brands like Zara and H&M are spared from advertising bans and the highest eco-taxes. Critics, including Friends of the Earth France, argue that this creates a double standard.
‘It’s a missed opportunity’
said campaign manager Pierre Condamine, warning that 90% of the market remains untouched by the law’s strongest provisions.
This selective enforcement could backfire. Not only does it risk legal challenges at the EU level, but it may also strain relations with China, which could see the move as a disguised trade barrier. China may push back diplomatically or economically.
If France truly wants to lead, it should work to harmonise this approach across the EU, not just to avoid accusations of protectionism, but to ensure the environmental ambition is real. A green transition can’t happen in silos, and it can’t rest on selectively punishing a few headline-grabbing platforms while ignoring homegrown overproduction.
This law is a beginning. But to have an impact beyond France, it needs to become the basis of European regulation, not just a national gesture.
